The Baker's Daughter (49 page)

Schwarzwälder Kirschtorte (Black Forest Cake)

Mom fancied a strong cup of coffee with a slice of this. She said it brought out the rich chocolate flavor. I think it's delicious with or without!

Preheat (I remembered!) oven to 350°F. Grease and flour two 8-inch round pans. Sift together flour, cocoa, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.

Cream shortening and sugar until fluffy. Add eggs and beat. Add vanilla. Add flour mixture alternating with milk until combined.

Pour into pans. Bake for 35 to 40 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the cake comes out clean. Cool completely. (Very important!) Cut each layer in half, horizontally, making four layers total. Sprinkle layers generously with ½ cup Kirschwasser.

In a separate bowl, whip the cream stiff. Beat in ½ teaspoon vanilla and 1 tablespoon Kirschwasser. Add powdered sugar, and a pinch of salt. Beat again. (Note: This recipe is exercise.) Spread first layer of cake with ⅓ of the filling. Top with ⅓ of the cherries. Repeat with the remaining layers.

Decorate the top and sides of cake with leftover cream filling and chocolate curls. I use a potato peeler on the chocolate square or whatever chocolate crumbs are around. Sprinkle the cake generously. Place ten cherries around the top—these help you know where to cut the slices.

Sonnenblumenkernbrot (Sunflower Seed Rolls)

My dad was partial to these, so they're one of my favorites too. You can bet Mom had no trouble finding loads of sunflower seeds in this town, and neither will you
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Start by mixing together the white flour, rye flour, and salt. Dissolve yeast in ¼ cup of the water Add the yeast water, the sourdough extract (if you're using it) and the rest of the water to the flour mix. Stir until it clumps into a ball. Knead on a floured board for 5 minutes. The dough should be firm and a little gummy.

Knead in the sunflower seeds, shape into a ball, place in a greased bowl, cover, and let rise in a warm place for about an hour.

When it's doubled in size, punch it down, knead for a minute, and shape into 12 buns. Brush the tops with water (if you still didn't eat dairy) or milk (now that you do!), and load them up good with extra sunflower seeds. Place the rolls on a greased tray, and let them rise until they almost doubled again.

Preheat your oven to 500°F. (Yeah, I know it's awful hot to start, but trust Mom, it makes the best crust.) Put an old baking pan on the bottom rack, and let it get hot too. When the oven reaches 500°F, slash the tops of the rolls with a knife, pour a cup of water into the old baking pan, and put the rolls on the rack above. Then close up the oven as fast as a jackrabbit and turn it down to 400°F. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes until they're as golden as the Texas sunflowers in the fall.

Spiced Crumb Cake

Mom's favorite and sure to please a crowd!

This cake is made in steps.

Mix all ingredients to crumbs with hands. Put aside 1 packed cup.

Add these items to the rest (minus the packed cup). Mix well, and pour into a greased baking dish. I use a 9- x 11-inch pan.

Pan de Muerto courtesy of Riki Chavez's Mamá

I'm still perfecting this one. But like Mom said, we got to learn the recipes of our people so we can pass them on to the next generation of bakers and their sons and daughters
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In a saucepan over medium flame, heat the butter, milk, and water until it's hot but not boiling. While it's doing its business on the stove, mix up the 1½ cups of flour, sugar, salt, yeast, and aniseed. Take the liquid mixture off the stove, and beat in the dry mix until it comes together nice. Add the eggs. Add 1 cup of extra flour. Mix. Continue adding flour until it comes together like a dough should, soft but not sticky. Knead on a well-floured board for 10 minutes.

Grease up a big bowl, and put that dough inside, cover it up, and let it rise in a warm place. It should bloom in about 1½ hours. Punch it down, and shape it into round buns. Roll out some smaller pieces, and make them look like bones. Cross the bones on top of the buns and let them rise again for an hour.

Preheat your oven to 350°F when you're finally ready, and bake 40 minutes. Remove and glaze immediately. That recipe is below.

Bring everything to a boil for 2 minutes, then brush over the buns.

Churros/Kreppels

Same as Mom's sugar-cinnamon kreppels, only shaped different. Ain't no matter where they come from, the ingredients is all the same
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Note: You're going to need a candy thermometer for this one.

Heat at least 2 inches of oil to 375°F. Stick the candy thermometer in it to check.

In a pot, simmer the butter and water together. Add the salt and 1 tablespoon of the sugar. Stir until dissolved. Bring to a boil. Mix in the flour, stir it fiercely to blend well. Continue mixing until mixture forms a doughy ball, about 1 minute, but take it off the heat after 30 seconds or they won't puff up like they should. (I ruined two batches until I figured out the timing.)

Add eggs one at a time, mixing after each. Make sure all the eggs are incorporated and the dough is shining pretty. Let it cool for about 5 minutes. Mix up the remaining sugar and cinnamon in a brown paper bag and set aside.

Here's where it gets tricky, so make sure your patience hat is on tight. Spoon the dough mixture into a plastic baggy—one of them Ziplocs will do. Squish the dough into one of the bag corners. Cut that corner tip. Squeeze out 4-inch strips of dough into the hot oil, 3 or 4 at a time in the pot, otherwise they'll crowd up and make a heap of a soggy mess. Fry 2 minutes, then flip them with a fork. Fry another 2 minutes till golden and crispy. Use the fork to fish them onto paper towels. Let them drain for a few minutes, but get them in that brown paper bag quick as you can. You want them hot to make the sugar stick. They say these are best warm, but I've had them a day old, and they still taste dang good.

E
normous thanks to my editor, Kate Kennedy, whose masterful editorial skills, boundless support, and friendship fostered my creativity and helped the book bloom. To my publicist, Nora O'Malley, who jumped in banging the drum and never ceased. My Crown family is unparalleled.

Thanks to my agent team, Doris Michaels and Delia Berrigan Fakis, for loving this story from the start and for sharing it with German family members, survivors of this onerous period in Germany's history. Their enthusiasm for the book was the ultimate stamp of approval. As well, many thanks to Paul Cirone and Molly Friedrich for friendship and wise counsel. Your generosity continues to astound me.

Thank you to the staff of Marina's Germany Bakery in El Paso, Texas, and the German Community Center at Fort Bliss for graciously allowing me to visit, ask questions, and poke around. In researching this novel, I'm indebted to the countless World War II websites that kept me awake nights, horrified, fascinated, and unable to forget. To the survivors of this war, thank you for having the bravery to live. To their children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren, thank you for having the courage to share your history. As well, deepest appreciation to my students at the University of Texas at El Paso who trusted me with their personal immigration stories. Your words did not fall on deaf ears.