Friday, October 21, 2011

Happy Belated Oktoberfest

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My parents were very close friends with a lovely German man named Wolfgang, who made this dish every time we visited, for he knew it was my father's favorite. His secret ingredient was vodka, but I think I've made do with a splash of white wine and a tablespoon of brown rice miso for that "boozy" flavor. I'll admit, I sure did love these when I had them the first time. I think I came up with a pretty damn good homage. Here's to you, Wolf.

klopse 004

Vegan Königsberger Klopse (German meatballs)
Serves 4 healthy appetites.

For the Klopse:
1/2 package Gimme Lean hamburger
1/2 package Gimme Lean sausage
1 tbsp brown rice miso
2 pieces of bread (I used Rudi's multigrain oat), or a large kaiser roll
1/4 cup dry bread crumbs
1 tbsp all purpose flour
1 tsp dried thyme
1 tsp dried parsley
1/2 tsp white pepper
1 small onion, finely chopped
1 clove garlic, minced

Tear up the bread, and douse in hot water. Strain and squeeze out excess. Mix well with other ingredients. Form into 8 meatballs with wet hands. If the mixture is too sticky, add a little flour.

Preheat oven to 350°

In a hot, oiled cast iron skillet, brown the klopse on all sides. Remove klopse and set aside.

For the gravy:

2 tbsp olive oil
2 tbsp margarine
2 tbsp cornstarch
2 cups hot not-beef broth
1 tbsp soy sauce
1 tsp vegan Worcestershire sauce
1 tsp brown German mustard
splash of vodka or white wine (maybe 1/4 cup)
1 tbsp drained capers
1/2 cup vegan sour cream

In the same pan, heat the oil and margarine. Whisk in the cornstarch. Add the broth, soy sauce, Worcestershire, mustard, capers, and wine and whisk well. Bring to a boil. Add klopse. Remove from heat and put pan in the oven for 20 minutes. Take out of the oven. Stir in sour cream. Cool, then serve over mashed potatoes, or with warm potato salad with vinaigrette.

I think this is one of my best. It was EVEN MORE DELICIOUS after being in the fridge all day. But that could be the Oktoberfest beer talking.

2 comments:

Don't Fear The Vegan said...

This looks like something my grandma would have made. Yum!

Sarah said...

Those look great! Yums.