The Linearbandkeramik Culture (linear pottery ceramic culture - LBK), around 5000 BC, was the first group of Europeans who cultivated land on a large scale. The first crops that were grown in Germany were einkorn- and emmer wheats, barley, linseed, flax, poppy (for oils), lentils and peas.

Peas were grown throughout the ages, but fresh peas were first introduced and eaten around the 16th and 17th centuries. Before that, dried peas were eaten as "Muß" or puree. Because they have been around so long, they are the favorite foods of the "Zwergen" and the "Heinzelmännchen" (dwarves and brownies) and are found in such fairy tales as "The Princess and the Pea" and "Cinderella."

Peas were also caught up in a number of superstitions. They were placed in graves as "Totenspeise," pea soup is eaten at traditional wakes and funerals, and they are thought to bring death into the house when eaten during Holy Week, and be unlucky when eaten between Christmas and Twelfth Night.

Also seen as fertility-enhancers, a sack of peas slapped against a fruit tree will cause the tree to bear as much fruit as peas are in the sack. They are fed to pigs as the first meal of the New Year. Peas are often served at wedding meals as well.

_{Photo © Soommen CC by 2.0}

_{Stay up to date on German food by signing up for Jennifer's weekly newsletter.}

January, February and March are usually gray, damp and cold in most of Germany, but that doesn't seem to stop the revelers from celebrating "Karneval," a time to party before Lent. Wearing long underwear under their costumes and heavy jackets on top, they are well able to watch the parades and sway to the music without spilling a drop of good beer. Read more here.

While most revelries are over by Ash Wednesday, Basel, in Switzerland, celebrates a week later. Watching the parade, which begins at 4 am on Monday, is cold business, so most people warm up with a bowl of Mehlsuppe or a piece of Zwiebelwaehe or Zwiebelkaesewaehe.

_{Photo © Johannes Simon / Getty Images}

_{Stay up to date on German food by signing up for Jennifer's weekly newsletter. Also, don't miss the Karneval recipe for Mutzenmandeln.}

"Treber" is a German word to describe the grain left over after brewing, or as we call it, spent grain. We say that, but many of the grain's nutrients are still there, even if it is severely depleted in sugars, which went into the beer.

Spent grain can be used as an addition to bread doughs, as well as fed to poultry and livestock and even for making biofuels and growing mushrooms if you are so inclined. I was very interested in the former, so I trotted on down to the local microbrewery and asked Mike for some of his. He brews on Tuesdays and Fridays and he filled by container, packed to the top, with the stuff. Clearly, he had no use for it!

Use it or freeze it! Spent grain is full of live yeast and will get pretty smelly if you don't use it. It keeps in the refrigerator for a day or two, but you will want to freeze it in small, usable amounts, if you can't get to it right away. I used it to bake two spent grain recipes, one with all whole wheat flour and a lighter version with white flour (and a bit of whole wheat). It turned out well, of course the whole grain crumb is a little tighter (as you see in the picture) but both were fantastic with butter and a bit of marmalade. I also rewarded the brewer with a loaf of hot bread!

_{Photo © J.McGavin}

_{Stay up to date on German food by signing up for Jennifer's weekly newsletter.}

Apple butter is a really good thing to make in the fall, when the apples are overly abundant. It stores in a smaller space, doesn't go bad and tastes great in numerous applications. If you made applesauce and canned it instead, never fear. You can start directly with the sauce and cook it down, too. This makes an easy, winter project which makes the house smell wonderful.

Apple butter is very common in North America, they make it in the south, the north and everywhere in-between. The Pennsylvania Dutch (notice the tie in to German food) make it and have several recipe variations, usually with cinnamon and cloves and sometimes with a bit of cider vinegar, for a sweet-sour tone. This apple butter recipe is very simple and uses very little added sugar, mainly relying on the fructose in the apples and extra apple juice.

It is interesting to note that while apple butter isn't exactly a household item in Europe, "Apfelkraut", "Appelstroop" or "Apfelsirup," is. All three words mean a very thick, apple syrup made from cooked, pressed apple juice. Before white sugar, this was a common sweetener and used to sweeten recipes such as Sauerbraten or was poured over Reibekuchen. It also makes a great bread spread. Try King Arthur Flour's version, boiled apple cider, which is a lovely substitute for maple syrup over waffles.

_{Photo © J.McGavin}

_{Stay up to date on German food by signing up for Jennifer's weekly newsletter.}