conventional no restrictions roasting / baking yellow

Zwiebelkuchen | German Onion Pie

Name: Zwiebelkuchen | German Onion Pie
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 60 min
Ingredients: 80 g TAM105 whole wheat flour; 170 g Wren Abruzzi rye flour; 0.25 tsp salt (fine, sea salt); 170 g butter; 60 g water (ice cold); 10 slice bacon (diced); 5 lb onion (sweet, diced); 3 cup sour cream; 6 each eggs (large); 4 tbsp wheat flour (all-purpose); 4 tsp kosher salt; 2 tsp caraway seeds (or black jeera, or German bread spice mix); 0.5 tsp black pepper (freshly ground)

September 20, 2020

happy fall y’all

We made it through the summer of 2020. Phew! You know what I mean. Time to celebrate autumn, aka fall in North American English. Today, I am doing it by making the Zwibelkuchen, a German onion pie.

For a passionate foody, Germany is one of the best travel destinations in the Fall. I follow my German friends who share their trip pictures on Facebook and remember mine four years ago. One of the memories is an onion pie and my first Federweißer (“new wine” or “feather-like” wine). I was in the back seat of a car with a bottle on Federweißer, responsible for holding a bottle carefully compensating turns, so that — Gott behüte! — it would not explode with a fountain of wine.

Recently, I came across somebody saying no other cuisine in the world makes the fall as awsome as German cuisine. I am sure there will be those to argue, but not me. I agree unconditionally.

no 40th Octoberfest in Fredericksburg this year

But who can stop you from making it happen in your home kitchen?

Order good wheat and rye flour from Barton Springs Mill. Get that wonderful CM cherrywood smoked bacon from Central Market or HEB. Texas sweet onions are the best for this pie. The best local eggs at HEB and CM are the eggs from Vital Farms. Seriously!

I use a special German spice blend — a gift from my German friends, but you can use caraway seeds instead. They are available at Savory Spice Shop.

And good Mozel Riesling. Cold. Bitte schön.

Print Recipe

Zwiebelkuchen | German Onion Pie

Prep Time30 mins

Cook Time1 hr

Course: Appetizer, Main Course, Side Dish

Cuisine: German

Keyword: bacon, German, onion, pie

Servings: portions

Calories: 336kcal

Ingredients

for dough (for 2 pies 8" D 1.5" H)

80 g TAM105 whole wheat flour
170 g Wren Abruzzi rye flour
0.25 tsp salt fine, sea salt
170 g butter
60 g water ice cold

for filling (for 2 pies 8" D 1.5" H)

10 slice bacon diced
5 lb onion sweet, diced
3 cup sour cream
6 each eggs large
4 tbsp wheat flour all-purpose
4 tsp kosher salt
2 tsp caraway seeds or black jeera, or German bread spice mix
0.5 tsp black pepper freshly ground

Instructions

for dough

In a bowl of a stand mixer, measure the flours and salt, mix and sift. Add cold cubed butter and stir on low speed with a paddle attachment until the mixture looks like crumbs. Add ice-cold water and, with the same paddle attachment, knead the dough until smooth.
Stop, remove the dough, roll into two 12" D rounds between parchment paper sheets, and let rest for at least an hour in a fridge. It can be made in advance to keep refrigerated for 2-3 days, of frozen for a month.

for filling

Place diced bacon in a cold frying pan, place over low heat, and slowly render fat, stirring.
Add onions and slowly caramelize them until golden brown, stirring. Remove from the heat and let cool.
In a bowl, combine sour cream, eggs, flour, and seasoning. Whisk them to mix well.
Add the caramelized onions with bacon and mix well.

to make the pie

Preheat oven 400F. Place the shelf in the middle of the oven.
Line the baking molds with the dough rounds.
Fill them with the onion mixture. Bake for 45 minutes to an hour until the top is golden brown and the center is cooked. Let cool.
Serve warm or cold. A glass of cold Mosel Riesling will make it even better! Enjoy!