The Company Dinner

Just before Christmas, we went to Herr J's company dinner. Well, at least the local management part of it...there are thousands of employees, so it was a smaller subset.

Very interesting for me, as it was my first real corporate German company outing.  Lots of speeches, a few awards, and small talk.  It was held at a beautiful chateau-type hotel in the country outside of Munich, at the Gut Sonnenhausen.

A gorgeous scene - a full moon shone over the snowcovered grounds and we were greeted at the entrance by a warm fire pit and a lady serving glühwein.

I also discovered the huge challenge posed when combining black tie with public transportation and snowstorms.  The streets are too wet, cold, and snowy to wear nice shoes - or anything other than cozy boots! And you have to carry the hem of your dress, as floor-length silk does not mix well with snow and de-icing salt. So, I wore shearling boots and carried heels in my purse.

As a good Southern girl, I'm ashamed to admit that I just kept the boots on all night, and laughing at myself. But no one noticed or seemed to care, as very few had actually shown up in black tie.

We did have one special guest, who was properly attired....one of the hotel's resident cats, who decided to hop from chair to chair, joining the guests for aftet dinner drinks.  

As with the dogs here, he was unusually well-behaved. And for a cat, I mean that he came when asked, and politely moved to another empty chair when someone wanted theirs back. Odd for a cat... But it was quite a cute little surprise. I love seeing cats in bookstores, flowershops, and antique stores - somehow it just seems right to have a cat lounging in the sunny window in those settings!

Krapfen Season

Germany has many "seasons"....asparagus season, mushroom season, truffel season, starkbier season, fruit season, etc.

After New Year's comes Krapfen Season...and this year brings new varieties!

What are krapfen? In their original form, they're basically jelly donuts. Known in other areas of Germany as "Berliners," which is what JFK amusingly called himself in his famous "Ich bin ein Berliner" speech.
It's yet another example of German linguistic diversity - In most of Germany they are "Berliners," but in Bavaria they are "Krapfen" and in Berlin and the surrounding states of Brandenburg and Saxony, they are Pfannkuchen (which are what the rest of Germany calls pancakes).  And they have other names in other very small regions. Yes, confusing...especially to us non-native speakers. I've only lived in Bavaria, so I sometimes discover that what I think is German is really Bavarian.

But, back to the tasty pastries... Traditional Krapfen are light, sweet donuts filled with jam (usually apricot, plum, or berry) and topped with powdered sugar, glaze or chocolate. They also are often filled with custard or chocolate.

Since krapfen are traditionally eaten on New Years Eve and during Fasching (Carnival, Mardi Gras, etc), the krapfen season runs from New Years to Lent. We are in full swing now!

Normally, we don't see too much beyond chocolate, but this year, they've invented some new varieties. Some are traditional filled donuts, but others are more like deconstructed jelly donuts....with the filling sandwiched between two halves of the donut and with a topping.

Here we have traditional krapfen (apricot filled with powdered sugar), then Heart Krapfen (straberry jam-filled with a heart-shaped sugar dusting), and the Tiramisu Krapfen. More on those later....

From left to right, Raspberry Krapfen (raspberry mousse filling with raspberry glaze), Black Forest Krapfen (cream-filled, with chocolate topping, chocolate flakes, and cherry), Tiramisu Krapfen, and Vanilla Krapfen (vanilla mousse with sugar glaze).

 And of course, Chocolate. Not sure if these are filled with chocolate cream or custard, but they look delicious!

Herr J and I tried the Tiramisu and Vanilla. (We'll try the others soon....Black Forest and Chocolate are high on the list!)
Both were great choices, but we both liked the Vanilla slightly better. The Tiramisu did indeed taste like tiramisu, with a fluffy espresso/kahlua flavored cream in the middle and cocoa powder on top. But the Vanilla would be my choice for eating a whole one. It was the same fluffy filling, but with a very delicate vanilla flavor, balanced by the sugary glaze. And the donut part of both were light, chewy, and perfectly flavored.

Just be careful eating them...they're impossible to eat without spilling sugar (or cocoa) on you or dripping some cream out of the other side. Happy eating!

German Beer Wars - The Oktoberfest Round

Since we live in Munich, we decide to include some Oktoberfest beers in the tournament. It is an important part of the beer culture here, after all!

Maybe not the wisest decision, as it isn't available year round and could be a problem to find in later rounds...

