My German-American Christmas Heritage
Christmas Tree Drawing by Gretchen Little. All Rights Reserved.
It All Started
in central Illinois
A few generations back, my family immigrated from Germany to central Illinois, about 50 miles west of St. Louis. There they became dairy farmers who supplied milk to the city of St. Louis. My great-grandfather left Illinois and moved to north St. Louis where he and my great-grandma owned a candy store. My grandpa grew up there and married my grandma who was from the Boot Heel of Missouri. They had my mom and her sister.I think during all those generations Christmas was not the huge production it is now. It wasn't until I came along in the early 1960's that there was as much access and more money to spend on things. Although grandma was more Irish than German, she really picked up on the German culture from her husband's family and passed it on to me.
My mom went to visit the family in Illinois when she was a girl in the 1930s, and they were still speaking German there. She still talks about Aunt "Rikka" (Fredricka) and Grandma Kaup.
My mom's sister went on to become a German and Russian language teacher. She was very creative and made sure I knew the German folk tales.
We hosted a girl from West German in 1970, when I was ten, so I had a German "big sister" (who thought all our German traditions were quaint and old fashioned).
From all that and more I feel very tied to my German roots.
Great-Great Grandmother Wilhelmina
Traditional German Advent Calender
Santa German Christmas Pyramid
The German Christmas Tree
My grandparents in St. Louis always got what I now know is a more European style Christmas tree. Usually a balsam fir, it was more spindly than what Americans expect from a Christmas tree. That left more room to display the glass Christmas ornaments. Often it was a lot smaller tree, too, sometimes even small enough to put on a table top. These aren't my photos but these trees look a lot like the kind of tree they had.
German Glass Christmas Ornaments
Intricate and fragile
Inge-Glas "We Three Kings" German Glass Christmas Ornament 3-Piece Set #40110907
Amazon Price: (as of 05/31/2012)
More German Glass Ornaments
Sauerbraten
Although we usually have turkey, this pickled beef roast called Sauerbraten would be a logical choice for Christmas dinner. This recipe is from my great-great grandmother Freda who came to America when she was a little girl.In a crockery bowl place a 3 pound piece of top sirloin, rump, or chuck and cover with a marinade of:
1 cup vinegar
1 cup water
1 bay leaf, crushed
6 cloves
2 or 3 peppercorns
1 medium onion
1 tsp mustard seeds
1 rib of celery
1 tsp salt
1 tsp brown sugar
Set bowl in refrigerator for 3 days, turning meat each day. Remove, dry and brown in a little grease [probably bacon fat or lard originally] in an iron Dutch oven. When browned add a little water or a cup of marinade or more. Cover and simmer 3 hours or until tender. Thicken gravy with crushed gingersnap cookies and serve.
It's interesting to note that a lot of other sauerbraten recipes use juniper berries in the marinade. Sauerbraten is often served with a tender little dumpling called spaetzle. I'm lucky enough to live near the Amana Colonies where I can go to a restaurant and get many old world German dishes.
Creamed Spinach Recipe
A Christmas Favorite
This is a grandma Freda recipe, too. It's a family treat, although much easier to make now that you can buy that nice pre-washed spinach. I remember my grandma washing and washing and washing the spinach to get the grit out of it. The other crucial ingredients are Zweibach toast (look in the baby food aisle) and fresh grated nutmeg.This is the recipe exactly as it's written on the card:
Remove from 2 pounds fresh spinach the large stems. Wash leaves and small stems in several cold waters. Drain and put in a large pan. Cover with boiling water and cook until tender, about 15 minutes. Drain in colander and chop fine. Place chopped spinach in iron skillet. Add a piece of butter the size of a walnut , about 3/4 teaspoon salt, 6 or more pieces of Zweibach toast grated, 1 cup milk (or cream) and 1/2 teaspoon fresh grated nutmeg. Simmer until heated through, stirring often. Serve with hard boiled egg slices on top.
Mashed Potatoes and Turnips or Rutabaga
Simple but delicious
There is nothing fancy about this recipe but it was a staple in all my German family's house. Peel potatoes and turnips or rutabaga in a ratio of two parts potato to one part turnip/rutabaga. Boil separately in salted water because the turnips/rutabaga takes a little longer to cook. Then you mash them together with salt, pepper, butter, and milk/cream. I like the rutabaga better because it's sweeter. A Traditional German Christmas
A Baking Book
A Traditional German Christmas
Amazon Price: (as of 05/31/2012)
Explore a big variety of different recipes for the holidays. Like cookies, breads, the gingerbread house, sweets, candies and alcoholic beverages.
They can be enjoyed throughout the whole year, but especially for the Christmas holidays.
Everything is explained step by step, with hints and tips, so it does not matter if you are a beginner or a pro.
In the introduction of the book it explains how Germans traditionally to this day celebrate the holidays, as well as the different types of cookies and a brief look into the "Cookies History".
Surprise your family and friends this holiday season with something new. Or just bake something for a loved one which will remind them or even yourself of "Good old Germany".
Let you taste buds not only bring back, but also create new Christmas memories.
Stollen
Yeast based citron and raisin coffee cake
Stollen is something that Great-Great-Grandma Kaup made, and then my grandmother did. I don't have the original recipe for it, so I've gathered some here. I wasn't a big fan of citron so I'm not sure they made it that much any more by the time I came on the scene. I've made it once or twice.Martha Stewart's Christmas Morning Stollen
This recipe doesn't have citron in it so it's not what I would consider a stollen, but it looks easy enough.
