Dining in Würzburg

On November 30, 2016 By Isobar ExpeditionsIn Germany, Recipes4 Comments

We mentioned this the other day, but we were very fortunate to find a wonderful little restaurant in Würzburg over the past weekend. We were walking some of the side streets, trying to get away from the larger crowds around the Christmas markets when we found Stachel, a restaurant established in 1413. The atmosphere was relaxing with wonderful stained glass windows and very unique chandeliers. In fact, we have found a lot of places to have beautiful chandeliers, which we have enjoyed seeing.

We don’t usually do starters as well as an entrée, which we shared of course, but we decided to do so this particular day. Game food is definitely on the specialty menus these days, rabbit, duck, goose, and venison can be found at almost every authentic German restaurant. There are also a variety of seasonal soups, including chestnuts, Riesling, and potato soups. We decided to go ahead and get the black pudding, also known as blood pudding, which was served with roasted potatoes.

Trio of Soup, Potato, Beef Broth, Creamy Riesling

For the entrée, we chose the half duck, which was definitely a lot of food for the two of us, but it was exquisite. Tender and moist, but the crispy skin was the highlight of the meal. We have had potato dumplings before and the ones that accompanied our duck were very similar, although it is hard to describe the texture of these springy sponges. A local beer was definitely the perfect pairing for the gamey taste of the duck.

Speaking of beer, our day started by stopping in a small pub as we arrived in town. We would later learn that there is a difference in how the people from the Bayern region view having a beer early in the day versus those in the Hessen region where Frankfurt sits. This was definitely the local watering hole and although it was only noon, there were not any empty seats as the local men gathered to share stories from the week and most likely talk politics and life.

It isn’t all about beer, though, Germany has wonderful wines and we have enjoyed many of those as well. We ended our day by stopping by a wine bar, Weinstube, which carried local red and white wines. Their logo is a monkey drinking wine with a pretzel in his hand, so we shouldn’t have been surprised when our wine glasses arrived with a plastic monkey hanging from the lip. Some cheese covered bread to go with the wine made our food day complete. We probably won’t have a chance to visit Würzburg again, but we definitely enjoyed the food and drinks that we were able to have during our brief visit.

The Best of the Wurst

On October 19, 2016 By Isobar ExpeditionsIn Germany, Recipes9 Comments

Most everyone knows that there are a lot of different sausages in Germany, including the one most commonly known in the United States, Bratwurst. We have had the opportunity to try several varieties of wursts and most have been extremely good. They are often, but not always, served with sauerkraut and mashed potatoes or on a bun with mustard.

Rindwurst – Beef Sausage with Potato Salad

We have seen many people eating Frankfurt’s gift to the world, the frankfurter, but we have yet to try the local version for ourselves. Perhaps it is because, once we moved into our apartment, we now consider ourselves to be Frankfurters 😀. In addition to trying the various sausages, we have also had a couple different versions of schnitzel. They also have been very delicious, however neither of these German staples are very health conscious.

We look forward to trying some of these same dishes in some of the smaller hamlets to see how they vary throughout the different regions of Germany, but we will need to do a lot of walking to justify eating that much rich food. As for our favorite meal so far, we will have to say that they were each good in their own way and perhaps the quintessential experience is yet to be had. Obviously there is a wide variety of food in Frankfurt and we have eaten many different styles of food since we have arrived, but we’ll share some of those meals later.

Sausage Alfredo with Rainbow Pasta

On September 10, 2015September 10, 2015 By Isobar ExpeditionsIn RecipesLeave a comment

We were in Boulder over the weekend and found a little store with authentic European curiosities. While we were in the Italian section, we found a rainbow pasta that we decided that we just had to buy. When we got home, we decided that we would do an Alfredo sauce with some sweet Italian sausage that we picked up from the local butcher. Not only was it a pretty plate, but it was definitely yummy as well!

Ingredients

1 tbsp. Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1/2 lb Sweet Italian Sausage
3 tbsp Unsalted Butter
2 Cloves Garlic – minced
4 oz Crimini Mushrooms
2 cups Cream (Half and Half)
1/2 cup Parmesan Cheese – finely grated
1 package Rainbow Pasta
Dash of Nutmeg
Salt and Pepper to taste

Instructions

Remove the sausage from the casing, if necessary, and crumble. Add the olive oil to a sauté pan and heat to medium-high heat. Add the sausage and cook until no longer pink, then remove from the pan and set aside. Add the butter and the mushrooms. After the mushrooms become a little soft, add the garlic. Once the mushrooms are completely cooked, add the cream, salt and pepper, and nutmeg. Cook the pasta according to package directions. Once the sauce has thickened, add the cheese and stir until fully melted. Drain the pasta and put the sauce over the pasta to serve.