Greetings - Please stay awhile!

My mother was born in Hamburg, then the German Reich, and now a major city in the Federal Republic of Germany.  Her ancestors were citizens of Hamburg and the surrounding Kingdom of Prussia for many generations.  When she was in her early 20s, she relocated to Wales, leaving behind family and a city of rubble, but never forgetting the memories of her youth and the struggles and triumphs associated with a devastating World War.  Eventually, my mother met my father and they married in the United Kingdom and moved to the United States in the late 1950s.

The Building in Hamburg where my mother grew up - It survived Allied Bombings during the Second World War

While growing up in a small California coastal town, we rarely encountered other German immigrants or those of recent German extraction.  Although my mother refused to teach us the German language, she frequently celebrated the cuisine of her homeland, which consisted of savory meat and fish dishes and decadent cakes and desserts.

In this blog, I would like to share the inspirations or her wonderful cooking and the memories that they created.  Most of the recipes are from north Germany and particularly from Hamburg, but I will reserve the right to provide my own modifications, which may have their foundations in my American nationality.  In addition, I will likely include other German culinary favorites, and I refer to the cultural meaning of German, which applies to nations outside of the Federal Republic of Germany, such as Austria, Switzerland, and Liechtenstein.

I have a great fondness for the German culture, so don’t be surprised if I share my knowledge about German history and other factoids.

More to come soon and I hope that you enjoy!