Europe: A Carousel of Flavors Part 3

We've arrived at the halfway point of my European trip.  I hope you have checked out Part 1 and Part 2.

This leg of the journey starts in the German part of Switzerland and then make our way to through the countryside of France on our way to Paris.

With this part of the trip comes a little family history from my husband's side.  We passed near where my husband's family is from, the Alsace region of France.  Many of the families from the small town I live in are from here.  My husband's grandfather arrived here in Iowa in 1905 at the age of 5.   The train he came in on at a tiny town near us, called Noble, used to run on the land just across the road from where I live now.  You can see some of the "hump" yet and bits of burnt coal here and there. I didn't get to meet anyone with our same last name but the folks at the hotel in Switzerland were familiar with it.  We've dropped the umlat (ä) over our a but the rest is the same.

Now on to the food and travel!

Hillside of Emmenten, Swtizerland.  This was the view outside my hotel balcony. You could hear the sheep and their bells.  Unfortunately I did not get a photo of them.

Europe:  A Carousel of Flavors Part 3

Foodie Friends Friday Linky Party #158

Welcome to the Foodie Friends Friday

Linky Party!!

Meet Our Co-Hosts!

Hutspot met Wurst en Jus (Hotchpotch with Wurst and Gravy)

This is a simple yet hearty dish we had in Amsterdam.  Hutspot means hotchpoth in Dutch.  In English it is hodgepodge, which means mixture.  The vegetables reminded me of my Crock Pot Pot Roast veggies if I mixed them together. It’s a really great way to get those picky eaters (which includes myself) to eat the cooked carrots.  Onions disappear in the mash as well. 

I realized after make a plain beef broth gravy that it needed something more so I sprinkled in onion powder.  Much better! An even better flavor would be to use real onions, of course. The gravy is a brown onion gravy much like our jäger sauce we use for schnitzel.  Their sauce didn't have any onion bits to show so you would either want to blend it or strain the onions out.  Personally, I just leave them rather than go to extra work. You could use a brown gravy mix from a packet but it's so simple you can make it fresh.

I made these pork cheddar bratwurst myself in a cooking class with Steven from The Sausage Foundry of Cedar Rapids.   If you aren't game to make your own you can find many varieties to try at his shop at NewBo Market or buy your favorite from your local store or meat locker.

 Hutspot met Wurst en Jus (Hotchpotch with Wurst and Gravy) 

 Printable Recipe

1 pound Yukon gold potatoes
1/2 pound carrots
1 small onion
2 Tablespoons of butter
Splash of milk
Salt and pepper to taste
5 bratwurst
Brown onion gravy (see Jäger sauce)