Finally, a real nip in the air turns your culinary mind to winter time dishes. Since this is the month that Oktober Fest is celebrated in Germany, I figured the perfect way to end October would be with some excellent food from that country. When I lived in Jackson I took a six-week cooking class from the Everyday Gourmet, and every week we concentrated on a different country. The week we cooked recipes from Germany was one of my favorites. We cooked bratwurst and other sausages with onions and beer, sliced them thinly and served them with coarse dark mustard for appetizers. We learned how to make wienerschnitzel, or breaded beef cutlets that were finished with a squeeze of fresh lemon juice, and then my favorite of all, sauerbraten.

Sauerbraten is a German specialty made by marinating a beef roast in a sour-sweet marinade for several days before browning the meat and cooking it very slowly in the marinade. The end result is a melting tender roast. This dish is traditionally served with dumplings, boiled potatoes or noodles. I prefer mashed potatoes.

Sauerbraten

Marinade:

1 large onion, thinly sliced

1 large carrot, thinly sliced

1 stalk of celery, thinly sliced

1/4 teaspoon allspice

2 cloves

8 peppercorns

1 clove garlic, finely chopped

2 bay leaves

1 cup red wine vinegar (good quality)

2 cups of red wine

1 cup of water

Mix all of the above together in a large glass dish.

Add a 4-pound boneless rump roast that you have seasoned with salt and pepper. Spoon the marinade over it. Cover with plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator for 3 days. Turn the meat once or twice a day.

Remove the roast from the dish and reserve the marinade. Pat the roast dry with paper towels and then coat with 2 tablespoons of flour. In a large Dutch oven, heat 2 tablespoons of vegetable oil and 2 tablespoons of butter over high. Add the roast and sear on all sides. Lower the heat, and add in the marinade. Cover the pan and place the heat on low, and cook the meat for 3 hours or until very tender. Remove the meat from the pan, place on a serving dish and cover with foil to keep warm or place in warm oven. Over high heat add 1/2 cup crumbled gingersnaps and continue stirring until the crumbs have dissolved and the sauce has thickened. Serve the sauce with the sliced roast. ( I know the gingersnaps seem unusual, but traditionally the sauce calls for some ginger in it and these not only season the sauce but also help thicken it.)

Another German dish we learned to make was apple strudel. Having learned to make the strudel dough once was plenty for me. It has to be paper thin and without tears or holes in it — not an easy accomplishment! I would prefer to have a simpler dessert, and these baked apples fill that spot.

Use Rome Beauty, Fuji, Granny Smith or McIntosh apples for baking. They hold their shape much better than soft apples such Red Delicious. This recipe can be doubled or tripled easily.

Baked Apples

3 tablespoons sugar

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1 / 4 teaspoon ground cardamom

1 / 4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

2 baking apples, cored

3 tablespoons lemon juice

1 / 4 cup water

4 tablespoons heavy cream

Heat your oven to 350 degrees. Stir together the sugar, cinnamon, cardamom and nutmeg in a small bowl. Peel a 1/2 inch-wide strip from around the top of each apple. Place the apples in a small baking dish. Spoon most of the sugar mixture into the apple cavities and sprinkle the rest on top of them.

Pour the water into the bottom of the dish and cover tightly with aluminum foil and bake for 25 to 30 minutes, until the apples are tender but still firm. Remove the foil and spoon the syrup from the bottom of the dish over and into the apples. Bake uncovered for 10 to 15 minutes more. Remove the apples from the baking dish and place them in individual bowls. Stir the heavy cream into the sugar syrup remaining in the bottom of the baking dish. When well combined, spoon the warm cream sauce over the apples and serve.

Christina Hall can be reached at christina.hall@natchezdemocrat.com