May 14th
2007
Just in case you need another good reason to visit Munich, have I ever mentioned the plethora of different markets and annual fairs which are all very typical for Bavaria? Of course there is the notorious and world-famous Wies'n, individual "Kirwa" (annual church fairs), Christmas markets next to another famous Munich institution, the Auer Dult. They all have one important thing in common, they're overpriced, a breathtaking abundance of traditional delicacies which are hard to resist. Stall after stall offering all kinds of Bratwürschtl'n (Bratwurst), Dampfnudeln (similar: sweet yeast dumplings) or Steckerlfisch (fish on a stick), but to top things off, there is one item, I'm especially fond of: ever heard of a crispy Rahmfleck or Rahmfleckerl? In case you haven't, you most positively have been missing out on a very special savory treat!
The Auer Dult also features some great pottery - like I said, this event is hard to resist. Two weeks ago we met with a couple of friends for a stroll over the quite extensive pottery market of this year's first Auer Dult, which by the way is said to be the largest market of its kind in Europe. A maze of alleys navigates you between antiques, books, kitchen appliances and - foremost - ceramics and porcelain. Buzzing with people due to early summer weather the whole place seemed to burst at its seams. Although it's usually a challenge to gather all our friends under one culinary umbrella, we unisono agreed to stop at this stall for freshly baked Rahmfleckerl. I don't think Rahmfleckerl translates well, but if I had to come up with something I'd probably call 'em "cream patches". Bottom line, it's a flatbread made out of rye sourdough, topped with Schmand, bacon and chopped chives or green onions, best served straight from the oven. Everyone enjoyed these yummy little snacks and I started day-dreaming wondering what it would take and if it was feasible at all to make them at home with an ordinary oven.
Finding myself out of luck trying to search the web and my cookbooks for an appealing recipe, I felt compelled to create one myself and the Rahmfleckerl turned out (almost) perfect! The topping tasted very authentic, the only thing I will continue to work on is the rye sourdough. The flatbreads' taste was pretty good, the bottom had some darker spots (similar to a decent wood-oven pizza) and was crunchy, but maybe a tad too chewy and dense. While I was delighted to notice some pizza-like air pockets, the crumb could have been a little more fluffy, but hey, this was my very first rye sourdough... Any rye sourdough specialists out there? Can't wait to hear your advice!
Start with the dough: Add rye flour and salt to a large bowl, set aside. Dissolve fresh yeast in luke-warm water and add the sourdough starter.
Step by step add the liquid mix to the flour and knead well. You may use a kitchen machine, but you'll find that eventually you'll have to knead by hand anyway - not even our heavy-duty Kitchen Aid cut a fine figure in the end. Cover with a kitchen towel and let rest for 60 minutes at a warm and sheltered place.
Preheat the oven to 250°C (~480°F) or as hot as your oven permits and place a baking tray on the middle or second from bottom level, so it gets preheated, too. Additionally place a heatproof glass or vessel filled with water on the bottom of the oven to raise steam.
Prepare the topping by mixing the Schmand with spices (salt, pepper and nutmeg) to taste and chopping the fresh green springs or chives.
Briefly knead dough, then divide up in tennis ball size dough balls. Thinly roll out dough ball (~.5cm/.2inch in the middle) until oval-shaped and significantly thicker on both ends. Apply a nice deal of the Schmand mix on top of each and decorate with some bacon. Bake on the preheated tray for about 10 minutes (depending on your oven's temperature) and check the bottom of the flatbread after 7-8 minutes to make sure it doesn't get too dark.
Take out and sprinkle with green onions or chives and enjoy while still hot - but be careful to not burn your palate. I know what I'm talking about ;)
Rahmfleckerl
Recipe source: own creation
Required time: 1,5 hours (incl. rising), baking ~10 min.
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Ingredients for the rye sourdough (yields about 10 Rahmfleckerl):
500g rye flour
220ml water
150g sour dough (liquid)
15g fresh yeast
5g salt
.
Topping (amounts to taste):
Schmand (could be substituted with sour cream or Crème fraîche)
bacon, sliced or cubed
green onions, sliced or chives, chopped
salt, freshly ground black pepper and nutmeg to taste
This is always a MUST-HAVE whenever i visit the Gendarmenmarkt WeihnachtsMarkt in Berlin. Always wanted to know how they were made! Thank you so much for the recipe :)
I love the way this "Rahmflecker" looks! Very fresh and appetizing...
Nice post, but there are several mistakes to be mentionned, sorry, but:
some of the links don't work
and You are lumping everything together: "Dampfnudeln" and "Rohrnudeln/Buchteln" are different in
composition and in the way to finish them - e.g. Dampfnudeln are NOT made in the oven, but in a pot with closed with it's lid and cooked on the hotplate [keeping their white colour), "Rohrnudeln/Buchteln" are made in an oven without a lid.
;-)
greetz Liz
EDIT: Hi Liz, thanks for the feedback, I corrected the Wies'n link. Concerning the Dampfnudeln, you are right, but if you follow the link to the original post, you can find the information, that different names are being used for different recipes and preparations. Even the famous Zauner book of Austrian pastries offers a recipe for Dampfnudeln baked in the oven. Either way, they are by far my favorite traditional dessert ;) Nicky
Wie lecker die aussehen! Ich liebe diese kleinen Fladen! Sollte ich meine Angst vor Sauerteig endlich überwinden, dann werde ich das Rezept auf jeden Fall selbst ausprobieret.
