Pennsylvania Dutch Recipes: 15 Amish Country Holiday Dishes the Rest of America Never Learned to Make

These Pennsylvania Dutch recipes come from the farm kitchens of Lancaster County, where the Thanksgiving turkey sits next to potato filling instead of stuffing and chicken pot pie arrives with no crust at all. Amish and Mennonite cooks make thrifty food that wastes nothing, and their tables are known for seven sweets and seven sours. Most of the country has never tasted schnitz un knepp, red beet eggs or a gooey wet-bottom shoofly pie. If you loved our Amish recipes families are sharing, these holiday dishes are the next step. Most use pantry basics like potatoes, molasses and apples, and many can be made ahead. Pull up a chair at the farmhouse table..

Potato Filling, the Thanksgiving Star of Pennsylvania Dutch Recipes

Ask anyone from Lancaster County what goes next to the turkey and the answer is potato filling: fluffy mashed potatoes folded with buttery toasted bread cubes, celery and onion, then baked until the top turns crisp and golden. Outside Pennsylvania Dutch recipes it is almost unknown, yet families who grew up with it say Thanksgiving is not complete without it. It belongs with all the forgotten Thanksgiving sides..

You will need: 3 lb russet potatoes peeled and cubed, 6 cups day-old bread cubes, 1/2 cup butter, 1 cup diced celery, 1 onion diced, 2 eggs, 1 cup warm milk, 1/4 cup parsley, 1 1/2 tsp salt, 1/2 tsp pepper

How to make it: 1. Heat the oven to 350 F and toast the bread cubes 10 minutes. 2. Boil and mash the potatoes. 3. Cook the celery and onion in butter until soft. 4. Beat in the eggs and milk, then fold in everything else. 5. Bake in a buttered 9×13 dish 45 minutes until golden.

Pork and Sauerkraut, the New Year’s Day Classic

In Pennsylvania, New Year’s Day dinner means pork and sauerkraut, a tradition said to bring luck because the pig roots forward. Smoked pork and smoked sausage bake on a bed of kraut, onion and apple until the cabbage turns mellow and sweet. Potatoes always sit alongside to soak up the juices. Tip: rinse the sauerkraut once for a milder flavor, and save extra spuds for leftover mashed potatoes.

You will need: 2 lb smoked pork loin or chops, 1 lb smoked sausage, 2 lb sauerkraut drained, 1 onion sliced, 1 apple grated, 2 tbsp brown sugar, 1 tsp caraway seed, 1 cup chicken broth, 2 lb potatoes

How to make it: 1. Heat the oven to 325 F. 2. Mix the sauerkraut, onion, apple, brown sugar and caraway in a Dutch oven. 3. Nestle in the pork and sausage and pour in the broth. 4. Cover and bake 2 hours. 5. Boil the potatoes until tender and serve them alongside.

Wet-Bottom Shoofly Pie, the Best Known of All Pennsylvania Dutch Recipes

Shoofly pie is the dessert most people connect with Pennsylvania Dutch recipes, and the wet-bottom style wins: a gooey molasses layer on the bottom and a cakey crumb topping above it. Tip: use regular unsulphured molasses, not blackstrap, and pull the pie while the center still jiggles. It earns a spot among our desserts with funny names.

You will need: 1 unbaked 9-inch pie crust, For crumbs: 1 cup all-purpose flour, 2/3 cup packed brown sugar, 4 tbsp cold butter, For filling: 1 cup unsulphured molasses, 3/4 cup boiling water, 1 tsp baking soda, 1 large egg beaten

How to make it: 1. Heat the oven to 375 F and fit the crust into a pie pan. 2. Rub the flour, brown sugar and butter into crumbs. 3. Stir the baking soda into the boiling water, then whisk in the molasses and egg. 4. Pour into the crust and top with crumbs. 5. Bake 35 to 40 minutes and cool 2 hours.

