food photos
recent posts
Dreaming of Vienna …
Date: Nov. 21st 2006
Category: Cookies and Bars, The Travelling Cream Puff
Email This
| 
Add to del.icio.us
For as long as I can remember, I have been fascinated by Vienna. My fascination began at a very young age when I fell in love with The Sound of Music. Laugh if you will, but to this day all I need to hear is one note of Edelweiss and I will instantly become teary-eyed.
What can I say? I’m a sap that way.
But it’s true that I grew up in a household that appreciated the Austrian culture. Much of this had to do with the fact that for many years my father worked for a business that was owned by two very colourful Austrian men. My parents would attend social events organized by Austrian immigrants and my father would regularly stop at a wonderful Austrian deli near his work. He’d bring home all sorts of smoked meats and the most delectable little sausages.
My brother and I loved it! Until the dancing lessons, that is. I blame it all on the Viennese Waltz.
You see, my parents believed that part of being a well-rounded individual included the ability to dance. So on Sunday mornings, after one Italian League soccer game had finished and before the second one started, my brother and I were forced to submit to dancing lessons, in our basement, given by our father.
You can only imagine how thrilled we were.
Whatever love I may have felt, whatever affection I may have harboured, whatever dreams I may have had of one day visiting Austria, they disappeared as soon as my father hit play. Like the resentful adolescent that I was, I begrudgingly submitted to the lessons, making it as difficult for my father as I possibly could. Eventually, the lessons stopped and I reveled in my small victory.
If my father was disappointed, he never let me know it. Whenever we went to weddings or parties, he’d always dance with my mother and then lead me onto the dance floor to dance with me. However bratty I had been during those lessons, he always asked me to dance.
Looking back on those days, it’s hard to believe that very soon, we will mark the fifth anniversary of my father’s passing. There are still moments when I’m amazed that he’s gone. But lately, I seem to feel his loss most when we’re at weddings and I know that he will not be asking me to dance. And it never fails to make me think of those lessons.
And Vienna.
This longing for a place I’ve never been inspired me. So for twelve days in December, I will be visiting three cities that I’ve always longed to see: Berlin, Prague and finally, my beloved Vienna. Between work and other commitments, I haven’t really had much time to think about my trip, but now that I am barely three weeks from departure, it’s time for the reality to sink in.
And to help get me in the mood, I decided to bake one of my very favourite cookies from one of my very favourite cookbooks: Rick Rodgers’ Kaffeehaus. I usually make these at Christmas time, but I simply couldn’t resist making them now. They are buttery and rich Austrian cookies, fragrant with vanilla bean. Over the years, I’ve intensified the vanilla flavour by adding extract and also a drop of almond extract. Sometimes I’ll even add orange zest, but not always. Piled high on a beautiful dish, it’s impossible to resist these cookies.
Just as I suspect it’s impossible to resist Vienna.
When I’m there, I know I’ll think of my father. It’s funny because when we were in the midst of those dancing lessons, I used to wonder to myself if my father knew how lucky he was to have a daughter who would actually dance the Viennese Waltz with him.
But really, I was so lucky to have a father who would dance the Viennese Waltz with me.
Berlin, Prague and Vienna … I’m on my way!
Ciao!
Note: The cookies pictured above are Vanilla Crescents (Vanillen Kipferln) from Kaffeehaus by Rick Rodgers.
Technorati tags: vanilla, almonds, vienna, viennese waltz
38 Comments
Post a Comment
extras
.Magazine Mondays
Click here for more info!
