Old times and little dumplings

Stepping back in time and thinking about today.

Today I found an old cookbook while looking for some Christmas food recipes in my huge stack of about 300 cookbooks. I got sidetracked and started to read about the area where I live and what people ate 50 to 100 years ago. Since a huge part around the city was rural area, cooking back then mend making the best of things locally grown. And there were always lots of mouth to feed and not much income to go around.

I love checking out these things and they remind me what my grandmother told me about her youth and the way they had to prepare their food. Diversity was not really something you`ve found at that time and eating due to the seasons was a must. But on the downside, she ate as meat only pork, beef or fish and was vehemently against all other things. So her family had to eat, what she liked and was restricted that way. 

Now I try to eat fruit and veggies when they are locally at their prime and grow all around to harvest. But it is so easy to stand in the Supermarket in front of a box of beautiful looking strawberries in February and get waylaid to buy that. Very often I regret that later, when the taste is not what I expected. Having food from all over the world is a wonderful thing and I enjoy to look into foreign kitchens and be able to cook that at home. But at what a price?  

Living in a multicultural society means that all groups of people want a piece of home and an easy way to feel at home means food, that brings back memories. Over the last 20 years many foreigners opened deli shops, supermarkets and specialty stores. All the food trends developed over the years. 

Now it is quiet normal to have a Döner Kebap, a Pizza and Thai food in friendly neighborhood to Bratwurst and Schnitzel and nobody is thinking that this is strange.

But back to old time cooking and a wonderful short recipe to prepare for two people on a small budget, or a quick midweek meal. 

This special recipe is from around here were eggs, flour and bacon were easy to find, old bread as well and nothing was wasted : 

Little dumplings with bacon and breadcrumbs

Little Dumplings with bacon and breadcrumbs

recipe:

8 tbsp plain flour

4 tbsp water

2 eggs

1/2 tsp salt

1 pinch nutmeg

150 g bacon bits

3 tbsp breadcrumbs

2 tbsp oil

prepare the dough:

beat the flour, eggs, water with salt and nutmeg together until it is a smooth dough. 

Heat up a huge pot of salted water and bring it to a boil. With 2 teaspoons dipped in the water, pick up some dough and let it drop into the water. Cook for 4 minutes and get them out with a slotted spoon. Make all dumplings until the dough is gone.

In a frying pan, heat the oil add the bacon bits and let them go crispy. Get the bacon out and discard some of the oil. in the rest fry the breadcrumbs until golden brown.

Mix the dumplings with the bacon and the breadcrumbs and enjoy.