Baked Apple Dumplings in Cinnamon Syrup

An apple dumpling is a peeled, cored apple wrapped in flaky pastry and baked in bubbling cinnamon syrup until the apple is soft enough to cut with a spoon. In Lancaster County it is a fall supper all on its own, served warm with cold milk poured over the top. Tip: fill each core with cinnamon sugar and butter before wrapping. Love old country dumplings? Start here.

You will need: Pastry for a double-crust pie, 6 small baking apples peeled and cored, 1/3 cup sugar mixed with 1 tsp cinnamon, 3 tbsp butter cut into 6 pats, For syrup: 1 1/2 cups water, 1 cup brown sugar, 4 tbsp butter, 1/2 tsp cinnamon

How to make it: 1. Heat the oven to 375 F and simmer the syrup ingredients 5 minutes. 2. Cut the pastry into six 7-inch squares. 3. Fill each apple with cinnamon sugar and butter, wrap and pinch closed. 4. Set in a 9×13 dish, pour the syrup around them and bake 45 to 50 minutes, basting once.

Pennsylvania Dutch Chicken Pot Pie With Square Noodles

Here is the surprise for everyone outside Pennsylvania: this chicken pot pie has no crust at all. It is a thick stew of chicken, potatoes and broth packed with tender squares of homemade egg noodle. Among Pennsylvania Dutch recipes, it is the Sunday supper that fed big farm families from one pot. Tip: let the noodle squares dry 20 minutes so they hold their shape. It beats most from-scratch suppers.

You will need: 3 lb bone-in chicken pieces, 10 cups water, 2 tsp salt, 1 onion and 2 celery ribs chopped, 3 potatoes cubed, parsley, For noodles: 2 cups flour, 1/2 tsp salt, 2 eggs, 3 tbsp milk

How to make it: 1. Simmer the chicken, water, salt, onion and celery 1 hour, then shred the meat back into the broth. 2. Mix the flour, salt, eggs and milk into a stiff dough, roll thin and cut 2-inch squares. 3. Add the potatoes to the boiling broth, then drop in the squares. 4. Cover and simmer 20 minutes and stir in parsley.

Pennsylvania-Style Crumb Cake

Pennsylvania crumb cake is all about the topping, with big buttery crumbs piled nearly as thick as the cake itself. Underneath sits a tender yellow cake, cut into tall squares for church socials and family brunches. Tip: chill the crumb mixture for 15 minutes before scattering it over the batter so the crumbs stay large and chunky. It always sells out among church bake sale recipes.

You will need: For crumbs: 2 cups all-purpose flour, 1 cup sugar, 1 tsp cinnamon, 3/4 cup butter melted, For cake: 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour, 3/4 cup sugar, 2 tsp baking powder, 1/2 tsp salt, 1/2 cup butter softened, 2 large eggs, 3/4 cup milk, 2 tsp vanilla

How to make it: 1. Heat the oven to 350 F and grease a 9×13 pan. 2. Stir the crumb ingredients until clumpy and chill 15 minutes. 3. Beat the cake ingredients and spread in the pan. 4. Scatter the crumbs on top. 5. Bake 35 to 40 minutes.

Moravian Sugar Cake With Brown Sugar Pockets

Moravian sugar cake is a soft yeast cake made with mashed potatoes, dimpled with your fingers and filled with puddles of butter, brown sugar and cinnamon that bake into gooey caramel. Pennsylvania Dutch recipes like this one turn leftover potatoes into an extra tender crumb. Tip: press the dimples almost to the pan. Bake it for Christmas morning with other old-fashioned Christmas breads.

You will need: 1 cup mashed potatoes, 2 1/4 tsp active dry yeast, 1/2 cup warm water, 1/2 cup sugar, 1/2 cup melted butter, 2 eggs, 1 tsp salt, about 4 cups flour, Topping: 1 cup brown sugar, 1/2 cup melted butter, 2 tsp cinnamon

How to make it: 1. Dissolve the yeast in warm water. 2. Beat in the potatoes, sugar, butter, eggs, salt and enough flour for a soft dough; rise 1 1/2 hours. 3. Press into a greased 9×13 pan, rise 45 minutes and poke deep dimples. 4. Fill with brown sugar, cinnamon and butter. 5. Bake at 375 F for 20 to 25 minutes.

