I Will Cook So We Can Live: Bertha's German Recipes
This article from the SC Governor's Council of the Holocaust 2022Holocaust Remembered Supplementis published with permission from the Free Times and McCatchy
Risa Strauss with her former mother-in-law, Bertha Strauss. Courtesy of Risa Strauss
by Risa Strauss
In Orchot Tzaddikim, “Ways of the Righteous,” in English — a 15th century German book on Jewish ethics, it is written: “The wise man says: I will eat to live, and the fool says: I will live to eat.” While perhaps true on a certain level, these words have never really deterred me, an enthusiastic foodie from seeking out the next amazing restaurant.
But time passes, people change and in the last few months, I have found that these words have given me pause to consider the relationship between my beloved former mother-in-law, Bertha and her beloved Uncle Max.
Bertha is a Holocaust survivor. From Karlsruhe Germany, she, her brother, and parents were deported in 1940 to internment camps in the south of France. Bertha was 4 years of age and her brother Leo, 2. During the summer of 1942 the children were rescued by the OSE (Oeuvre De Secours Aux Enfants) and in September 1942 both parents were put on a transport to Auschwitz where they were immediately gassed.
On May 8, 1946, the children, and a group of other Jewish children who had lost their parents in the Holocaust arrived in New York by ship from Le Havre, France. Recha Reutlinger, their aunt — their Tanta became their legal guardian.
Uncle Max and Tante Hilde Fechenbach were deported in September of 1942 from Wurzburg, Germany to the Theresienstadt Concentration Camp with their children Walter (14 years) and Susanne (9 years). As if by a miracle, they survived in Theresienstadt for almost 3 years, although so many other prisoners perished.
So, how did Uncle Max and his family survive? Max was a chef. At the time of his deportation, he was working as a cook in a senior center — a nursing home of sorts. He was also a handicapped German Army vet, having lost a leg in WW1. Upon arrival at Theresienstadt, the SS aware of his occupation whisked him away to be named the camp chef for the Nazi soldiers.
Bertha and her brother Leo at his Bar Mitzvah, 1950. Courtesy of Risa Strauss
After the war was over, like many German refugees before them, Washington Heights in Upper Manhattan in New York City became home for Bertha and Leo as well as for Max and his family. The families were close, and Max became a father figure for both Bertha and Leo. Max was also able to continue working in his profession, the same job that saved his family from extermination in the camps. Max’s position as chef at the Beth Jacob Home for the Elderly in the Bronx, supported the family for many years. It also honed his cooking skills. He would regularly prepare exquisite German dishes for the entire family. What he didn’t realize was how much his young, orphaned niece, Bertha was observing him.
She watched, absorbed, and inhaled — his soups, his sauces, his roux, his chicken, and liver dishes, spatzle, beef rouladen, and more. Even how he used his knives did not go unnoticed by the young gastronome. Bertha learned about food preparation, meal timing, presentation, and proper usage of plates, cutlery, and myriads of food gadgets. She assisted him in making traditional Passover dishes, food for the synagogue and regular evening meals for the family. Bertha was present when Max prepared the platters for her brother Leo’s Bar Mitzvah. And Max was there for her, to walk her down the aisle in her father’s stead when she married her husband Walter Strauss in 1957.
Bertha, widowed for a few years, is now 86 years old. She has 2 children and 4 grandchildren. Her gourmet talents are well known, appreciated, and devoured by her family, her synagogue — Hillcrest Jewish Center, Queens Region of Hadassah, and friends and family in Israel and around the world. Her cooking has changed over the years. Influenced by Kashrut laws, Bon Appetit, Gourmet Magazine, and numerous celebrity chefs. Even in 2022, a seat at Bertha Strauss’ Passover Seder table is a hard ticket to come by. However, an extra chair will always be found, as there is always room for one more.
Uncle Max passed in 1976, but the impact he had on his nieces’ life was considerable. What might their relationship have been had they not been living so closely together in the post WW2 refugee neighborhood. Was Uncle Max’s mantra, “I will cook so we can live,” and “We live because I cook”? I can only imagine the horror of feeding and preparing foods for Nazis while his family and the other prisoners ate rotten turnips. But with each morsel of food he made, he was able to bide his family a few more moments of precious life. Those horrible experiences suffered, became a nurturing force in Bertha’s young life.
