Thank you, local farmers!

We are skipping the turkey this year. Instead of spending my time basting and stuffing, I want to give a shout-out to the local farmers and producers who have filled our table with such wonderful foods this year.

When I moved to rural northeast Pennsylvania in 2001, it was a real culture shock. Yes, the culture shock did not happen when I moved from Germany to New York City three years prior. It happened when I moved from the city to the country. It was not only because living on a rural hilltop and telecommuting is an isolated and remote lifestyle, it was also because I realized that my image of country life was a bucolic fantasy. Continue reading

Spoonfuls of Germany is part of The German-American Friendship Year

Twenty years after I immigrated from Germany to the United States, my ties to my native country are still strong. From the red and black currants I grow in my garden, to the bread, cakes and pastries I bake, there is a taste of Germany, a little bit of German customs and traditions in my life every day.

That’s why I am happy, with my German food blog, Spoonfuls of Germany, to be part of The German-American Friendship Year (Deutschlandjahr USA). The campaign officially kicks off on October 3, 2018, and runs for an entire year.

On Spoonfuls of Germany I explore Germany through its food from the American vantage point. Based on the concept that many foods and dishes have a fascinating story behind them, the blog provides a personal window into Germany’s history, society, culture, politics, arts, and more.

During Deutschlandjahr, the blog will focus on German food culture in the United States, tracing its German origins, how it evolved, and profiling the people behind the food.

The art of the barter

In late July, my friend Lise gave me a large bag of wild blueberries that she and her boyfriend had picked. Picking wild blueberries, which taste unlike any of the cultivated varieties, is backbreaking and tedious. In exchange for the wild blueberries, I gave Lise a couple of jars of my homemade elderflower jelly.

Also by bartering, this summer I obtained other fresh local produce, including some horseradish I needed for pickling beets, and a load of peppers when my entire crop failed. I received all these bounties in exchange for my homemade jams, jellies and pickles. Continue reading

Meditation, a make-shift solution, and monkey bread

There are very few people over the age of five and under retirement age who don’t own a smartphone. I am one of them, and my husband is too. Nowadays there are increasingly instances when I must out myself that I only own a flip phone, for example when I am told at a store that instead of getting a hole punched in the frequent buyer paper card, I can just log my purchases with the app on my phone. I get funny looks, and often feel compelled to explain why I don’t have a smartphone. Continue reading