The following is an online extra from our October 2020 issue.
Photo by Keya Wingfield
German food and culture consultant Daniela Holcomb, 35, was born and raised in Konstanz, a city in southern Germany.
Richmond magazine: You’ve been in Richmond five years, correct?
Daniela Holcomb: Yes, and I’ve been in the U.S. for 11 years. Before coming here I was in Philadelphia, where I worked as an au pair. While I was doing that I met my husband, who lived in Hampton Roads. We would make trips to Richmond, and we loved it so much here. The intercultural richness and caring people, the houses along Monument Avenue. I felt less homesick for the first time and decided to move here permanently.
RM: I’ve always found food to be the best remedy for being homesick. What foods remind you of home?
Holcomb: Definitely schnitzel and spaetzle with sweet red cabbage on the side. We also make a mixed salad, which has a large salad on top, and little servings of other salads on the bottom like potato salad. German food is very meat-heavy, and the typical dishes you hear about like veal are usually only eaten in wintertime for better digestion. A favorite side dish I grew up eating was knödel, which is a boiled potato dumpling.
RM: Do you like to cook?
Holcomb: I love to cook, and not just the typical Oktoberfest foods like bratwurst. A lot of what we ate in Germany is actually similar to the foods here in the South — barbecue chicken and mashed potatoes with gravy. I grew up in south Germany, close to Switzerland, in a city environment. I loved that I was able to come home from school in the afternoons to eat lunch.
RM: That does sound like a treat. Were there any other traditions that remind you of home?
Holcomb: In the fall we love going mushroom picking, it’s a big thing. We also would pick white asparagus in the spring.We didn’t go to restaurants on a daily or weekend basis, as they do here. We usually only go on special occasions or festivals, like Easter, and spend up to five or six hours there each time. On Sundays after church, everyone usually likes to meet for coffee and cake. We’re big on drip coffee. We enjoy cakes like apple crumb streusel, Black Forest cake (Schwarzwälder kirschtorte) and traditional sheet cake (Donauwelle kuchen). My absolute favorite is bienenstich kuchen, also known as German Bee Sting Cake. It’s not readily available here in the US. It’s a yeast cake with vanilla cream filling and a crunchy honey-almond topping.
RM: What’s the German street food scene like?
Holcomb: The pretzels are different than the ones you get in America. They’re made with a sourdough bread and shaped a little rounder. Another popular street food — which is actually Turkish — is called döner. It’s a fluffy pita sandwich stuffed with shaved meat, cabbage, tomatoes and a special garlic sauce. In Berlin they make döner with french fries inside, which is incredible! Another popular item is currywurst. It’s a steamed and fried pork sausage, cut into bite-sized pieces. They season it with curried ketchup and top it with curry powder. At the famous Christmas markets we usually get sausage with mustard on a bun and everyone’s favorite, glühwein, which is a hot red wine mulled with spices like anise, clove and nutmeg.
Schwarzwälder Kirschtorte
Black Forest Cake
This recipe is adapted from and dedicated to my dear friend, mentor, chef and former Piedmont Virginia Community College Culinary Director Eric Breckoff, who passed away in August. Born in Germany, he was my first culinary instructor, and he always encouraged me to do my best. He also always said gesundheit — even when I didn’t sneeze! Eric, you will be dearly missed. —KW
For the cake
6 large eggs
1 cup granulated white sugar
1/4 cup unsalted butter, melted
1 vanilla bean or 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour, spooned and leveled
1/2 cup Dutch-processed cocoa powder, spooned and leveled
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
For the sour cherry filling
4 teaspoons cornstarch
1/4 cup canned sour cherry water
1/4 cup kirschwasser*
3/8 cup granulated white sugar
1 pound canned sour cherries, drained
For the whipped cream
3 cups heavy whipping cream
1/4 cup granulated white sugar
For the cake syrup
1/4 cup sugar
2 tablespoons kirschwasser*
1/2 cup water
*Kirschwasser, aka kirsch, is a German brandy made from sour cherries and is native to the Black Forest region. While German law mandates that kirschwasser must be used for a cake to be called a “Black Forest cake”; any cherry-flavored brandy or liqueur will suffice.
Preheat oven to 320 degrees. Line the bottom and the sides of a 9-inch springform pan with parchment paper and set aside. In a large mixing bowl, using a stand or handheld mixer fitted with a whisk or paddle attachment, mix eggs, sugar, butter and vanilla until creamy and fully combined, about two to three minutes. Sift in flour, cocoa, baking powder and salt. Stir to combine, another one to two minutes. Transfer to the prepared baking pan and bake for about 33 to 38 minutes or until a toothpick in the center comes out clean. Do not overbake. I baked mine exactly 35 minutes. Let cool to room temperature.
For the cake syrup, combine water and sugar, bring to a vigorous rolling boil. Take off heat, let cool, and stir in kirsch. Set aside. Place drained sour cherries into a medium-sized bowl. Set aside.
In a small bowl, stir together cornstarch and canned sour cherry water. In a saucepan, bring kirsch and sugar to a simmer over medium heat, stirring constantly. Pour in the cherry-cornstarch mixture and cook for one to two minutes until it becomes thick like syrup and coats the back of a spoon, while continuing to stir. Remove from the heat and pour over sour cherries. Let cool to room temperature.
In a large mixing bowl, whisk heavy whipping cream until soft peaks form. Add sugar and whisk until stiff peaks form.
Cut the cake horizontally two times so that you have three almost evenly thick cake layers. Place the bottom cake layer on a cake stand or plate. Brush each cake layer with cake syrup as you’re assembling the cake. Spread with whipped cream and pipe an additional ring of whipped cream around the edges (together about 1/6 of the cream). Spoon the half of the sour cherries (with very little liquid) on top of the cream but inside the piped ring. The ring makes sure that the cherries stay inside the cake and no syrup is running out the sides. Spoon additional whipped cream on top of cherries and spread evenly to cover them (another 1/6 of the cream, so that about 1/3 of the cream is now used in total). Place the second cake layer on top and repeat. Finish with the third cake layer on top and spread remaining whipped cream, making sure to cover the cake and edges. Chill in the fridge for at least four hours.
Before serving, decorate with chocolate sprinkles, fresh cherries and additional whipped cream to your preference. Store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to three days.
