These days I've been buried into “Die echte deutsche Küche”, a culinary book that I own for some years now, but usually ignore. The cold weather outside, however, is asking for a hearty German meal. Today I prepared Maultaschen – savory meat stuffed dough pockets from Swabia /Schwaben/.
In a large pan, sauté the finely chopped onions and garlic in olive oil, until translucent. Dice the tomato and add to the pan. Add a handful of finely chopped fresh parsley and thyme leaves. Season with salt and pepper, add a dash of white wine and toss in the mussels. Stir well and cover to steam.
Although pappardelle pasta is traditionally cooked with heavy cream and rich boar or hare sauces, I allowed myself to cook a quick, light and very flavorful meal.
Pelmeni are the Russian equivalent of the Italian ravioli and the Chinese dumplings. Actually, almost every cuisine has it's version of dough balls stuffed with sweet or savory filling. The word pelmeni literary means "ear bread." Back in the days, peasant women in Siberia used to make hundreds of pelmeni, stuff them into canvas bags, and hang them outside to freeze.
