Sunday 8 September 2013

Till Death do us Part: Federweisser & Zwiebelkuchen

"I take you to be my lawfully wedded wife, to have and to hold, from this day forward, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, until death do us part."
Does this sound familiar? Sometimes you hear such a vow or a similar one at  a wedding. These days, sadly, things turn out differently with the "until death do us part". Well, you know. There is no chance in denying. That's the reality of life.
However, there are other things, which are impossible to separate. No chance. When you hear about one, you automatically think about the other. For some it even applies beyond death, like Romeo and Juliet, or David and Goliath, or Bonnie and Clyde. What about nitro and glycerin, Paris and the Eiffel Tower, Rome and the Colloseum.
Now we could go on for ages like that, but we like to talk food here. What comes to your mind in connection with food and inseparable? I have a try: Hamburger and chips (or fries). Oh, I have a triple one (at least for me): baguette, cheese and red wine.
Today, though, I want to go for something you might not be so familiar with: Federweisser and Zwiebelkuchen. 


Oh, that's German. What is it all about?

Mainly it's something in the wine regions in Germany further down to the South, although you find similar things in neighbouring countries as well.
Federweisser is an alcoholic beverage. Typically it has 4 percent alcohol by volume. However, the one I had available, did have over 8 percent alcohol by volume. Basically, just to keep it simple, Federweisser is the product of fermented freshly pressed grape juice. The drink is kind of sparkly and really refreshing. So I was really lucky, since the day I had this meal, it was fine summer weather. Now about the name itself. It contains the word for feather (Feder) and white (Weiss). That shows as well, that white grapes are used for it, although there is a red version as well. But I have never tried that one.
Zwiebelkuchen is onion cake.
So, when I saw a bottle of Federweisser in the shop, I said to myself: You need to have Federweisser & Zwiebelkuchen.
Now, if you happened to have a closer look at the photo and the bottle, you might have recognised that the very bottle I had was originally from Italy, from Puglia. Obviously, they like Federweisser, too. Though I'm not sure, what they are having with it.
Whatever the case, we are having Federweisser with Zwiebelkuchen. 
Easy for me that the bottle came right away with the recipe for onion cake on it, another proof that these two simply belong together.

Ingredients:
250 g flour
10 g yeast
40 ml olive oil
125 ml not too cold milk
Pinch of sugar
Salt
400 g onions, cut into rings
125 g bacon, cut into cubes
2 eggs
200 ml sour cream
Pepper

Method:
Of course, you have to buy the Federweisser somewhere. The recipe is just for the onion cake to go with it. Sure!
Mix the milk with the yeast, sugar and olive oil and leave together for a few minutes.
Put the flour in a bowl together with the pinch of salt.
After that you unite the flour and the yeast mixture to a yeast dough, which you have to set aside for rising. When the dough has increased in volume finally, it's time to spread it on an lightly oiled baking tray or into a cake tin. Whatever you prefer.



Throw the onion rings on top of it. You see, it's no harm to use different kinds of onions. You could even use a little less onions, if you fear it will be too much.



Do with the bacon cubes in a similar manner. Some might say now, I take rather more bacon. Fine, the final decision lies with you.
Break the two eggs into a small bowl and mix them thoroughly with the sour cream.



Pour, if you can, it then over the onions and bacon. Off the cake goes to the oven at 220 °C for about 35 minutes or until it got sufficient colour according to your liking. It may look like this then.



Or, if you have a closer look, an individual slice may look like this.



Then it's time to eat and drink. You can serve a salad on the side and enjoy your meal.



I loved it and I look forwards to have the leftovers later on.
Well, I would say, by now you had sufficient time to think about further inseparable food or food and drink couplings, till death do them part. Just feel free and speak your mind. 
What would you say?

10 comments:

  1. YES! I cannot believe it! I remember having federweisser and Zwiebelkuchen in Wiesbaden when I was there many years ago, in Autumn and I have longed for both of them since then! I cannot find federweisser in France or the UK, but I can make the Zwiebelkuchen! THANKS so much Chris! Karen

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    1. You are very welcome Karen. Even here I had to search several shops for it, but luckily I found some. Sadly, I can't even send you a bottle, it wouldn't make it safely.

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  2. Chris this sounds quite delicious.... I've not heard of it before. Thanks so much for sharing your recipe!

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    1. It would have been the same for me hadn't I not made a special visit near Frankfurt some years ago.

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  3. That Federweisser stuff sounds seriously good! I would love to try it but I doubt very much I could get hold of it in these parts. But your onion cake sounds really interesting too. Having thought about foods that I think are inseparable...I would say Strawberries & Cream or Steak & Kidney Pie & Mash with a pint of beer... Oh yes, these pairings make me very happy indeed. Thanks for entering Four Seasons Food x

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    1. Thanks you very much for your thoughts on food pairings. It's well appreciated. I'm glad, you like the recipe, too. For sure it would be a challenge to find a way to make your own Federweisser. It's always good to join blog challenges or hops like Four Seasons Food. I only hope, Autumn will not be like the weather today.

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  4. Looks properly delish! I may well give it a try with some veggie bacon (I have some in the freezer).

    Thanks for linking up to #recipeoftheweek. Pinned and Stumbled. There's a new linky live now if you want to join in :) x

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    1. Thank you! Well, it sounds like it would work, although I have never tried veggie bacon.

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  5. Though I am not able to pronounce either, I do like the sound of this drink-food combination, and the onion pie looks just lush

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    1. This is the kind of seasonal drink-food combination that is worth to wait for every year, as long as it is possible to get in the region, of course.

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