Stollen recipe from Sara's Secrets on the Food Network
This one has rum, candied fruit, raisins, honey, lemon, and almonds.
Stollen recipe from The Fresh Loaf blog
Another variation of the one above with great pictures.
Aunt Rikka's Sugar Cookies
Lebkuchen
A honey and citron gingerbread cookie
I was sure that lebkuchen, a kind of ginger cookie with citron in it, had been passed down through the generations. But apparently it wasn't when I asked my mom about it. My mom's sister married into another family with a strong German history and I think maybe it came from them because my aunt loved to cook. She was also a German language teacher, though, so she may have found it and introduced it to us. I think the recipe we used came straight of the Betty Crocker cookbook, though.I haven't made them in a long time because they aren't easy to make. The dough gets sticky in a hurry because of the honey. We used to roll out the dough and cut them in rectangles like the picture here. I think sometimes we put a lemon glaze on them.
Here is a recipe I found that looks like the one we used.
- Lebkuchen Recipe
- A sort of gingerbread with citron, honey, and lemon.
The Elusive "Pot Kuchen"
A cake baked in a coffee can
My German great-great-grandmother used to bake something called pot kuchen. I think it was some kind of coffee cake, atlhough I don't know if it was cake based or yeast based. My mom doesn't seem to really remember, either.I have searched more than once online for a suitable recipe. I found this fruitcake baked in a coffee can. The ingredients actually sound like something found in other German recipes: raisins, currents, citron, dates with coffee, orange juice, lemon juice, molasses, and what I call gingerbread spices. It sounds really delicious, and I think my great-great-grandmother would approve.
German Christmas Carols
It wasn't unusual for my aunt the German teacher to be singing carols in German when I was around. In high school I was in a small a capella singing group that sang Es Ist Ein Ros Entsprungen in German and I felt right at home. The Christmas Eve that I was in a large church choir in suburban St. Louis and we sang Silent Night by candlelight in German is another one of my all time favorite Christmas moments.
Porcupine Ball Paper Ornaments
Steiff Puppets and Stuffed Animals
I couldn't find any Steiff puppets on Amazon, but I did find this handsome owl that I like very much.
Steiff Wittie Owl 6.25"
Amazon Price: (as of 05/31/2012)
Realistic features
Made of the finest mohair
Made in Germany
Part of the Forest and Meadow Animals Collection
Includes the famous "button in the ear" Steiff trademark tag
Felt Christmas Decorations
The Christmas Rose
The Christmas Rose
Amazon Price: $1.14 (as of 05/31/2012)
Fritz and Gretl's father is very ill and can only be cured by a magical Christmas rose from the Winter King. With the help of some forest animals and a snow giant, Fritz and Gretl bravely make the difficult journey to the Winter King's fortress. There they learn that they must get the blessing of the Christ Child, a Christmas angel, in order for the rose to bloom and cure their father. This rediscovered German story is full of classic Christmas charm. In mini-chapters, readers share the advent of Christmas from December 6th, Saint Nikolaus Day, to December 24th, when Germans celebrate Christmas.
Christmas in Germany: A Cultural History
I would love a copy of this for myself
Christmas in Germany: A Cultural History
Amazon Price: $35.51 (as of 05/31/2012)
For poets, priests, and politicians--and especially ordinary Germans--in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, the image of the loving nuclear family gathered around the Christmas tree symbolized the unity of the nation at large. German Christmas was supposedly organic, a product of the winter solstice rituals of pagan "Teutonic" tribes, the celebration of the birth of Jesus, and the age-old customs that defined German character. Yet, as Joe Perry argues, Germans also used these annual celebrations to contest the deepest values that held the German community together: faith, family, and love, certainly, but also civic responsibility, material prosperity, and national belonging. This richly illustrated volume explores the invention, evolution, and politicization of Germany's favorite national holiday. By unpacking the intimate links between domestic celebration, popular piety, consumer desires, and political ideology, Perry concludes that family festivity was central in the making and remaking of public national identities.
More German Christmas Traditions
What are your Christmas traditions?
And any other comments
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TamaraKajari
Dec 21, 2011 @ 4:03 pm | delete
- Sauerbraten is often served in Croatia too and side dishes are mainly the same as in Germany and Austria. Sauerkraut is common "winter dish" and those cookies and cakes you're showing here are so good. We are too close to forget all the influence that happened throughout the history. And why should we when it tastes divine :) Great lens!
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Pastiche
Dec 16, 2011 @ 6:54 pm | delete
- Some of our family traditions are from my German grandparents. We have a collection of nutcrackers and old German ornaments, a 3-foot tall wooden candle pyramid, advent calendars and of course the pickle ornament!
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GonnaFly
Dec 15, 2011 @ 6:06 pm | delete
- Wonderful. Thanks for sharing all these traditions with us.
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celeBritys4africA
Nov 30, 2011 @ 10:36 pm | delete
- I am keen to learn about the German Christmas tradition.
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puerdycat
Nov 25, 2010 @ 12:58 pm | delete
- Thanksgiving day, turkey in the oven and here I am. And what a great lens you have. Umm. I can just enhale this stuff! Thank you so much.
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