Categories
- 2006 FIFA World Cup
- 2006 Winter Olympics
- Antipasti
- Baking Class
- Beans and Legumes
- Beverages
- Bread
- Brunch
- Cakes, Cheesecakes, Cupcakes and Muffins
- Canada
- Canadian Blogging By Post
- Chocolate
- Choux Pastry
- Christmas
- Coconut
- Comfort Food
- Cookbooks
- Cookies and Bars
- Cooking Italy
- Dairy
- Daring Bakers
- Dessert and Pastry
- Drinks
- Events
- Fish and Seafood
- Flavour of the Month
- Food Blog Awards
- Food of Piemonte
- Fruit
- Gnocchi, Pasta, Pizza and Rice
- Ice Cream
- Italian Sweets
- La Festa al Fresco
- Lemon
- Magazine Mondays
- Meat and Poultry
- MEMEs
- News
- Panini, Sandwiches and Tramezzini
- Pies and Tarts
- Potlucks
- Preserves
- Salads and Dressings
- Soup
- Sugar High Fridays
- Sweet Snacks
- The Daring Bakers
- The Daring Cooks
- The Travelling Cream Puff
- Treasured Family Recipes
- Uncategorized
- Vegetables
- Weblogs
More Links
- Alpineberry
- Caramels, Bonbons et Chocolats
- Confessions of a Cardamom Addict
- Cherry's English Kitchen
- It's My Life
- Tip of the Iceberg
- DavidLebovitz.com
- Dessert First
- Eye for a Recipe
- Hungry In Hogtown
- Jumbo Empanadas
- Kochtopf
- Le Moulin
- Make Life Sweeter!
- Living Venice … and Beyond
- Italian Cooking Recipes
- Joonbug.com (New York)
- Once Upon A Feast
- Pinch My Salt
- Posie Gets Cozy
- Rubber Slippers in Italy
- Scrumptious Street
- Seven Spoons
- Still Life With
- The Flying Apple
- The Second Helping House
- My Kitchen in Half Cups
- Winosandfoodies
- Winter Skies, Kitchen Aglow
- 101 Cookbooks
- A Blithe Palate
- ACE Bakery
- All Recipes
- All Things Edible
- Scones, Muffins, and Tea Cakes
- Trattoria Cooking
- Dip It!
- Panini, Bruschetta, Crostini
- Chez Panisse Vegetables
- Perfect Cakes
- Chez Panisse Fruit
- Italy in Small Bites
- Marcella Says
- Once Upon a Tart
- The Cook and the Gardener
- The Weekend Baker
- Chez Panisse Desserts
- Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking
- The Good Cookie
- Lorenza's Pasta
- The Barefoot Contessa Cookbook
- Barefoot Contessa Parties!
- The Babbo Cookbook
- Rustico
- Barefoot Contessa Family Style
- The Complete Book of Baking
- How to Be a Domestic Goddess
- An Alphabet of Sweets
- Death By Chocolate Cookies
- Canadian Living Cooks Step By Step
- Breads from the La Brea Bakery
- The Art of Eating Well
- On Food and Cooking
- The Pie and Pastry Bible
- The All New, All Purpose Joy of Cooking
- The Magnolia Bakery Cookbook
- The Cake Bible
- Baking with Julia
- Italy Al Dente
- The Food of Italy
- The Silver Spoon
- Celebration Breads
- Williams-Sonoma Collection: Dessert
- More From Magnolia
- Paris Sweets
- Pure Chocolate
- Cheesecakes
- Biscotti
- Sweet Miniatures
- Afternoon Delights
- Luscious Chocolate Desserts
- The Simple Art of Perfect Baking
- Essentials of Baking
- The King Arthur Flour Baker's Companion
- The King Arthur Flour Cookie Companion
- Easiest and Best Coffee Cakes and Quick Breads
- Out to Brunch
- Barefoot in Paris
- Everyday Italian
- Wanda's Pie in the Sky
- For the Love of Soup
- Truly Madly Pasta
- The ACE Bakery Cookbook
- Salad Dressing 101
- Biscuit Bliss
- Party Nuts!
- French Farmhouse Cookbook
- Fagioli
- Avventura
- Bittersweet
- Home Baking
- Bread Made Easy
- Soffritto
- Pasta!
- Caprial's Desserts
- The Great Chocolate Book
- Risotto
- Bread
- Brunch
- Buonissimo!
