This week was one for the books, it was one of those anything that could happen did happen weeks, with things you hadn’t even considered thrown in for good measure! I feel like I’m beginning to sound like a broken record, complaining about things that I really have no control over, which is about the same as complaining about the weather…….oh yeah, I do that too……sigh.
It’s times like these I like to think back to what my Karate instructor Kwan Jang Nim Giacobbe told me one day, “every morning you draw breath into your lungs is a good day” , So on a positive note I’m still breathing! We use to call Master Giacobbe (only to our selves of course) Obi Wan Giacobbe, he would have been an outstanding Jedi Master, and there were times he was our only hope. To quote Dickens “They were the best of times, They were the worst of times…….it seems like so long ago.
But, alas I digress, sigh…….you’re here because it’s Guest Post Friday, my favorite day of the week because I get to share the stage at ACJ with a friend. When you stop and think about it what could be better than sharing good times with a friend, Fridays are definitely ”The Best of times”!
Today my friends were going International as I bring you Sofie, The German Foodie. When you stop Sofie’s Blog you’ll here her talk about “The Old Country”, and just to keep things straight, she’s talking about Germany, not Busch Gardens! Sofie will amaze you with her traditional German fare, but she does take an occasional stroll outside of the borders for a taste of other countries. But no matter what Sofie Makes, she makes it extremely well, from Bangers and mashed to German Jelly doughnuts, you’ll see it all, and just to tempt you even more, she take glorious images of all her creations….just what you need when you’re already hungry!
So lets get this show on the road, because you’re in for a treat, as I give you, Sofie…..
The German Foodie
I am an expat German living in Northeast Ohio, and blogging mostly about authentic German food and my own original recipes inspired by German food. Having grown up in the border region with France in a very cosmopolitan city, even for its size, I am also drawn to all sorts of ethnic recipes.
I have been baking ever since I could hold a spoon, and it is my great passion in life. I have somehow always baked. I love to explore and experiment, to create and yes, eat what I have created. I am not just a consummate baker, I like to cook as well, especially seasonally.
Apple Pockets (Apfeltaschen)
First off, a big thank you to Chef Dennis for asking me to guest post for him – it is a great honor and pleasure to write a post for somebody whose blog I follow and admire. But without further ado, let’s talk about… apples.
Apples are among the most versatile fruit I know. I just love apples. LOVE apples. Pies, tortes, apple sauce, apple pancakes… the list goes on and on. They have just enough sweetness to not require very much more sugar, and their tartness (provided you use a baking apple) single-handedly enhances any pastry they are added to.
Apple pockets (Apfeltaschen) are consequently one of my favorite pastries, and the best thing is that they are a non-messy affair when you’re eating them, which makes them an ideal snack for kids, young and old. The first round of these mysteriously disappeared over the course of the evening, before I had a chance to even photograph a single one coming out of the oven, much less GLAZE them. (Can I just say, “TSOS” = “teenage son over shoulder”?) I normally put out little signs that say things like, “Please don’t eat.” all the way to “Eat this and be PUNISHED!”, but this time I neglected to do that and was promptly punished myself – with an empty plate.
There was nothing else left to do but to make another batch, but these are so easy and quick, it was not really that bad. The recipe came out of one of my favorite recipe books, “Backen Macht Freude” by Dr. Oetker (the US English edition is called “German Baking Today”). The recipes are easy to follow, accessible and accompanied by helpful photographs. The only substitution I made was to use craisins instead of the raisins that the recipe calls for, as nobody in my family really likes raisins that much.
