Cream the butter until smooth, and add the sugar. Beat in maple syrup, and then pour the whole sticky sweet mess down in your baking pan. Top with the nuts.
Give the bloomed dough a good punch or two, then roll it into a large rectangle with the long side closest to you.
Time to glaze. Beat egg and add milk. Using a pastry brush or your fingers, spread the glaze over the rolled-out dough. Mix the sugars and cinnamon in a little bowl and sprinkle over glazed dough.
Roll it up from the long side, pushing away from you firmly. Cut into 12 even slices, and lay each slice swirly-side up on top of the nuts in the pan.
Let the oven preheat to 350°F while the buns rise for 20 minutes, then slide them into the hot oven. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes until they’re golden on top but gooey in the middle. (Oh, I forgot a good tip: Mom always put a baking sheet underneath to catch all the sugar drippings so they don’t muss up your oven. Burnt sugar is a devil to clean.)
Take the buns out and let them cool a spell; 5 to 10 minutes should be plenty of time. Then get a baking sheet or big plate, and turn the pan over on it. Carefully dump the cinnamon buns upside down and spatula out all the syrup and nuts and good stuff.
Ready to eat whenever they’re cool enough to handle without burning your fingers. I dare you to wait any longer!
Matschbrötchen (Mud Bread Roll)
Tried and true.
1 schaumkuss (foam kiss) or a Mallomar from the store
1 brötchen or white bun
Pull or cut bread in half. Place chocolate foam kiss between pieces. Smash together and eat immediately. Preferably with a friend.
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!
Cake
1⅔ cups all-purpose flour
⅔ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1½ teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
½ cup shortening
1½ cups white sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
1½ cups buttermilk or regular—whatever is on hand
½ cup Kirschwasser
Filling
1 cup heavy whipping cream
½ teaspoon vanilla
1 tablespoon Kirschwasser (Not optional in this recipe. You must have it!)
1 cup powdered sugar Pinch of salt
1 cup pitted cherries chopped
Topping
1 square semisweet chocolate, or remaining crumbles
10 whole cherries (candied maraschino cherries work fine too)
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.
2½ cup all-purpose flour
1½ cup rye flour
1½ teaspoon salt active dry yeast (rapid)
1 package sourdough extract (optional)
1⅔ cup lukewarm water, divided
½ cup dry-roasted sunflower seeds 1 packet plus more for decoration
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.
Step 1
1 cup white sugar
1 cup packed brown sugar
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup softened butter
1 teaspoon cinnamon
¼ to ½ teaspoon salt
Mix all ingredients to crumbs with hands. Put aside 1 packed cup.
Step 2
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 well-beaten eggs
1 cup buttermilk to which 1 teaspoon baking soda has been added
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.
Step 3
Sprinkle remaining crumb mixture plus ½ cup chopped hazelnuts on top. Bake at 325°F for about 40 minutes. Easy as 1–2–3!
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.
½ cup good butter
½ cup milk
½ cup water
1½ cups all-purpose flour
½ cup sugar
1 teaspoon salt
2 packets active dry yeast (rapid-o)
1 teaspoon aniseed
4 eggs
4½ cups flour (extra)
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.