Kartoffelkäse

Kartoffelkäse, usually called Erdäpfelkäse in Austria, is a spread made mainly from potatoes, onion and sour cream. It comes from Bavaria and Austria and, despite its name, contains no cheese.

History

The name is misleading, since the spread contains no cheese. It is generally thought to refer to its milky, faintly sweet flavour. The dish originated as a practical food for seasonal workers who helped with the potato harvest, served as a second breakfast or afternoon snack with milk, beer or must.

Over time it moved beyond harvest labourers and became an everyday food in homes and inns. Today it is especially popular in Lower Bavaria and in Inner and Western Austria, where it remains part of ordinary regional cooking.

Culture

In Austria and Lower Bavaria it is often eaten as a snack or light bite, spread on bread and accompanied by a drink. Households vary the garnish, and it may come with sour cream or whipped cream, raw onion, caraway and parsley.

The traditional recipe uses floury potatoes, boiled and mashed, mixed with finely diced onion in roughly three parts potato to one part onion, then bound with sour cream into a spreadable texture. It is seasoned with salt, black pepper, caraway, chives and sometimes garlic or parsley. Some cooks add a boiled egg, though this shortens how long the spread keeps. It still appears on tavern menus and at family tables.