- 200 (7 oz) ml milk
- 50 g (3.5 tbsp) butter
- 375 g (1⅔ cups) flour
- 20 g (1.5 tbsp) instant yeast
- 50 g sugar (3.5 tbsp)
- 10 ml (2 tsp) vanilla
- 1 egg, beaten
- 500 g (2¼ cups) apples (a good baking apple like McIntosh)
- 50 g (3.5 tbsp) raisins
- 40 g ( 3 tbsp)sugar
- 20 g (1.5 tbsp) butter
- milk (enough to brush pastries)
- sliced almonds (to sprinkle on top of pastries)
- 100 g (7 tbsp) powdered sugar, sifted
- 1 tablespoon* lemon juice
- 10 g ( ¾ tbsp) butter
- warm up the milk and melt the butter in it. Set aside and let cool to 140 F (60 C) or less.
- Mix the flour and yeast in the bowl of a mixer, slowly add the milk mixture and other ingredients and first mix with a paddle until the mass looks lumpy, then knead with a hook until they form a smooth dough.
- Place into a covered container and let rise until double.
- peel and core the apples and cut them in to small pieces.
- In a pot, sauté the apples with the other ingredients until the apple juices are drawn out. Let cool completely.
- Preheat your oven to 395 F (200 C).
- Roll out the dough to about ¼ inch (6 mm) and cut out circles of about 5 inch (12 cm).
- Roll out the individual circles a little thinner, brush the rims with milk and place a spoonful of the apple mixture in the middle.
- Fold in half and use a fork to seal them shut.
- Brush with milk and sprinkle with sliced almonds.
- Bake the pockets for about 20 minutes or until golden brown, place on a cooling rack.
- mix the lemon juice into the powdered sugar.
- Melt the butter and whisk into the mixture.
- Immediately glaze warm pockets with the mixture and let them cool completely.
Now that was one delicious guest post! I just wish I had a few of those Apfeltaschen to ease the hunger pangs in my stomach! Now before you forget, head on over to The German Foodie and say hi to Sofie, if you don’t already know her, your’e going to make a new friend today, and any day we can make a new friend is an extra special day! Just be sure to give yourself enough time to browse through her recipes, your’e going to see some dishes you may not have seen before……. just one word of caution, don’t go hungry!
Thanks so much for stopping by today, and don’t forget the clocks go ahead an hour this Saturday night, as we enter Daylight Savings time, which means there will be more time to be outside to enjoy this spring weather(it was 70 in Philly today)!!
Till next time my friends, be well, be full and be happy!
Mmmmmnnn! I wish I had this for breakfast!
Thanks! They are exquisite with a good cup of coffee.
Hi Sofie! These are just lovely and they sound delicious. It’s nice to meet you here!
Chef Dennis, I’m wishing you a fabulous Friday and an absolutely peaceful and relaxing weekend!
It’s thanks to Dennis, I am so pleased to be over here today!
Dennis- I hope all is well. Life sure can be a giant pain in the rump some days. I am crossing my fingers you have the most wonderful weekend. You deserve it.
Sofie- These are wonderful. I think my kids would go crazy for this. I also put notes on everything. I also use my microwave as a holding station for food that needs to be photographed so they know never to touch anything inside. Sad but true.
It’s crazy, right? I just made my daughter a pie (yeah, I know) for her birthday tonight, and my son has already eaten pretty much most of it. *sigh*
Hi Chef, I have been to Sofi’s site and she has some truly wonderful things going on and this is no exception. I love pockets of goodness. Wonderful guest post Sofi and thanks for sharing her with us Dennis. You are the Man. Enjoy you weekend both of you.
Koestlich, Apfeltaschen. Denen kann man doch nie widerstehen! Muss ich auch bald mal wieder backen. LG Kirsten
Hi Chef! It’s been a while. I’m sorry that life’s so tough. We’ve got the same thing going there. Thanks for introducing me to Sofie. Sofie, I love these pies. My daughter (who has the same name) would adore them. Thank you for sharing your recipe with us!
Thanks! I rarely meet other Sofies, so maybe you’d want to make an introduction.
Had to laugh at Obi Wan
I will remember that bit about breathing in the morning.
I love Sofie! Her food is always inspiring and delicious.