I expected a recipe for noodles when I saw the title, having been to Vienna recently. And your very tempting Rahmfleckerl looks like what is called Flammekuchen in other places. Funny how the same dishes are called differently and different dishes can have the same name.
Um einen etwas leichteren Brotfladen zu bekommen, könnte man ein bisschen Weizenmehl zugeben. Was für einen Sauerteig habt Ihr verwendet? Getrockneten? Besser ist frischer, richtig aktiver Roggensauerteig (Natursauer). Bei Bedarf schicke ich Euch gerne einen Ansatz! Bei längerer Gehzeit, die sich sicher positiv auf den Geschmack auswirkt, könnt Ihr die Hefe dann sogar weglassen.
Die Hydration von 44% (Wassermenge bezogen auf die Mehlmenge) ist sehr niedrig (den Sauerteig habe ich jetzt mal bei der Berechnung außen vor gelassen, da ich nicht weiß, was Ihr verwendet habt). Ein feuchterer Brotteig liefert auch ein eine lockerere Krume. Sehr gute Backergebnisse bekommt man bei Einsatz eines Brot- oder Pizzasteins.
Hier in Niederbayern heißen diese leckeren Schmandfladen übrigens Sengzelten.
EDIT: Auf Dein Feedback hab ich natürlich gehofft, merci vielmals! Wird beim nächsten Mal alles berücksichtigt, wir haben übrigens flüssigen Sauerteig verwendet, werde ich auch noch bei den Ingredients anmerken. Und auf das Angebot mit dem Ansatz komme ich gerne noch mal zurück ;) Nicky
I did not actually need another reason to go back to Munich as soon as possible but thank you for giving me one anyway! Those look delicious...
It does sound delicious!!! And as I've got some sour rye bread starter in the fridge (made some bread last weekend), then I can give this one a go quite soon:)
Re: the rye bread - I've accepted myself, that if I use only rye flour, then the result is inevitably dense. I don't mind it, as I've grown up eating sour dense rye bread. If I want something lighter and fluffier, I add wheat flour.
I'm drooling over my keyboard right now! We've enjoyed them many times at the local Christmas market.
Sieht schon mal prima aus, die werde ich demnächst versuchen. Ganz ähnlich mache ich Flammkuchen, allerdings auf hellem Weizenmehlteig. Der Belag schmeckt prima, wenn man ihn je zur Hälfte aus Quark (40%) oder Topfen und Creme Fraiche zubereitet. Meine Tipps für den nächsten Versuch: Nehmt unbedingt einen Pizzastein statt eines Backblechs. Der Unterschied rechtfertigt die Investition auf jeden Fall. Anstatt der Schale mit Wasser auf dem Boden des Ofens verwende ich einen Sprüher (wie für Pflanzen) mit dessen Hilfe die Wände des Backofens sofort nach Einschieben der Teigfladen kräftig besprüht werden.
I've become a bit of an expert when it comes to hunting down Rahmfleckerl (or "Rahmbrot", as I call it) in München. The best by far is always the small stall at the Marienplatz Christkindlmarkt nearby Schuster. Believe me, I've tried at least 10 different providers ... they are always the best, and the dough is always cooked to perfection with a slight hint of chewiness!
i had no idea. i thought schmand could only be found (eaten) in eastern europe. will definitly have to look this delicious looking food (stand?) once in munich. now all i have to figure out is when i am next in munich :)
@Petra: Heisst das dann, das man Roggenmehl immer mit Weizenmehl mischen sollte? Oder nur wenn man ein luftiges Brot möchte? Ich möchte mich am Wochenende zum ersten mal an selbstgebackenem Roggenbrot versuchen.
I have definitely been missing out, as I have never heard of these treats. They do sound amazingly delicious. Will have to plan a trip to Germany to samle these gems!
I'm always up for a new sandwich styled foods -- got to read up on sourdough now. Would perhaps be easier just to trek down to Germany this summer. By the way, is this a treat known in all of Germany?
Eva, nein - du kannst natürlich auch reines Roggenbrot backen (Rezepte findest du in meinem Brotkasten). Es wird aber immer eine festere Krume haben als Mischbrot mit Weizen.
Thank you so much for this post. My German grandma makes this incredible tasty bite for me to this very day and it always brings me back to childhood summers at the cabin in the sun. The preparation of it would heat the cabin up to ridiculous temperatures which forced us to eat it outside at the picnic table and follow-it up with a cooling dip in the lake. Lovely photos too.
Now how cool is that! I thought I'd never be able to have these treats again after we left Munich more than two years ago.
I wonder how my oven copes with running at full steam :-) I'll definitely put him to the test!
D.e.l.i.c.i.o.u.s. is all I can say - will have to try soon! Thanks for the recipe Nicky.
They look delicious! Something I've never seen or tried before! I have to broaden my horizons!!
yellerKat, No worries! We are happy to report that everything went fine, nobody got injured and the kitchen is doing great, too ;)
Pille, Great to know I'm not the only one who loves dense bread! The next time I will try it with some wheat flour though, just to see the difference.
Tobias, Danke für die Tipps! Das mit dem Pflanzensprüher hab ich auch schon mehrfach gemacht, allerdings hab ich mich einmal so ungeschickt angestellt, das eine kleine Brandwunde meinen rechten Unterarm zierte...
Melanie, I know your favorite stall, maybe we should have a Rahmfleckerl blind date next Christmas season ;)
Christina , Good question! I don't remember seeing them outside of Bavaria, would anybody know?
250C! I think my kitchen will explode!