- Recipes from an Italian Terrace
- A Passion for Chocolate
- Basic Italian
- Simple Italian Sandwiches
- Mediterranean Street Food
- The French Market
- Patricia Wells' Trattoria
- The Italian Baker
- A Thousand Days in Venice
- Julia and Jacques Cooking at Home
- The Zuni Cafe Cookbook
- All About Braising
- Zingerman's Guide to Good Eating
- The Cake Book
- Kaffeehaus: Exquisite Desserts from the Classic Cafés of Vienna, Budapest, and Prague
- Larousse Gastronomique
- Baking: From My Home to Yours
- The Chef's Table
- Chez Panisse Pasta, Pizza, Calzone
- Rose's Christmas Cookies
- A Passion for Piedmont
- The Buttercup Bake Shop Cookbook
- Williams-Sonoma Collection: Cake
- Italian Farmhouse Cookbook
- The New Food Lover's Companion
- Pizza (Williams-Sonoma Kitchen Library)
- Luscious Lemon Desserts
- A Passion for Desserts
- Caramel
- Delicious Dips
- Luscious Berry Desserts
- The San Francisco Ferry Plaza Farmer's Market Cookbook
- Cupcakes!
- A Passion for Ice Cream
- Coffee Cakes
- A Sweet Quartet
- Sunday Suppers at Lucques
- Kitchen Sense
- Cheese: A Connoisseur's Guide to the World's Best
- Wing It!
- Beautiful Breads and Fabulous Fillings
- The Best Quick Breads
- Iced Tea
- Artisan Baking
- Bread for Breakfast
- The Cheese Board: Collective Works
- Les Halles Cookbook
- Simple Soirees
- Twelve: A Tuscan Cook Book
- Al Forno
- Italian Vegetables
- Meze
- The Lost Art of Baking With Yeast: Delicious Hungarian Cakes & Pastries
- BakerBites
- Baking and Books
- La Tartine Gourmande
- BetterBaking.com
- Cottage Chic Living by Cherry Menlove
- Chez Pim
- Chocolate & Zucchini
- Chocolatier
- The Cookbook Store
- Cooking.com
- Cook's Illustrated
- La Cucina Italiana On Line
- Cucina Testa Rossa
- Delicious Cafe
- Delicious Days
- Epicurious
- Flickr
- Food & Wine
- Foodbeam
- Foodieblogs.net
- FoodieView
- Food for Thought - A Foodtv.ca blog
- Golda's Kitchen
- Il Forno
- International Recipes
- Is My Blog Burning?
- ItalianMade.com
- Joy Of Cooking
- Our Adventures in Japan
- Kitchen Connaisseur
- La Toile Maison
- Leite's Culinaria
- Lidia's Italy
- Lori Longbotham
- Lucullian Delights
- Market Hall Foods
- Living in Florence
- Michaelaram.com
- Monika Korngut's Delicious Living
- Orangette
- Pastry Arts and Design
- Pastry Chef Central
- Real Baking with Rose Levy Beranbaum
- The Republic of Tea
- ReTorte
- Rustico Cooking
- Saveur
- Simply Recipes
- Slashfood
- Taste T.O.
- The Cooking Adventures of Chef Paz
- The Perfect Pantry
- Tish Boyle: Sweet Dreams
- Tomato_Kumato
- The Traveler's Lunchbox
- The Vanilla.COMpany
11/21/06 at 1:55 am
what a touching post! enjoy your trip. will be waiting to see and hear all about it when you come back!
11/21/06 at 2:36 am
Oh how wonderful for you! My husband is Czech-American and we have wanted to go to Prague. But, I also have a fascination with Vienna. My mother had a friend from there and she made us the most delightful cookies–including the ones you made. I must say, yours are so beautifully shaped!
11/21/06 at 2:59 am
These vanilla crescents look perfect for the holiday season (Xmas, not Thanksgiving that is)! I borrowed the book from Melissa (Traveller’s Lunchbox) for a while, and really liked it, so it’s on my really-want-that-book list. Soon, I hope..
