After being forced to stop working (illness) Brigitta Pertschy discovered the art of making liqueurs with the fruits and herbs from her own garden. The production is limited as the label says: “Brigittas limited editions”. Because of the pureness she offers high quality liqueurs and sirups. To have an idea have a look at her website: www.brigittas.at or better order a bottle and taste the good stuff!
Brigitta Pertschy, Matznerstraße 20, 2223 Kleinharras
Mail: brigitta@brigittas.at
Februar 22nd, 2010
Here, in the northern Wine district of lower Austria, around the end of October almost every restaurant announces the coming “Gansl Essen” (goose eating) as an event you should not miss. Usually you order in time so that the chef has time to prepare the bird, to be crispy on your plate. Red cabbage and dumplings are traditional side dishes. We had our Goose at restaurant Neunlauf in Wilfersdorf this year.
In research of where the tradition of goose eating on St Martins day comes from, I found following information on the BBC website:
in before St Martin’s nameday on 11 November is celebrated to this day. As it coincides with the day when Martin Luther1 was baptised, it is celebrated by Catholics and Protestants alike.
A celebration takes place in the basilica near Tours, France, which contains St Martin’s remains. In the countries of Germany, the Netherlands, Austria and parts of Switzerland, processions take place, often led by a ‘St Martin’ on a horse, sometimes even featuring the beggar. In some regions, children with lanterns go from house to house, singing and collecting sweets. In other regions children and adults go through the streets, carrying torches or home-made lanterns and singing St Martin songs, sometimes accompanied by a brass band. The procession often ends in front of a St Martin’s bonfire, where a sweetbread in the shape of a bishop is usually distributed and eaten.
So where do the geese come into the story?
Long after St Martin’s death, two legends were told connecting St Martin with geese. One legend says that on hearing that he was to be the new Bishop of Tours, St Martin hid in a goose barn, thinking he wasn’t worthy of the honourable office. The loud honking of the geese betrayed him, though. Another legend says that noisy geese disturbed a service St Martin held, which annoyed him so much that they ended up as a roast on the table and have done so ever since.
Facts and Beliefs
Since the 6th Century, the seven weeks of fasting leading up to Christmas (‘Old Advent’) started on St Martin’s day, or Martini. It was the day when the financial and the farming year used to end. Cattle and fowl that wouldn’t make it through the winter were slaughtered and salted for conservation. Like sharecropping, geese – which by this time of year were fully grown and plump enough – were either part of the rent paid to the lord, or were given by the lord to the tenants who attended on him. It was the day when farm labourers and handmaidens were dismissed and given a goose as a gift. New farm labourers and handmaidens were also hired on this day. The families prepared for the dark times of winter by the fireside.
The Martin’s goose was said to have healing powers. Its fat (rubbed in) was thought to help against gout and its blood against fever. A feather from the left wing, burnt and mixed with wine, was believed to be a miracle cure for epilepsy. Even the wishbone of a goose had a meaning: if two people held one end each and broke it, the one with the larger end was thought to have their wish fulfilled. If the bone was pale and white, the winter was expected to be meagre and cold but if it was of a red colour, supplies were expected to last through the winter. In Germany, there is a tradition of eating geese in winter, starting with the ‘Martin’s goose’ on 11 November. From that day on, you’ll find a meal of goose with red cabbage and potato dumplings on the menu of most restaurants until about Christmas, when the season ends. (BBC Home Page)
November 6th, 2009
I just heard on television that Belgium has more than 1500 varieties of beer. Drinking beer becomes more and more popular again. More information: click on Beer in Flanders. Planning a trip combining beer, good dining and culture click on Belgian beer routes.
September 19th, 2009
In Austria the yearly per capita consumption of meat, according to AMA Marketing, is about 66,4 kg, 40 kg of it is pork. Converted to an average meat portion of 200 g, it means that “the Austrian” eats at least 3 times a week Pork. I personally avoid to eat pork. I just do not like the taste of it and beyond that, I always feel sorry for the lively pigs on the trucks that I pass on the Brünner Straße.
Therefore I try to concentrate on vegetarian cooking, it´s creative and healthy. Looking for new recipes , one of my favorite websites is delicioustv by Toni Flore. For me the easiest way is downloading her vodcast and just cook from my laptop in the Kitchen. The recipes I tried are all easy and tasty. Last week I made a herbed potato and green been salad. Click here for a video of the recipe. As there are a lot of beans and new potatoes on the market right now, it´s a fresh and satiably dish for a hot summer day. Succes! Martine
August 10th, 2009
In the sunny Wine district, idilliycly situated at the border of the Laa lowlands, you can find the village Loosdorf. Driving trough Loosdorf you can´t oversee the signs: “Himbeergarten Hummel”. The farm is specialized in Organic Fruit, especially berries. At this moment the raspberries were ready to pick. We stopped to inform us about the location of the fields, they were situated outside of the village. After picking some buckets full of raspberries we returned to the farm where we paid for our crop. In the house of the family Hummel we found a nicely decorated shop where other raspberry products like schnapps, liquor, marmalade, syrup, chocolate,… were offered for sale. Later in the season we will return to pick blueberries, goldberies or the Weinviertler Kiwi (actinidia arguta) . This is a little sort, rich of vitamins, originally from Mongolia. The kiwi has an eatable paring and tastes delicious. We were possitively surprised of the extreme friendliness and warm hospitality of Mrs. Hummel towards the group of disabled peopled that we accompanied.
More information: http://www.himbeergarten-hummel.at/
Juli 2nd, 2009
Christmas cookies are fun to make and certainly fun to eat. Here in the northern Wine district of Lower Austria the tradition of baking cookies and exchanging recipes is very lively.
This year a new collection of private recipes came out, called “Weinviertler Krapferl “(local word for cookies). Margit Schick, the Author collected 150 well tested recipes and photographed every cookie herself. The result is a unique collection of goodies. As some people say that Christmas cookies are made for giving away, this book will help you to make some heartwarming gifts.
More info about the book: margitschick@aon.at
November 24th, 2008
