Germany

In Germany, Christmas Eve on December 24 is traditionally a day for midnight Mass and visiting relatives, so supper is simple: Kartoffelsalat mit Würstchen, potato salad with hot sausages, is eaten in more homes than any other dish. The long roasts wait for the first or second day of Christmas, when Weihnachtsgans arrives with Rotkohl and Kartoffelklöße. Baking starts weeks earlier. Christstollen rests wrapped in the pantry, and a plate of assorted cookies is offered to guests throughout December. Outdoors, Christmas markets such as Dresden's Striezelmarkt run through Advent, with mulled wine served in ceramic mugs.

The German chapter is mostly everyday cold-weather cooking. Erbsensuppe, split pea soup with smoked pork, and Kartoffelsuppe, served with sliced sausages, are winter meals, as are Swabian Linsen mit Spätzle and Cologne's Himmel und Erde, mashed potatoes and apples with fried blood sausage. Sauerbraten is the Rhineland Sunday roast, its gravy finished with gingerbread. Grünkohl mit Pinkel ends the Kohlfahrt, the kale outing held around Bremen and Oldenburg in January and February. Berliner Pfannkuchen belong to the last days of Carnival, and Bratäpfel with vanilla sauce are among the most popular German winter desserts.

The German menu opens the way a wedding meal does, with Hochzeitssuppe, a clear broth with tiny meatballs, cubes of egg custard and fine noodles that the bride, the groom and their guests traditionally eat after the ceremony. The main course, Rinderfilet mit Rotweinsauce, is seared beef tenderloin with a pan sauce of shallots, red wine and stock. Dessert is Schwarzwälder Kirschtorte: chocolate sponge, sour cherries, whipped cream and Kirschwasser.

The German menu follows Holy Week day by day. Maundy Thursday, March 25, 2027, is Gründonnerstag, when many families eat green food: Frankfurter Grüne Soße, a sauce of seven herbs served with hard-boiled eggs, and Bärlauchsuppe, a wild garlic soup. Good Friday brings fish, here Forelle Müllerin Art, trout meunière, and is the day to start Soleier, eggs pickled in brine. On Holy Saturday many families bake the Osterzopf braid and Osterlamm, a lamb-shaped cake. On Easter Sunday, March 28, Kaninchenbraten, braised rabbit, is one of the typical meats, and Eierlikörkuchen, a Bundt cake made with egg liqueur, stands on the Easter coffee table.