11/21/06 at 4:04 am
I hope you will have a wonderful time and bring home many happy memories from your trip. Austria is so beautiful! And I recognize those cookies, just cannot remember the Swedish name…
11/21/06 at 4:21 am
You lucky girl! Have a wonderful time. I cannot wait to hear all about it.
11/21/06 at 4:50 am
Very sweet and sad.
and baking.
I hope you have a wonderful time on your trip. I will be stuck at home watching hockey
11/21/06 at 6:25 am
You make me cry. You give me terrific cookies to make me smile - shucks they’re shaped like a smile.
Please stop with another cookbook for me to lust after - don’t I really have enough?
I know what you mean about the 5 years - I am still surprized my mom has been gone that long.
You are right, your were the lucky one.
11/21/06 at 7:04 am
Dance a little waltz while you’re in Vienna; I’m sure your father will be watching. Thanks for sharing these lovely memories.
11/21/06 at 7:29 am
What a moving post! Sweet and sad and hopeful…have a fantastic time in Europe, especially in Vienna!
11/21/06 at 8:52 am
What a beautiful post and tribute to your father. Have a wonderful trip and say hello to Vienna for me. I know you will have a wonderful time and make many wonderful memories.
11/21/06 at 9:28 am
hi,
this recipe looks pretty good and tasty. Here in Austria every family seems to have its own recipe of “vanillekipferl” and as I am tasting myself through the various ones of my family ever single “kipferl” seems to taste unique.
This one is the recipe of my ganny:
http://foodblog.paulchens.org/?p=74
with love from vienna , austria
Astrid
Enjoy your visit in Austria!
11/21/06 at 9:29 am
That was such a lovely post and yeah, I’m tearing up over here. I miss my dad too. He must have been very proud of you, Ivonne. Very proud.
Cookies are very pretty.. will miss you while you are away!
11/21/06 at 10:26 am
Enjoy Austria! I’m part Austrian however I don’t know much about the culture.
and the cookies look perfect!
11/21/06 at 10:32 am
I was just in Prague and Vienna over the summer. Hope you have a fabulous time!
11/21/06 at 10:56 am
Wonderful memories, I’m sure your trip will be amazing.
11/21/06 at 11:35 am
Ivonne, thank you for opening your heart and sharing this beautiful tribute to your father with us. I hope your trip is spectacular and that the hills are alive with your music and you waltz the steps in person, on that soil, with the best stand-in for your father than you can find.
11/21/06 at 11:39 am
Hi Ivonne,
What a beautiful memory of your dad. I’m sure he’s watching over you, and must be very proud!!!!
Love Aunt D.
11/21/06 at 12:17 pm
Hi Ivonne,
What an amazing trip! Mike and I are planning to go to Europe sometime in the coming year. I have been to Vienna, quite a few summers ago, with my mom. I loved the wide boulevards, coffee houses and the incredible art museums. I bet it’s beautiful in December. Those look like a perfect Christmas cookie, and it’s hardly too early for that! Prague is one of the cities high on my list of places to visit. I can’t wait to hear what you think.
11/21/06 at 12:20 pm
This post brought a tear to my eye. So beautifully written!
I hope you have a wonderful trip - I’m envious as I’ve never been to any of those cities myself!
11/21/06 at 12:50 pm
What a beautiful post, Ivonne! Like you, I’ve always wanted to go to Austria, and the Sound of Music is my favourite movie ever. Recently, I sang with the Czech Boys Choir. Boni Pueri, here in Edmonton, and they were wonderful! They went home yesterday, so maybe you’ll have an opportunity to hear them!
I hope you have a wonderful trip, and thanks again for such a touching post.
11/21/06 at 2:54 pm
What a beautiful post…Thanks for sharing your precious memories. I hope you have a wonderful time in Europe - be sure to eat a slice of linzertorte for me:)
11/21/06 at 3:48 pm
These remind me of the one I used to eat in my childhood, handful after handful…bad…but oh so good!