Thanks, Maureen, you’re a sweetie… Hey, hope the rain has eased over there, it must have been quite the downpour!
What an awesome recipe. I love apples and these little hand pies look hard to resist. I can definitely understand why you had empty plates – I would have had empty plates in my house, too!
Thanks! These did a vanishing trick, let me tell ya…
It’s my fellow Ohioan expat German!
great to see Sofie here, and mmm, one of my favorite childhood treats. Wonderful post!
Danke! Hey, die kannst Du für unser “BLate” auch haben statt der Käsekuchenbrownies…
Dennis, I’m sorry you had such a rough week! I surely can relate… time flies away from me, and I have nothing like your excuse.
Thanks for having me over!
Great to see Sofie over here. My father was German so I’m familiar with a lot of those goodies…and my daddy taught me to love them
Thanks for the recipe, Sofie!
And I love guest post Fridays, Dennis, not just for the great variety but for your humor in introducing them. It was nearly 70 degrees in NY, too. Spring is almost here!
I’m glad that this was passed on through the generations! And yes, Guest Post Fridays here are great – not just because today was my turn, but also b/c of all the other people I’ve had the pleasure of meeting here!
Hi,
I followed Sofie over here and now, Dennis, I have ANOTHER site to explore! How much fun is that?!
(Hmmm…this didn’t seem to upload the first time so I will give it another go. If I duplicate…my apologies.)
Thanks!
This sounds like a terrific recipe for apples! I love it. Must try making this soon. The photos look gorgeous. What a great guest post, Sofie! Thanks for sharing this.
Thanks! They are super easy and great for breakfast or as a snack.
These do look delicious and fairly easy to make. But feel discouraged trying a recipe that has European measurements. I have no idea whether those are weight or volume measurements.
Germans go strictly by weight, and when I list spoons, those are always real spoons. I decided at some point to keep it the way the original recipe listed things. For one thing, it stays closer to the authentic original, and the other reason is that I am on a crusade to convert y’all to using scales.
Why? B/c a) it’s more precise, b) easier to scale, and c) you don’t have to switch utensils all the time – just zero out your scale w/ the bowl on top and keep adding. You can buy scales for under $30 at, for example, amazon.com (that’s where I got both of mine).
Sorry if that discourages people, but it’s the way I roll.
At some point I will probably take the time to convert everything, the way “German Baking Today” did, but at this point I don’t have the time/resources… 
Perfect for kaffeetrinken !
You bet they are!
Hello Sofie! You did a fantastic job, what a lovely pocket! I would gladly eat one of those for breakfast, lunch, and dinner!
Thanks! My son actually did…
Sofie, these apple pockets look fabulously soft and flavorful! What a wonderful recipe and great guest post. Thank you for introducing me to a new talented blogger, Dennis!
I appreciate you taking a look!
Chef Dennis….you truly deserve a great weekend for sharing with us this wonderful guest Sofie. Her Apple pockets would be great tea treats for us
Sofie…thanks for sharing this german apple pockets with us. It looks delicious and no wonder you had to bake a second batch
I have bookmarked this and shall make it for our tea break …mmmm can’t wait to try it out…imagine eating this with a cup of strong expresso coffee !
Thank you and have a great weekend to the both of you
Elin
Thank you! If you do, please let me know how they turn out!
Sorry the week has been so hectic for you Chef! The bright side, however, is that next week is bound to be better and at least you made it through this one.
Glad to see Sofie here guest posting! Poor thing that the crowd is waiting for her to forget to put her do not eat sign up, so they can consider her delicious creations as fair game to eat. I guess it would be hard to comply, she does have some delicious things coming out of her kitchen. This one is no different-yum!
Here’s hoping that you both get some time to kick back and relax this weekend. Call it Chef’s day of peace if you have to!
Thank you for your compliments! The “crowd” is actually just a crowd of one, but that kid can eat, let me tell ya! Have a great weekend yourself! XO
There wouldn’t be any of those left in my house if I set them on a plate either!!