Pork chops with roasted winter veggies and warm goat cheese salad

Tonight featured 3 of the Big Six's Oktobefest beers.  Hofbrau vs Spaten, and then Löwenbräu vs one of Altenmünster brewery's offerings. We weren't really sure where to fit the Altenmünster, which was a beer we did not know. It's supposed to be a flavorful lager, but not sure if that means Helles, or something different. But we thought it would stand well with the Oktoberfest beers. Luckily, we were correct in that guess.

The Altenmünster was very tasty when compared to the Löwenbräu Oktoberfestbier - it had a very clean taste, with good flavors, but was not overly hoppy. The Löwenbräu was good too, but was less carbonated and also felt a bit flat in taste when compared to the Altenmünster.

I was surprised at the outcome of the Hofbrau vs Spaten match, as I think of Hofbrau more in terms of a touristy (but fun) beerhall, not in terms of good beer. However, HB has proved to be more than just a good party...it's a really good beer! The Spaten was good, and it's hops had a little bit of sweetness to them. The Hofbrau, on the other hand, was very crisp and not too hoppy, . It was just a perfectly balanced beer. Both were good, but we prefered the note of the hops used in the Hofbrau. The strange thing was that the Spaten was much better in the bottle than it was in the Oktoberfest tents.

Hofbrau went on to an easy victory over the Altenmünster. Despite how good it tasted in the first round, it seemed light and watery when compared to the Hofbrau, which was sparkly without being overly carbonated.

Revenge Is Sweet

On Saturday, my neighborhood bath and body store had an amusing promotion...The Ex-Factor.

 

The flyer reads:

Revenge is sweet...and sometimes it pricks too.

Come to LUSH and take revenge on your ex. Disguise yourself, celebrate with like-minded people, write a message to your old flam on the back of this card and stick it on the Voodoo-Doll hanging in our window.

Free yourself from the old, and who knows who you might meet?

These little blue voodoo dolls actually are part of the Valentine's collection, and are one of LUSH's bath bombs (ylang-ylang scented). 

The description in store reads:

Ex-Factor Voodoo-bathball

Tear his arms off, hack his head off, or stab him in the heart. Then drown him, so that you also get something out of it.

On the website, the ad reads:

Well, not everyone can enjoy Valentine's Day. Especially with a broken heart, it's not easy to bear all the tokens of love around you. Put this little vanilla guy in your bath, when the heart balloons and teddy bears in the shops are just too much and watch as it slowly dissolves in water - representative of your heartache!

    

They hung the giant cardboard voodoo doll in the window, for everyone to put up their notes to exes. By the end of the day, they had collected German, Spanish, English, and the universal symbol for Lorena Bobbit.  

Some highlights:

I curse the day of your birth!!

I'm happy I got rid of you! :)

I want my innocence back!

Hello D, You have destroyed my family! Thankfully now I have someone better.

I hope you learn how to love. You won't be happy until you do!

Thanks for almost 4 year wrecked realtionship with you, P, it was hell! You are an idiot who never took advantage of the chances I gave you. Find someone else. Moron. You have had enough chances. I've found someone who I mean more to and who cares about my health and cancer. You were always the same. Moron, loser, idiot.

You stupid idiot. I hate you! The time I spent with you was a waste of time for me. I hope you have a hard life.

 
Interestingly enough, they don't all look like female handwriting! But if writing an anonymous note helps people feel better (and the store bring in customers), I say go for it!

Doggie Parking

Living in Munich makes me want to get a dog. It's a great city for being outside, and for travelling around with a dog. They're allowed almost everywhere....on the subway, in restaurants, in bars, and in stores. You can spend a lot more time here with your dog while going about daily life.

And, in general, dogs in Germany are EXTREMELY well-behaved - to the point where many people take them out without being on a leash. It always amazes me to see a dog quietly sitting in a restaurant and not trying to get table scraps. And I hear drunk soccer fans much more often than I hear dogs barking. I guess society here has somehow created a perfect set of rules here...dogs are accepted almost everywhere, as long as they are well-trained. Maybe it's that dog owners here take training very seriously (there are endless dog training schools here), or maybe it's that the bad dogs just are kept home?? Whatever is the key, it works.

Except, you can't take your dog into the grocery store or some butchers. Instead, they have a dog parking zone, with water and sometimes kibbles. This guy is patiently waiting for his owner to return, sitting calmly between the chocolates and the steak bar. Amazing.

Die Feuerzangenbowle

The cookies and cakes are only a small part of the German Christmas Market traditions. The drinks are also pretty important - all designed to warm your hands and your insides on a cold night out.

Most stands will serve Glühwein (mulled wine), Glühwein mit Schuss (with a shot of rum or liqueur), and Kinderpunsch (non-alcoholic Glühwein). And sometimes we'll find hot cider, mead, and other variations on Glühwein.  In Munich, cocktails have become quite trendy in the past couple of years - not surprising that this year hot caipirinhas ("Heiße Caipis") showed up in many Christmas Markets.