We’ll both be in Europe in December, I am going home to France from the 14th until Jan. 5th. I can’t wait!
I made your coffee cake and blogged about it. Delicious!
11/21/06 at 8:39 pm
Thank you for such a nice story! I cry at Edelweiss, too, by the way. I love that movie!
Those cookies look lovely, too!
I told my husband that our next trip has to be Germany and Austria. I’m so jealous of you! Enjoy yourself!
11/22/06 at 12:03 am
Ivonne, Your post brought tears to my eyes. I’m sure your father will be there with you as you visit Vienna for the first time. Buon viaggio!
11/22/06 at 3:28 am
What heartfelt writing, Ivonne. Interesting to hear about your parents’ relations to Austrian people in Toronto. I hope Vienna will match your expectations and I am looking forward to meeting you ! The Vanillekipferl look very authentic, it is a sort of must among Christmas cookies. Until soon !
11/22/06 at 9:07 am
Looks yummy Ivonne! My sister just visted Austria and said it was fantastic. I’m not sure she ate these cookies but said the Sachertorte was delicious!
11/22/06 at 10:30 am
It’s seems like you have nearly every cookbook on my wishlist - I would love to snoop around in your kitchen! lol.
These look fabulous, as always.
11/22/06 at 10:49 am
PS. Have a wonderful trip!
11/22/06 at 11:37 am
Have a wonderful and safe trip Ivonne! Thank you for sharing such a sweet and touching snippet from your life. Happy travels and I hope this trip is everything you’d imagined and more!
11/22/06 at 2:02 pm
When will you be in Berlin? I’ll be there late in the month visiting my mother…
11/22/06 at 3:18 pm
Everything you do (and you do soooo much) looks wonderful. I can’t keep up, Puff! Do you ever sleep?
Have a wonderful Thanksgiving!
11/22/06 at 4:51 pm
Ivonne, a lovely post as ever, filled with memories. We will miss each other by a couple of days! I leave for Vienna next wednesday, can you believe that? I guess Vienna has a special attraction for food bloggers this year! Enjoy your trip.
11/22/06 at 5:44 pm
I am thrilled to hear you will be hitting the road….you are such a busy person! I enjoyed reading about your dad…
11/23/06 at 6:43 am
These look absolutely delightful! Must’ve needed a fair bit of patience to roll all these cookies though!
11/23/06 at 7:26 am
What a lovely post. I also developed a total obsession with Vienna and 10 years ago I was lucky enough to spend a week there with my mom. If my experience is anything to go by, you are not going to be disappointed. It is one of the loveliest cities I have ever visited. There is an air of gentility that I have never encountered anywhere else in Europe, a sense that you are back in a gentler age.
The only tips I will give you are the memories that have stayed with me the longest: visit Kunsthaus Wien - it is a truly remarkable place and Hudertwasser a truly remarkable man. Go and see Gustav Klimt’s painting The Kiss in the Belvidere palace - I could not tear myself away from it and no print can ever do it justice. Marvel at the glorious Beethoven frieze in the Secession House. Take a tram around the Ring at night. Have coffee and pastry every day, twice a day
Have a ball!
11/23/06 at 8:54 am
I won’t laugh, I love that film as well so much! =)
I’ve never been to Vienna but I can imagine how pretty and amazing it is - would love to go…
I think I will make these delicious looking cookies and dream a little more about it…=)
11/23/06 at 9:03 pm
You do know that as soon as you mention “The Sound of Music” I start singing “The Lonely Goatherder” … then I start humming the overture and do the entire score, don’t you?
I love vanilla crescents…
j
11/26/06 at 4:31 pm
Your story is touchingly wonderful. My experience as a pastry chef has always been of people recalling very special nostalgic memories stirred up by the sight or aroma of a treasured favorite.It’s a wonderful connection to people. All three of your chosen cities are special in very different ways. Prague for me was so full of delightful surprises and old world charm, Vienna also. Savor it all!