Potato Gnocchi - "Kartoffelnocken"

Gnocchi is a traditional Italian dish, and like many Italian dishes, recipes and names vary across different regions. Our traditional gnocchis are called "Nocken", usually made with potatoes and served with a tomato sauce or simply with melted butter and parmesan.

Potato Gnocchi (for 6 servings)

900 g potatoes
200 g plain flour
2 egg yolk
40 g butter
salt

1. Cook the potatoes
2. When done peel the potatoes and press them through a potato press
3. Mix the potatoes with the butter, the eggs, flour and salt and kneat to a dough
4. Form 1-2cm thick rolls on a floured surface
5. Cut the 3-4cm long Gnocchis from the rolls
6. Cook the Gnocchi in boiling water, they are done when they float to the surface

Do not let the dough rest, cut the Gnocchi immediately and cook them right after you cut them!

"Zelten"

This is probably the most traditional sweet eaten at Christmas in Southtyrol. I have never seen it anywhere else than in Southtyrol, Christmas without "Zelten" is a no-go for us. Everybody has an own recipe for "Zelten", this is my grandmas one:

"Zelten"

2 kg sultanas
250 g sundried dates
500 g sundried figs
125 g candied orange peel
125 g candied lemon peel
250 g nuts (preferably walnuts)
125 g pine cernels
juice and peel of 2 oranges
200 ml clear schnapps
250 ml dark rum
sugar
cinnamon
powdered cloves
powdered star anis
500 g bread dough
candied fruit

1. Cut the figs, the candied orange peel and the candied lemon peel into small pieces
2. Cut the nuts into fine pieces
3. Put everything you cut so far into a big bowl, add the sultanas and the dates
4. Add the peel and the juice of 2 oranges and the schnapps
5. Let everything rest for one night
6. Add the rum, cinnamon, cloves and the star anis
7. Add the bread dough
8. Mix everything well with your hands
9. Form the traditional "Zelten", circles that are 3-4 cm thick and of 10-20 cm diameter
10. Decorate the "Zelten" with  nuts and candied fruits
11. Bake the "Zelten" for approximately 1 hour at 220° in the oven

Eat the "Zelten" when they are cold, they last for a couple of weeks, the older they are the better they get.

"Schlutzer"

"Schlutzer" is probably one of the most traditional dishes from my hometown. "Schlutzer" are similar to the Italian ravioli and made from a mix of wheat and rye flour. Filled with a combination of spinach and ricotta they are traditionally served with melted butter and grated parmesan.

"Schlutzer"

250 g plain flour
250 g rye flour
2 eggs
2 tsp olive oil
50 ml warm water
1 kg spinach
200 g ricotta
½  onion
180 g butter
4 tsp parsley
parmesan
salt, pepper, nutmeg

1. Knead the plain flour, rye flour, eggs, oil and water to a dough using your hands
2. Allow the dough to rest for 30 minutes
3. Clean the spinach and heat it until it collapses
4. Fry the onions in the melted butter
5. Add the parsley and the spinach and steam it briefly
6. Add the ricotta and taste the spinach-ricotta filling with salt, pepper and nutmeg
7. Roll out the dough on a floured surface
8. Use a glass to cut out circles of 5-6cm diameter
9. Place a spoonful of the spinach-ricotta filling on each circle
10. Fold the circles to form the "Schlutzer"
11. Cook the "Schlutzer" for 8-10 minutes in salted water
12. Serve with melted butter and grated parmesan

White Mulled Wine

I wanna show you an alternative to the traditional mulled wine, which is usually made with red wine and oranges.

White mulled wine

2 bottles of white wine (1.5 liter)
500 ml apple juice
2 apples
1 tsp cinnamon
3-4 cinnamon sticks
2 tsp cloves
vanilla sugar (optional)
dark rum (optional)



Cut the apples into slices and heat the wine with all the other ingredients on a low heat for 30 minutes. Taste and leave on heat if you prefer it warmer. Depending on how sweet or strong you want your mulled wine, add some vanilla sugar or rum respectively.

Vanilla - "Grießschmarren" with Strawberries

This is a tasty dessert based on semolina, it can be eaten when still warm or cooled down.  "Grieß" is German and means semolina and "Schmarren" is a slang word for nonsense. Semolina is a main ingredient in many traditional Sout-Tyrolian dishes, I hope you will like this one!

Vanilla - "Grießschmarren" with Strawberries

800 ml milk
200 g semolina
pinch of salt
peel of one lemon
50 g vanilla sugar
50 g sugar
3 eggs
200 ml red wine
juice of ½ lemon
300 g strawberries

1. Heat the milk, sugar, vanilla sugar and the peel of a lemon until it starts boiling
2. Add a pinch of salt and the smolina. Boil it for 10 minutes at low heat while stiring
3. Separate the yolk from the egg white, beat the egg white until stiff
4.  Add the yolk and the egg white to the semolina
5. Spread the mixture on a baking tray, it should be 1-2 cm thick
6. Put it into the fridge
7. Heat the wine at low temperature, add the juice of ½ lemon and a some sugar
8. Cut the strawberries
9. Cut the semolina into squares and toast the squares in a pan with some butter

   10. Serve it with the strawberries and the wine sauce

   11. Add some icing sugar (optional)

"Spitzbuabn"

Today I am going to show you one of my favourite christmas biscuits, called "Spitzbuabn", traditional biscuits from South Tyrol (Südtirol), my home. I made them for a couple of friends last week and they loved it. Literally translated "Spitzbuabn" means "naughty boy", but do not take it seriously. They remind me of my childhood as my grandmother used to make them. Enjoy!

"Spitzbuabn"

300 g plain flour
150 g icing sugar
pinch of salt
1-2 tsp vanilla sugar
200 g butter
2 eggs
apricot jam
icing sugar to dust the biscuits

1. Sift the flour into a bowl, cut the butter into the flour and add the icing sugar, the vanilla sugar, the eggs and a pinch of salt
2. Kneat all together to a dough
3. Put the dough into the fridge where it needs to rest for 2 hours
4. After 2 hours, roll out the dough to 3-4mm on a floured surface
5. Preheat the oven to 180°C
6. Cut out circles of 6cm diameter, use a round biscuit cutter or simply a glass
7. Cut a circle of 1-4cm diameter in every second biscuit (the size of the smaller circle really does not matter) so that you get ring-shaped biscuits
8. Bake the biscuits for 10-12 minutes until they get golden brown/light brown
9. Spread the jam on the round biscuits and put a ring-shaped one on top
10. Let the biscuits cool down and dust them with icing sugar

You don't have to use apricot jam, try using raspberry jam or any other fruity jam.

Rum Truffles

Hi guys!

My name is Moritz, I am a student and this is my first blog entry. To start with I want to show you an easy recipe, which is perfect for christmas. It is called "Rumkugeln - Rum Truffles", a kind of biscuit you can easily impress people with. Hope you enjoy it!

Rum Truffles:

• 150 g butter
• 300 g dark chocolate
• 3 tsp cocoa
• 8 tsp rum
• desiccated coconut
• chocolate sprinkles

1. Melt the chocolate with the butter in a bain-marie
2. Add the cocoa and the rum
3. Stir until it is homogeneous 
4. Let it cool down
5. When almost solid form balls of approximately 3 cm diameter
6. Cover the balls with desiccated coconut or chocolate sprinkles
7. Put the balls in the fridge for 2 hours