Red Beet Pickled Eggs for the Holiday Table

Few foods surprise first-time guests like a bowl of magenta eggs. Red beet eggs are hard-cooked eggs soaked in sweet and sour beet juice until the whites turn ruby and the yolks stay sunny. They show up at picnics, church suppers and holiday buffets. Tip: soak them at least two days for deep color. Set them out with other grandma-style party appetizers and watch them vanish.

You will need: 12 large eggs hard-cooked and peeled, 2 cans (15 oz each) sliced beets with juice, 1 cup cider vinegar, 1/2 cup sugar, 1 tsp salt, 4 cloves (the spice), 1 small onion sliced

How to make it: 1. Boil the beet juice, vinegar, sugar, salt and cloves until the sugar dissolves, then cool. 2. Layer the eggs, beets and onion in a large jar. 3. Pour the brine over to cover. 4. Refrigerate 2 days and eat within 1 week.

Chicken Corn Soup With Rivels

Church fundraisers and fire hall suppers across Pennsylvania sell chicken corn soup by the quart, and the little rivels make it special. Rivels are tiny dumplings made by rubbing flour and egg between your fingers into pea-size crumbs. Of all the Pennsylvania Dutch recipes here, this soup is the easiest weeknight win, and it travels well with slow cooker potluck dishes.

You will need: 8 cups chicken broth, 3 cups shredded cooked chicken, 3 cups corn, 1 cup diced celery, 1 small onion diced, 1/4 tsp turmeric, parsley, salt and pepper, For rivels: 1 cup flour, 1 egg, 1/4 tsp salt

How to make it: 1. Simmer the broth, celery, onion and turmeric 15 minutes. 2. Add the chicken and corn and simmer 10 minutes. 3. Rub the flour, egg and salt into small crumbs. 4. Drop the rivels into the soup while stirring. 5. Cook 5 to 7 minutes and stir in parsley.

Scrapple Fried Crisp, the Pennsylvania Dutch Recipes Breakfast

Scrapple is a thrifty loaf of pork trimmings, cornmeal and spices, born from the farm rule that nothing goes to waste. Sliced and fried, it turns crisp outside and soft inside. Among Pennsylvania Dutch recipes, it starts the friendliest arguments: syrup, apple butter or ketchup? Tip: do not flip it until a deep brown crust forms. It belongs with the great Depression-era breakfasts.

You will need: 1 lb scrapple loaf chilled, 1/4 cup all-purpose flour, 2 tbsp butter, 2 tbsp vegetable oil, maple syrup or apple butter for serving, fried eggs optional

How to make it: 1. Slice the cold scrapple 1/4 inch thick and dust with flour. 2. Heat the butter and oil over medium heat. 3. Fry without moving 5 to 6 minutes until deeply browned. 4. Flip, cook 4 minutes more and serve hot.

Sand Tart Christmas Cookies

Sand tarts are paper-thin butter cookies brushed with egg white, sprinkled with cinnamon sugar and topped with a single pecan half. Pennsylvania Dutch kitchens bake them by the hundreds for Christmas, cut into stars, bells and trees. Tip: roll the chilled dough between parchment as thin as you can and watch them closely, since they bake in minutes. Tuck them into your holiday butter cookie tin.

You will need: 1/2 cup butter softened, 1 cup sugar, 1 large egg, 1 tsp vanilla, 2 cups all-purpose flour, 1/2 tsp baking powder, 1/4 tsp salt, 1 egg white beaten, 3 tbsp sugar mixed with 1 tsp cinnamon, pecan halves

How to make it: 1. Cream the butter and sugar, then beat in the egg and vanilla. 2. Mix in the flour, baking powder and salt and chill 2 hours. 3. Roll 1/16 inch thick and cut shapes. 4. Brush with egg white, sprinkle with cinnamon sugar and press on a pecan. 5. Bake at 350 F for 7 to 9 minutes.