Writer, Abraham Avrunin wrote, “Eating is the best of prayers.” Bertha Strauss lived her post-Holocaust life by those words. Though starved as a little girl, Bertha turned that hunger into a fulfilling and creative artistic endeavor. Embracing Jewish traditions, and religious practices she shared her culinary creations with all those around her. By connecting the goodness of her past, and family roots with her present, Bertha was able to provide a wonderfully delicious future for her family.
Risa Strauss is the Beth Shalom Religious School Director, USC Hebrew Instructor, and 2019 Covenant Award Winner.
Bertha’s Recipes
Bertha says she never measures, but cooks by taste.
Savoy Cabbage in White Sauce Wirsching in weisser Sauce
1 large Savoy cabbage (about 2 pounds)
1 teaspoon kosher salt, plus more to taste
2 tablespoons neutral-flavored oil;
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1½ cups cooking liquid or vegetable, chicken, or beef broth,
2 tablespoons finely chopped parsley
Ground white or black pepper, to taste
Cut the cabbage in half lengthwise, then cut each piece in half lengthwise. Trim away the hard core and stem, and the hard ribs of the outer leaves. Then cut each piece crosswise into 1-inch pieces. 2. Fill a 2- to 3-quart pot halfway with water, add the salt, and bring to a boil over high heat. Add the cabbage, bring back to a boil, and cook for 4 to 7 minutes, until the cabbage is your preferred tenderness (test by piercing it with a fork). 3. Place a colander in a large, heat-proof bowl and drain the cabbage, reserving the cooking liquid in the bowl. Rinse and dry the pot and return it to the stove. 4. Set the pot over medium-high heat and heat the oil. Decrease the heat to medium and add the flour, whisking to blend. When the mixture is smooth, slowly add the cooking liquid, broth, ½-cup increments, whisking constantly, until the sauce is smooth and velvety and has the consistency of heavy cream. Stir in the parsley and season with salt and pepper to taste. Finally, add the drained cabbage and toss gently, to coat with the sauce. Serve immediately.
Spätzle - European Noodles
Spätzle can be made using any of the following methods, depending on your preference and what you have available in your kitchen: with a Spätzle maker (an inexpensive—under $10—hand-operated contraption that looks like a flat grater with large holes and a cup to hold the batter that passes back and forth over it), by forcing the batter through a colander, or by flicking pieces of the batter off a wooden cutting board with a knife. Whichever method you use, the Spätzle are made directly into a pot of boiling water, where they cook almost immediately.
2 cups all-purpose flour
3 large eggs, beaten
1 tsp. plus 1 Tbl. kosher salt, divided
½ cup water
1. Put the flour in a mixing bowl. Add the eggs, 1 tsp. of the salt, and the water. Beat very well until smooth and shiny. When you dip a spoon into the batter and lift it a few inches above the bowl, the dough should fall off the spoon in a continuous ribbon.
2. Fill a 3- or 4-quart pot three-quarters full of water and add the remaining 1 Tbl. salt. Bring to a boil over high heat.
3. Place the bowl of batter on the counter next to the stove, and use any of these three techniques to form the Spätzle: If you are using a Spätzle maker: Place the Spätzle maker on top of the pot of boiling water. Fill the cup with batter and immediately start pushing the cup back and forth. The noodles will fall through the bottom into the boiling water. If you are using a colander: Holding the colander over the pot of boiling water, pour about 1 cup of batter into it and stir it with a spoon to force it through the holes into the boiling water.
If you are using a cutting board: Position a sturdy cutting board with one end resting on the edge of the pot of boiling water. Spoon a couple of tablespoons of batter onto the board, a few inches from the end nearest the pot. Using a knife with a straight blade, slice a thin sliver of batter from the edge closest to the pot. With a quick flick of your wrist, push the sliver of batter into the boiling water. Working quickly, repeat, using enough batter to fill the pot with one layer of Spätzle. When all the Spätzle have risen to the top of the water, cook for an additional 1 minute. Remove the Spätzle with a slotted spoon and place in a serving bowl (keep warm in a low oven, if desired). Repeat until all the batter has been used.