My favorite, however, is the Feuerzangenbowle. I think it tastes better (like a less sweet, more alcoholic Glühwein) and since it involves fire, it's also pretty cool.

The word translates as "Flaming Tongs Punch," refering to the tongs that hold a sugar cone over the bowl of mulled wine. The sugar cone is soaked in rum, and flaming rum poured over it, dripping caramelized sugar and hot rum into the mulled wine. Delicious!

Many Christmas markets will have a Feuerzangenbowle stand, or people often make it at home for parties during Christmas and New Years. Here in Munich, the English-speaking community refers to the drinks as "Pots of Evil," a very appropriate name given their taste and potency!

 

Here in Munich, we have the World's Largest Feuerzangenbowle, which luckily lasts beyond the Christmas Markets until Epiphany (January 6th). The giant bowl holds up to 9,000 liters of punch. It's set up inside the Isartor, one of the gates from the old city walls. As usual, there are also a few stands serving bratwurst, french fries, crepes and other standard festival fare.

 They project on the walls the movie "Die Feuerzangenbowle," which is one of THE classic German films. Made in 1943 or 44, it's a sentimental story of school days and what makes life worth living...intended to be a morale booster in the final months of the war.

The film stars one of the most beloved German actors of all time, Heinz Rühmann, who made over 100 films from 1926 to 1993.

Today, it's kind of like the Rocky Horror Picture Show of Germany, where most people can quote some (or all!) of the movie today. Many universities have showings before the Christmas break, with props, drinking games, and other traditions. Definitely worth a watch if you can find it with subtitles. (Even if you watch it in German, use the German subtitles....between the sound quality and the old words and accent, it can be tough to understand).

 Feuerzangenbowle at Munich's Tollwood Festival

Many people recreate the experience at home, making Feuerzangenbowle and showing the movie.  

You can order the sets and sugar cones in the US from GermanDeli.com, and probably from other German food sites. They have a good recipe and instructional video in the product details.

Either make your own mulled wine from scratch, buy it premade in bottles, or you can also buy the premixed spice packages to just add to a bottle of wine.

RECIPE
2 bottles of Merlot or Burgundy wine (a dry red wine might be too bitter)
4 thin slices of orange with the peel on
4 thin slices of lemon with the peel on
Juice of 2 fresh oranges
Juice of 2 fresh lemons
½ tsp fresh orange rind
½ tsp fresh lemon rind
4 Cinnamon sticks
1 sugar cone (Zuckerhut)
1 cup (approximately) of Rum (must be 151 proof Rum, or it won't flame)

Equipment:
1 heat and flame-proof Punch Bowl (ideally glass)
1 Stainless Steel Bridge, if not already part of your punch bowl set
Long match or lighter

Directions:
In a large pot add both bottles of wine and all ingredients except the sugar cone and the rum. Simmer the wine and fruit and spices over low heat for about 15 minutes. Don't boil the wine. The wine should be hot but not scalding. If you are using GermanDeli's flame/heat-proof glass punch bowl, carefully add the hot wine (with fruit, cinnamon, etc.) to the punch bowl. With your guests gathered around, place the punch bowl in a dimly-lit room. Light the candle below the punchbowl to help keep the wine warm. Place the stainless steel bridge across the top of the punch bowl. Unwrap the sugar cone and place it on the bridge. Slowly pour the 151-proof rum onto the cone, rotating the cone until it is soaked with the rum. Light the sugar cone with the match or lighter. The sugar cone will dissolve as the burning rum heats up the cone. The caramelized sugar will drip into the punch to sweeten it and the rum will enhance the flavor.

recipe via GermanDeli

Munich Winter Sports

Germans (and Müncheners, in particular) spend as much time outside as possible.  In summer and winter, the English Garden is crowded and there are major traffic jams out of the city on Friday nights and back in on Sundays to the lakes and mountains. Having an appropriate amount of fresh air ("frischer Luft") is an important part of daily life, and a very frequent source of office conflict over opening the windows in winter!

So, it's no surprise that sports still go on in the winter. Not only sledding, skiing, ice skating and the other snowy sports, but also the ones we think of as summer sports.

Soccer....

 

American Football....
(we stumbled upon the end of the Starnberg Argonauts' practice and Herr J joined in to show them some perfect spirals)

Biking, walking dogs/children, and running....

 

and even Surfing....
(surfers catch the wave on the Eisbach year round)