Apple Butter on Toast, the Pennsylvania Dutch Recipes Spread

Apple butter is apples cooked down for hours until they turn dark, thick and spreadable, with cinnamon and cloves. Pennsylvania Dutch recipes today use a slow cooker, and it is just as deep and sweet. Spread it on hot buttered toast, as here, or pour it into jars for gifts in a jar.

You will need: 4 lb apples (a mix of sweet and tart) peeled, cored and sliced, 1 cup packed brown sugar, 1/2 cup unsweetened apple juice, 2 tsp cinnamon, 1/2 tsp ground cloves, 1/4 tsp allspice, 1/4 tsp salt, 1 tbsp cider vinegar

How to make it: 1. Put everything in a slow cooker. 2. Cook on low 8 hours, stirring once or twice. 3. Blend smooth. 4. Cook 2 more hours with the lid ajar until thick. 5. Jar and refrigerate up to 3 weeks.

Schnitz un Knepp, Ham With Dried Apples and Dumplings

Schnitz un knepp means apples and buttons, and it is one of the oldest farm dishes still cooked today. Dried apple slices simmer with smoked ham until plump and sweet, then fluffy dumplings steam right on top. Pennsylvania Dutch recipes like this one got farm families through winter. Tip: keep the lid on for the full 15 minutes. Leftover ham? Try navy beans and ham too.

You will need: 2 cups dried apple slices, 2 lb smoked ham hock or bone-in ham piece, 8 cups water, 2 tbsp brown sugar, For dumplings: 2 cups all-purpose flour, 1 tbsp baking powder, 1/2 tsp salt, 1 large egg, 3/4 cup milk, 3 tbsp melted butter

How to make it: 1. Soak the dried apples 2 hours. 2. Simmer the ham in the water 1 1/2 hours, then chop the meat and return it. 3. Add the apples, soaking water and brown sugar and simmer 30 minutes. 4. Mix the dumpling dough and drop spoonfuls on top. 5. Cover and cook 15 minutes without lifting the lid.

Chow-Chow, the Sweet Pickle of Pennsylvania Dutch Recipes

Pennsylvania Dutch tables are famous for seven sweets and seven sours, and chow-chow is the tangy star of the sours. It mixes beans, corn, cauliflower, carrots and peppers in a sweet mustard brine tinted gold with turmeric. Tip: blanch each vegetable separately so nothing turns mushy. It brightens any holiday relish tray.

You will need: 1 cup each cut green beans, wax beans, corn, cauliflower florets and diced carrots, 1 red bell pepper diced, 1 small onion diced, 2 cups cider vinegar, 1 1/2 cups sugar, 1 cup water, 1 tbsp yellow mustard, 1 tbsp mustard seed, 1 tsp turmeric, 2 tsp salt

How to make it: 1. Blanch each vegetable separately 1 to 3 minutes and chill in ice water. 2. Drain and pack into clean jars with the pepper and onion. 3. Boil the vinegar, sugar, water, mustard and spices. 4. Pour the hot brine over the vegetables. 5. Cool and refrigerate 24 hours; use within 1 month.

Funny Cake Pie, the Pennsylvania Dutch Recipes Mystery

Funny cake is a pie and a cake at once, and that is how it got its name. You pour yellow cake batter into a pie crust, then drizzle warm chocolate sauce over the top. In the oven the chocolate sinks and turns into a fudgy layer above the crust. Pennsylvania Dutch recipes like this one feel like kitchen magic, much like impossible pies.

You will need: 1 unbaked deep-dish pie crust, Sauce: 1/2 cup sugar, 1/4 cup cocoa, 1/3 cup hot water, 1/2 tsp vanilla, Cake: 1 cup flour, 3/4 cup sugar, 1 tsp baking powder, 1/4 tsp salt, 1/4 cup soft butter, 1/2 cup milk, 1 egg, 1 tsp vanilla

How to make it: 1. Heat the oven to 350 F. 2. Whisk the sauce ingredients. 3. Beat the cake ingredients 2 minutes and pour into the crust. 4. Slowly pour the sauce over the batter. 5. Bake 35 to 40 minutes and cool before slicing.