My dear friend I am sending you hugs with this. I absolutely detest those kinds of weeks. It seems as though every thing that falls apart challenges my resolve to be strong.
I am so excited to have “met” Sofie! These apple pockets look crazy good. Apples are my absolute favorite in dessert. I fell in love with apple pies when I was little and I have been hooked ever since. I have GOT to have some of these!
Thanks! Be sure to let me know how they turn out!
Great recipe! I love the beautiful flavors and the photographs are lovely! And I LOVE that the measurements are in grams! Perfect! Thanks for a great guest post!
You’re the first who’s THANKING me for being metric! LOVE it.
ooo these look so, so yummy! i am gluten free, but i may try to figure out a gf angle to attack them! because they look so good!
If & when you do, I’d be interested in seeing them!
these apple pockets are simply beautiful. A lovely guest post. I sure have missed visiting your blog over the last month friend. Our household was literally plagued with colds and viruses that continued to make rounds again and again for weeks and weeks and weeks and pretty much took me out of the game for the month of February…I’m just coming up for air now. Slowly but surely getting back into the saddle again. Man it’s tough with 3 little babies and all that sickness…So much going on as I’ve been reading through your posts, all 26 that i’ve missed LOL….between the neighborhood watch, google+, pinterest, etc. Your thoughts, input and guidance are such treasures. I have been resisting google + and still can’t seem to be consistent with twitter
but pinterest I have loved combing through….your wisdom and guidance here are so appreciated. Dennis, what can I say, your presence in the blogosphere is like a lighthouse, a beacon of light. have a wonderful weekend
Hello Sofie!! what a treat!! nice to meet another talented blogger..hope your weekend is relaxing!!
So far, so good! Hope you’re having a great one, too!
These apple pockets look delicious! Great guest post and congratulations to you both on Top 9 today! Have a great weekend you two! =]
This was fun!
Hi, this looks great but living in the USA I find I need USA measurements in order to follow your recipes.
Thank you In Advance.
Grace
hi Grace
I had problems with metric too, but I found a really inexpensive scale on Amazon, that also helped me a great deal in regular baking, I was never very accurate and now that I weigh everything my baked goods come out a lot more consistent, and I can use metric easily just by switching on the scale.
Cheers
Dennis
What Dennis said.
Congratulations for making Top 9 on Foodbuzz today
Thanks for sharing with us Chef Dennis ~ Hello Sofie nice meeting you too ~ These look so yummy!
Thanks! I was thrilled about the opportunity to guest-post here.
Fantastic guest post! These look incredible!
http://allykayler.blogspot.com/
Thanks for taking a look!
Can you please put the recipe in English as I do not have any idea about metric. Thank you so much and I love your blog (?). Judy
I love Sofie’s blog and these apple pockets look just incredible. Great guest post! Hope next week is better
Thank you very much!
These look delicious. My husband would be sure to love them.
They are wonderful w/ a cup of coffee.
These look perfect! I love apples myself, they are so wonderful to cook and bake with. I would be like your son, eat at any chance I got
Awesome post, I hope to bake more German cuisine because these pockets look amazing!
This is my favorite way to enjoy apples! while the French make it with puff pastry (chaussons) I prefer this version with a pastry that can be enjoyed like a little calzone. Yummy.
Oh, these look fabulous!!! I can SO relate to having food disappear thanks to my sons
Great guest post, Dennis!
Chef Dennis, I hope this week is better! What a fabulous guest post. I can’t wait to try these.
These look so yummy! Great post!
What is 10 vanilla? Is there an conversion for the ingredients?
hi Kim, that was 10 ml and I converted the recipe as closely as possible. It’s always best to use a scale when baking though and most have either metric or US weights.
Wow these are reminding me of “Chausson aux pommes”. The recipe looks easy, hope It would work. Thanks