Where can I find a recipe for "mal-DOO-jen"?
April 4, 2011 1:04 PM Subscribe
Can you help me identify a recipe, possibly Depression era, with a German-sounding name?
My grandmother and her twin sisters used to make this thing that had very few ingredients (I think less than 5) that was baked in an oven. They called it "mal-DOO-jen", which is my pathetic attempt at phonetic spelling. It had a very doughy texture and taste, with crispy-burnt edges. The small number of ingredients make me think Depression-era--they were VERY poor--and their family was German (surname Houser), but not fresh off the boat. They cooked from their heads, so no recipe box survives.
This has been driving me nuts, and my inability to spell this creation has frustrated my search attempts.
My grandmother and her twin sisters used to make this thing that had very few ingredients (I think less than 5) that was baked in an oven. They called it "mal-DOO-jen", which is my pathetic attempt at phonetic spelling. It had a very doughy texture and taste, with crispy-burnt edges. The small number of ingredients make me think Depression-era--they were VERY poor--and their family was German (surname Houser), but not fresh off the boat. They cooked from their heads, so no recipe box survives.
This has been driving me nuts, and my inability to spell this creation has frustrated my search attempts.
More details would help. Was it like a cookie? A pastry? A pie? Was it sweet? Bland? Savory? Was it fashioned into any sort of a shape?
posted by countess duckula at 1:08 PM on April 4, 2011
posted by countess duckula at 1:08 PM on April 4, 2011
Response by poster: It definitely wasn't sweet. It actually didn't taste like much of anything. It was baked in a cake-tin, and was cut into squares like brownies. We *MAY* have put butter on it, but I could be making that up. It was very doughy, but crispy on the bottom and edges. For whatever reason, we saw the making of the mal-doo-jens as a treat.
posted by xyzzy at 1:13 PM on April 4, 2011
posted by xyzzy at 1:13 PM on April 4, 2011
Best answer: The only thing I can think of in German that may fit in there is "Mehl" for "flour", that could have been twisted into sounding like "mal". It's really a long shot.
posted by bitteschoen at 1:14 PM on April 4, 2011
posted by bitteschoen at 1:14 PM on April 4, 2011
Response by poster: I actually don't think that's a long shot--the only ingredient I'm certain of is flour. Milk may have been involved.
posted by xyzzy at 1:16 PM on April 4, 2011
posted by xyzzy at 1:16 PM on April 4, 2011
Best answer: Based on 'mehl' for flour and 'kuchen' for cake, could it be mehl kuchen?
posted by methroach at 1:17 PM on April 4, 2011 [1 favorite]
posted by methroach at 1:17 PM on April 4, 2011 [1 favorite]
Response by poster: Yay! I have absolutely NO idea why they would have called it mehl "doojan"--but, like I said, they weren't off the boat so some weird twisting probably happened. It definitely looked like the german pancake and mehl kuchen linked.
Thank you guys. I am actually gonna make this crazy thing.
posted by xyzzy at 1:23 PM on April 4, 2011 [1 favorite]
Thank you guys. I am actually gonna make this crazy thing.
posted by xyzzy at 1:23 PM on April 4, 2011 [1 favorite]
Oh, German pancake is awesome, you should make it immediately. Eat it warm, because it deflates as soon as you remove it from the oven. Put some berries on them, or honey, or butter or jam. Mmm:)
posted by leigh1 at 1:30 PM on April 4, 2011
posted by leigh1 at 1:30 PM on April 4, 2011
LOVE German pancake!!! Make it NOW!
posted by la petite marie at 1:35 PM on April 4, 2011
posted by la petite marie at 1:35 PM on April 4, 2011
This thread is closed to new comments.
posted by Stephanie Duy at 1:08 PM on April 4, 2011