Monday, July 25, 2011

Frikadellen Slathered in Lamb & Tyger, Macklemore and Ryan Lewis, Letting Up Despite Great Faults and the Applebutter Express

A Friday night trip to Mr. Dunderbaks was supposed to fulfill my German quota for the weekend. I made extremely quick work of a vegetarian Reuben, pomme frites and potato latkes. Yet there I was, Saturday morning, still a-hankerin for some German foods. I found a recipe for Frikadellen, which is sort of like a German hamburger, on the Dunderbaks Facebook page and decided to work my veggie magic on it.

Frikadellen

-1 package soy crumbles
-2 shallots, diced
-1/2 baguette
-2 eggs (or vegan substitute)
-1 Tbs mustard
-1 tsp vegetarian better than bouillon (or 1 bouillon cube)
-parsley
-black pepper
-vegetable oil

1. Pour vegetable oil into a skillet and heat over medium low heat.

2. Mix the soy crumbles and shallots in a large metal bowl.

3. Rip the baguette into chunks and place in a separate metal bowl. Cover with water to moisten. Drain the water. Squeeze excess water from bread. Add the bread to the soy crumble mixture. Combine.

4. Pour the remaining ingredients into the soy mixture. Stir. Form the mixture into patties.

5. Place the patties in veggie oil and fry until browned (about six to eight minutes). Flip and repeat on the other side. Essen!

Rash Records has gone and done it again. Without even giving it a second thought, they've taken 20 of William Blake's poems, turned them into songs (with the help of a variety of artists) and offered for free. They've even made it "suitable for vegetarians and vegans who may need to avoid eating digital music." Brian O'Shaughnessy's rethinking of "The Lamb" is my favorite.


Earlier in the year I wrote about Macklemore and Lewis' "My Oh My" a hip-hop tribute to baseball, Seattle and Dave Niehaus. This song has been a staple on my MP3 player since then. The duo (Macklemore the rapper, Lewis the producer) released a new video late last week for their song "Wings." Like its predecessor, "Wings" starts with a childhood memory and then springboards into an examination of society through lyrics that sound more like the narration of a story and less like a song. Macklemore and Lewis' songs have a deep social awareness to them, this one questioning consumerism and the swoosh that so many people have to have on their clothing. This social awareness is a big reason why they are quickly becoming one of my favorite duos.



Letting Up Despite Great Faults has a new EP set for release on August 2nd via Old Flame Records. The band has already released "Teenage Tide" for free download and now they have offered a second track, "Sophia in Gold." Its whispered lyrics over electronic beats and lolling music. Imagine the Postal Service performing in a library and you have a good idea of what "Sophia in Gold" is offering. I, for one, am accepting.


Performing on Friday night at Dunderbaks was a local Tampa band called the Applebutter Express. This duo applies their special blend of ukulele funk to covers (especially Weezer) as well as originals. "Handguns and Hammocks" comes from their reverbnation page and features Dennis Stadelman (of Cope), Joe Trivette and Matt DeSear.


4 comments:

  1. I need to eat more veganized German foods. My great grandpa came over here from Germany back in the day, so I should honor those roots.

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  2. I'm surprised the frikadellen worked without meat. Your version, however, looks and sounds delicious. Have a great day. Blessings...Mary

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  3. Bianca
    I've never thought about German food because it is all meat. Only recently did I finally say let's give it a try.

    Mary
    Thanks! I wasn't sure how it would go either but it worked well. Now whether it tastes like the actual version or not, that is a different story.

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  4. Your meatless Frikadellen look fine! I will surely have a try.

    Thanks for sharing the recipe!

    ReplyDelete