Stuffed Veal Breast Gefüllte Kalbsbrust
STUFFING
2 large hard rolls (such as Kaiser, Vienna, French, or ciabatta rolls)
2 Tbsp. neutral-flavored oil
1 small onion, finely chopped
½ carrot, peeled and finely chopped
1 stalk celery, finely chopped
2 Tbsp. finely chopped parsley
½ tsp. ground ginger
½ tsp. sweet paprika
½ tsp. dried sage
½ tsp. ground black or white pepper
1 tsp. kosher salt
2 large eggs
VEAL
3- to 5-pound breast of veal, with pocket cut in
1 clove garlic, cut in half
2 tsp. kosher salt ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
GRAVY
2 Tbsp. neutral-flavored oil
1 small onion, coarsely chopped
½ carrot, peeled and coarsely chopped
1 stalk celery, coarsely chopped
½ cup white wine, plus more if needed
2 Tbsp. water, at room temperature, if needed
1 tsp. cornstarch, if needed
Making the stuffing
1. Tear the rolls into small pieces, about ½ inch in size. Place them in a bowl with warm water to cover and let sit for a few minutes, until the bread is soaked. Pour off the water and squeeze the bread to remove as much water as possible.
2. Melt the fat in a medium-size skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and sauté slowly until it is transparent, stirring occasionally, about 5 minutes. Add the carrot and celery and cook for a few minutes longer, but without browning, until the vegetables begin to get soft. Add the bread and parsley, and continue cooking while mixing until the bread dries out and everything is blended.
3. Add the ginger, paprika, sage, pepper, and salt. Remove from the heat and let cool.
4. Whisk the eggs in a small bowl. Add them to the cooled stuffing and stir to combine.
Making the veal
5. Preheat the oven to 450°F.
6. If the pocket has not been cut into the meat do it yourself as follows: From the front of the roast, where the ribs are visible, slide a large knife into the fat, separating two layers of the meat, without cutting all the way through to the back or the sides, to create a pocket.
7. Rub the meat inside and out with the garlic, salt, and pepper. Spoon the stuffing into the pocket. Close the pocket by threading one or two metal skewers through the meat.
Making the gravy
8. In a Dutch oven or heavy pot large enough to hold the veal breast, heat the fat. Add the onion, carrot, and celeryto the pot. Cook over medium heat, stirring the vegetables for a few minutes, until they begin to soften. Add the wine. The veal will cook for 30 minutes per pound, for a total of 1½–2½ hours, depending on the size of your roast.
9. Add the roast to the pot and place it in the oven uncovered. Roast for 20 minutes at this temperature.
10. Turn the temperature down to 350°F.
11. Cover the pot. After 40 minutes of cooking, remove the cover from the pot. From this point on baste every 20 minutes with liquid from the bottom of the pot, using a brush, spoon, or basting bulb. When the time is up, check for doneness by piercing the meat with a fork. It should be browned and very tender. If it isn’t, continue cooking, and check again after 15 minutes.
12. Remove the meat from the pot and transfer to a cutting board. Let it rest for 15 to 20 minutes, while you make the gravy.
13. Put the pot on the stove top over medium heat. If there is not enough liquid in the pot to make gravy, add more white wine or water. Heat the liquid and scrape up the browned bits on the bottom of the pot with a wooden spoon. If the gravy needs thickening, combine the water and cornstarch in a small bowl and stir to dissolve. Pour the cornstarch mixture into the pot. Bring the liquid to a boil and stir, cooking until the mixture becomes translucent and thickens, 2 to 3 minutes. When the gravy is ready to serve, pour it into a gravy boat. 14. Cut the meat and stuffing down to the bone, into serving slices, and place on a serving platter.
Cut as much meat away from the bones as you can and place it on the platter.