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A Christmas Market … Lakeside (Seeweihnacht)

Festive twinkle light adorned market booths sit along side of the picturesque alpine lake, Schliersee. Its dramatic backdrop of snow capped mountains. This is Mother Natures holiday decorating at its best. The air, fragrant with all the magical scents of a traditional German Christmas market. From mulled warm wines, to the cinnamon spiced candied nuts. All these sights and sounds help create the magical atmosphere of this lovely little market.

Seeweihnacht in Schliersee is the first Christmas market to start off the 4 Advent weekends of fabulous holiday festivities. Held on the 2 and 3 December in the Kurpark am See located near Vitalwelt. You can come by car or by train as the market is a short walk from the train station. It is a great alternative to sitting in holiday traffic.

What is wonderful about these small town local Bavarian Christmas markets is they are so intimate. Each both contains gifts that are created by loving passionate hands. You won’t find plastic or mass produced items from lands far away at this market. These are handmade gifts destined to become heirlooms. From the foods to the Christmas ornaments, each item is uniquely special.

Each year the ladies of the Frauenbund from the Catholic church in Schliersee work tirelessly preparing the most fantastic array of German Christmas cookies called “Plätzchen”. You have to arrive early to make sure you get a box as they go quickly. Definitely worth making a trip to savor a few of their delights.

Families have gather around in the firelight listening to Christmas carols while wagging dogs snuggle with warmly bundled children since the first days of this market. Eyes bright with age old Christmas cheer. This is a timeless image of small Bavarian village tradition. Visiting these local markets is where you truly can experience an old time German Christmas market feeling.

Some of the great highlights for the whole family are the horse and carriage rides which are held on Saturday and Sunday at 2 pm till 5pm.  Alpine brass Christmas music fills the air every day of the market starting at 8 pm and a very special visitor greets the merry makers at 5pm when Nikolaus arrives in all his Christmas glory.

 

 

This is a market that can’t be missed. It’s a great finish to a long day on the slopes.

 

Opening times:

Saturday 2 December from 2pm till 8pm

Sunday 3 December from 12 till 8pm

 

Address:

Kurpark Schliersee

Perfallstr. 4

83727 Schliersee

 

 

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Ratskeller Schliersee Not a Wild Goose Chase

What does paying taxes and roasted goose have in common? In the middle ages, November 11 was pay day and often taxes were paid with a goose. As crazy as that sounds, in this day and age, the tradition of roasted goose on November 11 still lives on in Germany.

Presently, November 11 is known in Germany as, Martinstag (St. Martin’s Day)and it is celebrated by German children with a parade of handmade lanterns in the evening and after a roast goose dinner. The most well-known legend connected to Saint Martin is when he is said to have cut his cloak in half to share with a poorly dressed beggar which later he believe to be Jesus. Making his action a great example for German children to be good samaritans in their lives.

My family loves an amazingly juicy roast goose but I hate to clean my oven after cooking it. Thankfully this year we made reservations to enjoy our deliciously traditional “Martinstag” goose at the Ratskeller in Schliersee. The Ratskeller is located next door to the Rathaus or town hall. It is traditionally where the Mayor and town council would eat so you are always guaranteed a great meal at a good price at your local Ratskeller.

Sadly it is too late to order roast goose  this year but I highly recommend making your reservation for next  St. Martins day at the Ratskeller. Schliersee. The goose we ordered was perfectly prepared with crisp crackling skin and the portion size seemed enormous for only being a quarter of the goose. Fragrant and tender red cabbage and potato dumplings accompanied our magnificent meal. The knowledgable servers can also suggest for you  the perfect wine to pare with your goose.  Petra, Matthias and the entire Ratskeller team were warm and wonderful hosts.

 

 

If you are unable to get to our Schliersee Ratskeller here is a recipe you can try for yourself at home.

 

Ingredients

               
1 Oven ready goose (4-4.5 kg)
hearty pinch of salt
fresh ground pepper
1 bunch of fresh marjoram
4-3 slightly sour apples
2 onions
2 carrots
250 g of celery root
150 g of mushrooms
2-3 tsp cornstarch
1-2 tablespoons creme fraiche
wooden skewers
kitchen twine or cotton string
heavy bottom roasting pan
roasting rack

 

Preparation

Remove giblets and extra fat from the goose. Wash innards and goose and pat dry. Rub goose inside and out with salt and pepper.

Second

Chop marjoram. Quarter and core apples. Mix both together and stuff in the goose. Close neck and belly opening with skewers and yarn. Tie the legs and wings tightly to the rest on the goose body.

Peel the onions and quarter them. Peel carrots and celery, cut up roughly. Clean mushrooms and wash if necessary. Toss everything with the giblets into the drip pan and place in the preheated oven at 175 ° C or 347°F.

Put the goose on a rack over the dripping pan. In the pan, pour 1/2 liter of boiling water. Roast the goose for 4-4 1/2 hours. Prick the skin to release the fat about a half hour into roasting time.

Approximately 30 minutes before the end of the roasting time, pour about 1/8 of boiling water onto the drip pan and switch on the oven 225 ° C or 437°F.

Dissolve 1 teaspoon of salt in 3 tablespoons of ice-cold water.

Brush the goose about 15 minutes before end of roast twice with the salt and ice water mixture.

 Once done lift the goose off the grate and let it rest.

 

Put the apples and vegetables from the pan through a sieve. Then deglaze the pan with a little hot water scraping up all the baked on bits and put that through the same sieve.  Remove as much as possible of the extra grease off the top with a spoon.  Put sauce back into roasting pan.  Make a mixture of 5 tablespoons of water and starch together till smooth. Pour this into the sauce. Add the creme fraiche and mix till it makes a smooth gravy.

 

If you are in our area and would love to try a traditional Martinstag goose, please contact Petra & Matthias at the Ratskeller to make your reservations.

 

https://www.facebook.com/ratskeller.schliersee/

http://www.ratskeller-schliersee.de

 

 

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