With a cry of "O'zapft is!" (meaning, "It's tapped!" according to Yahoo), Oktoberfest launched into a two-week celebration on Sept. 20.
Today (Oct. 5) is the last day of Oktoberfest, but you don't have to say Auf Wiedersehen to all things sauer – not just yet. Here are a few recipes that you can use to make a full-blown Oktoberfest feast any time of year. Prost:
Ingredients and preparation quoted from pinkbites.com
Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups of warm water
1 tablespoon of sugar
2 teaspoons of salt
7 grams of active dry yeast
4 1/2 cups of flour
4 tablespoons of butter, melted
2/3 cup of baking soda
egg wash (egg and water beaten together)
salt (I don't have pretzel salt, so I used kosher salt)
Preparation:
In the bowl of an electric mixer (or a large bowl if making pretzels by hand), add the sugar, salt, warm water and yeast. Mix well and let it sit for about 5 minutes, until it begins to foam. Add the butter and flour and mix (use the dough hook) until the dough starts to pull away from the sides of the bowl and it looks uniform. Turn it into a lightly oiled bowl, cover and let it rest in a warm place for about 1 hour, or until the dough doubles in volume.
When the dough is almost done resting, bring 2 quarts of water along with the baking soda to a boil in a large pot. You will boil the pretzels in it before they go in the oven, so make sure it's a pot large enough to hold one large pretzel at the time. Preheat the oven to high (450 degrees).
Lightly spray two baking sheets and a clean work surface with oil. Turn the dough into the oiled surface and dived it with a sharp knife (8 large ones or 16 small ones). Make a long log by rolling the dough back and forth on the surface with the palms of your hands. For large pretzels, it should be about 24 inches long and 12 inches if making small ones. Shape the pretzels by holding each end, twisting in the middle and attaching the ends to the bottom of the pretzels. Place pretzels in the oiled baking sheet. Carefully place one pretzel at the time in the boiling water for 30 seconds. Do not leave the pretzel in the water for more than 30 seconds or they will start falling apart.
Transfer each pretzel back to the baking sheet and brush with the egg wash. Sprinkle with salt and bake each baking sheet for about 10 minutes, or until pretzels are brown and puffed.
Enjoy warm with some sweet mustard!
Bratwurst with Apples, Onions and Sauerkraut
Ingredients and preparation quoted from epicurious.com
Ingredients:
1 teaspoon caraway seeds
1 teaspoon fennel seeds
1 tablespoon Wondra flour
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
4 cups sauerkraut (preferably fresh), rinsed, drained, squeezed dry (from one 32-ounce jar)
1 large onion (about 1 pound), halved lengthwise, thinly sliced crosswise
3 large Golden Delicious apples (about 1 1/2 pounds total), peeled, cored, thinly sliced
6 whole smoked bratwurst (about 1 pound), pierced all over with skewer
4 bay leaves
1 cup beef broth
2 tablespoons dry vermouth
2 tablespoons ketchup
1 1/2 tablespoons butter, melted
Pumpernickel bread or whole grain
Preparation:
Position rack in center of oven; preheat to 400°F. Place caraway seeds and fennel seeds in small resealable plastic bag. Crush seeds with mallet. Add flour and pepper to bag; shake to blend. Spread sauerkraut over bottom of 13x9x2-inch glass or ceramic baking dish. Sprinkle 1/3 of flour mixture over. Arrange onion slices over; sprinkle with half of remaining flour mixture, then lightly with salt. Spread half of apple slices over, then sprinkle with remaining flour mixture. Place bratwurst over apples, then arrange remaining apple slices around bratwurst. Tuck in bay leaves. Mix broth, vermouth, and ketchup in measuring cup. Pour broth mixture evenly over. Cover tightly with foil.
Roast bratwurst 45 minutes. Uncover; brush with melted butter. Roast uncovered until edges of apples and sausages begin to brown, about 25 minutes longer. Serve with bread.
Equipment, ingredients and preparation quoted from andreasrecipes.com
Equipment: small mixing bowl, medium mixing bowl, large skillet, 4-quart pot with heavy bottom, spaetzle press (or spaetzle board, potato ricer)
Ingredients:
1-1/2 cups (180 g) unbleached all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon pepper
3 large eggs
3 ounces (89 ml) lowfat milk
3 tablespoons butter
1 medium white or yellow onion, thinly sliced
6 ounces (170 g) Emmentaler cheese, shredded (or Gruyère, Baby Swiss, or a combination)
Preparation:
In the small bowl, whisk together the flour, nutmeg, salt and pepper. Beat eggs in the medium bowl, and alternately add the milk and flour, stirring until smooth. Let the batter stand for 30 minutes.
While the batter rests, melt the butter in the large skillet over medium-high heat until it starts to brown. Add the onion and cook until it begins to caramelize, about 10 to 15 minutes.
Bring the 4-quart pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Press the batter through a spaetzle press into the water. When the spaetzle has floated to the top of the water, remove it to a bowl, draining well. Mix in 1 cup of the cheese. Add the cooked spaetzle to the butter and onions and stir well. Add the remaining cheese, stir, and serve hot.
Watch the mayor of Munich kick off Oktoberfest on Sept. 20 with the first official beer tapping here:
Ingredients and preparation quoted from galonamission.com
Ingredients:
¼ cup canned pumpkin puree (not filling)
½ cup sugar
¼ cup water
½ bottle of oktoberfest beer (I used Yuengling Oktoberfest)
2 scoops of vanilla ice cream
¼ cup heavy whipping cream
3 tbsp powdered sugar
Preparation:
In a small saucepan, combine pumpkin puree, sugar and water. Mix until a syrup-like consistency. Mix together heavy whipping cream and powdered sugar using an electric mixer. Set aside.
Using a large mug (we used beer mugs) fill in ½ of cooled pumpkin syrup and ½ bottle of oktoberfest beer. Add in 2 scoops of vanilla ice cream. Plop on ½ of the whipped cream. Garnish with pumpkin pie spice.
