Strudel, Noodles and Dumplings: The New Taste of German Cooking. Anja Dunk

      CHILLED BUTTERMILK SOUP WITH LEMON AND BAY

CHILLED BUTTERMILK SOUP

      WITH LEMON AND BAY

      Hardly a recipe – no cooking, just some infusing time and a good whisk. This is exactly the kind of dish that is perfect for a weekday. It takes just a few minutes to prepare in the morning and a few more to assemble at night.

      Leftover rice is often added to buttermilk soup to bulk it out, and it works well in both chilled and hot soup, as below and here. If you decide to add pre-cooked rice to this, add it to the soup before the final hour of chilling.

      SERVES 4

      1 litre buttermilk

      12 bay leaves, bruised

      zest of 1 unwaxed lemon, finely grated

      1–2 tablespoons lemon juice (depending on how sour you like it)

      2 egg yolks

      50g vanilla sugars

      FOR THE BREAD

      80g fresh rye bread (any bread will do, but rye is best)

      3 tablespoons unsalted butter

      3 tablespoons vanilla sugar

      First, the buttermilk needs to be infused with the bay leaves for a couple of hours. I usually do this in the morning so that it is bright and fragrant by the afternoon. Pour the buttermilk into a large bowl, add the bruised bay leaves, stir them around, then cover the bowl and refrigerate for a good 5 hours at least (obviously the longer you leave it the stronger it becomes).

      Once the buttermilk is sufficiently infused, take the bay leaves out and whisk in the lemon zest, lemon juice, egg yolks and sugar. Cover and chill in the fridge for 1 more hour.

      To make the caramel bread, break the rye bread into little 5mm chunks. Melt the butter in a frying pan, add the bread and the sugar, then fry over a medium-low heat for around 5 minutes, tossing (or stirring) frequently to avoid burning, until the breadcrumbs turn a darker brown and the scent of caramel starts rising from the pan. Tip the bread out on to a tray to cool.

      When ready to serve, divide the soup between four bowls and sprinkle the caramel bread on top. Sometimes, I like to add a new bay leaf to each bowl at this stage too, just for good looks.

WARM BUTTERMILK SOUP

      WITH CORIANDER MUSHROOMS

      SERVES 4

      1 litre buttermilk

      12 bay leaves, bruised

      2 tablespoons unsalted butter

      1 white onion, finely diced

      2 egg yolks

      zest of 1 unwaxed lemon, finely grated

      1–2 tablespoons lemon juice (depending on how sour you like it)

      1 teaspoon fine sea salt

      FOR THE MUSHROOMS

      50g unsalted butter

      300g small mushrooms (such as chestnut), cut in half

      2 teaspoons coriander seeds

      fine sea salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

      1 tablespoon chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

      Infuse the buttermilk with the bay leaves as in the previous recipe. Once the buttermilk is sufficiently infused, remove it from the fridge and take the bay leaves out.

      Heat 2 tablespoons of butter in a large saucepan. Once bubbling, add the onion and fry for around 6 minutes over a medium heat until just starting to turn golden, stirring from time to time to avoid burning.

      While the onions are frying, whisk the egg yolks, lemon zest, lemon juice and salt into the buttermilk. Add the buttermilk mixture to the pan of onions and heat gently, stirring frequently, until hot – but make sure it does not boil.

      While the buttermilk is heating, fry the mushrooms. Heat the butter in a large saucepan, then add the mushrooms and coriander seeds and fry over a high heat for 6–8 minutes, shaking the pan from time to time, until the mushrooms are a deep nutty brown. Season with salt and pepper.

      Divide the soup between four bowls, top with the mushrooms, and sprinkle with parsley. Finish with a final grind of black pepper.

      Note: If using pre-cooked rice to bulk out the soup, add it to the pan at the same time as the buttermilk to give it enough time to heat through thoroughly.

WHOLEWHEAT BUTTERMILK WAFFLES

      There is nothing worse than a limp, soggy waffle, and these are anything but. The wholemeal flour adds to the crisp texture as well as providing a nutty flavour, while the buttermilk gives the waffles a slightly chewy interior.

      This mix can be beaten together in a matter of minutes and the waffles take no time at all to cook, making this an almost instant breakfast – and the best thing about it is that it makes even better waffles the next day, so you can keep the batter in the fridge and create the quickest of breakfasts with minimum effort the following morning.

      I use an electric waffle maker at home for ease, but I also have a traditional one made of cast iron, which I use over an open fire when we go camping.

      MAKES 10 WAFFLES

      2 eggs

      450ml buttermilk *

      100ml sunflower oil or melted coconut oil, or 100g melted unsalted butter

      250g wholemeal flour

      1 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda

      2 level teaspoons baking powder

      ¼ teaspoon fine sea salt

      Heat the waffle maker.

      In a large bowl, beat the eggs with a fork, then pour in the buttermilk and the oil or melted butter. Add the remaining dry ingredients and beat with a wooden spoon until a smooth batter has formed. (Note that if making these with batter stored overnight you will have to add 2 table­spoons of milk in the morning to loosen the batter.)

      Spoon a heaped tablespoon of the batter into the centre of the hot waffle iron and close the lid. These should take 2–3 minutes to cook – they are ready when they stop ‘steaming’ and are golden brown in colour.

      We eat these in many ways, but a popular topping in our house is brown sugar butter. To make this, beat together equal amounts of light brown sugar and soft butter (for example, I normally do 50g of sugar and 50g of butter). It can be spooned on to the waffles just as it is, or flavoured with