das Blog

So ein Pech!

No Octoberfest this year. Oktoberfest would have been from September 19 to October 4.

So...we make our own!

Here are the three ingredients to make yourself a fun (and safe) Oktoberfest right at home:

Schlager. Essen. Dekorationen.

Schlager Music. Food. Decorations.

Disclosure: On this page there are normal and also so-called "affiliate links." That means that if you click that link and make a purchase, I receive a small commission for it, however your purchase information stays...

Wenn man nicht reisen kann, egal ob man zu wenig Geld hat oder es eine Pandemie gibt, kann man immer das Internet benutzen, um eine virtuelle Reise zu machen.

Es kostet nichts und man kann die gleiche Reise immer wieder machen.

Diese Woche gibt es eine Videoreise nach Bayern. Sie können verschiedene Seen sehen, eine Wiese, verschiedene Städte und vieles mehr.

Kommen Sie für 4 Minuten, 30 Sekunden mit nach Bayern.

When the time isn't right to travel, no matter if it's because money is tight...

One of the best ways to put your dollars to use is, of course, to shop locally and to buy from independent retailers. So if you want to shop direct or shop small for German products, one of the best ways to spend those dollars effectively is to shop direct.

You don't even have to search for a lot of things now, either, as I've created a collection of German, Swiss and Austrian products and services right here at GermanWithNicole.com. It's all listed on the Produkte page.

Here are a few...

How often do you get to tell your German teacher what you want to learn?

If your answer is "not that often," today's your lucky day.

Would you answer eight questions for me? They're mainly questions with check-the-box answers like:

• Why are you learning German?
  
• What do you like the most about GermanWithNicole?
  
• What kinds of German learning are you most interested in?
  

And of course there's room for you to ask questions, share ideas, and tell me more about your German learning experiences.

...

When you want to buy a German, Swiss, or Austrian product online, it can be hard to track down. Do you search for the German term or the English translation?

What if you want to "shop small?" How do you do that without searching through page after page of online search results?

You can now easily find more German, Swiss, and Austrian products and shop small/direct on the Produkte page.

For months now I've been searching, gathering, and creating this collection of German, Swiss, and Austrian...

When you grow up in Wisconsin, potato salad is a fairly common salad. But the "German Potato Salad" I had growing up was...not...what I ate in Germany.

I wonder if the recipes that so many of German heritage here in Wisconsin enjoy are from the generations that immigrated to the US?

I ate a lot of Kartoffelsalat in Germany. As in two servings (at least) at any party I went to. Except for one, that one Kartoffelsalat was not good. It was that bad that I remember it 15 years later. As we say...

Have you ever had a Grillabend (grill evening)? If you haven't, there are two condiments that stand out the most: Soßen und Kräuterbutter. Sauces and herbed butter.

Sauces are fun, like Curryketchup and BBQ sauce.

But Kräuterbutter? Now that speaks to my dairy-consuming, Wisconsin-raised heart.

What is Kräuterbutter?

Kräuterbutter is simply a bunch of butter mixed with several herbs and some salt. It's really easy to make, easy to enjoy, and sehr, sehr lecker...

Juhu! Ausgezeichnet! Ich hab's geschafft!

Seven Years in Business!

In any business there are highs and lows. Sometimes they are close together, like heartbeats, and sometimes they are stretched out over a length of time.

There are no highlights without lowlights and I’ve included them both in this list. In seven years a lot happens in any business, so I’ve selected seven of them for you today.

The Highlights and the Lowlights of the First Seven Years of GermanWithNicole.com

#1...

What are they, noodles? Dumplings?

It doesn't matter--it's SPÄTZLE!

I don't believe you've really had German food until you've had homemade Spätzle.

Maybe you've tried dried Spätzle noodles? They're ok. You can find them at ALDI several times a year here.

Spätzle at many Germanic restaurants here is usually pre-made and then reheated in a pan. They're ok but usually they dry out quickly and then they're tough to eat.

The best Spätzle are made at home. They take time,...