This recipe for Weichselschnitten (Sour Cherry Slices) comes to us in an extremely unusual way.

Article 2 below, by Louise Suppan Bugbee, is about her grandmother, Anna Laura Weiss. As part of Louise's effort to learn more about Anna Laura, she both consulted her cousins and attempted to join the BB. One cousin sent her some postcards and a "tattered journal", all written in the old German Kurrent handscript... and that writing defeated her efforts to read them. Further, it turned out that the only connection Anna Laura had to Burgenland was that, from Vienna, she was sent to a foster home in Mogersdorf from ages 10 to 18. Nonetheless, we agreed to help Louise translate some of the cards and journal pages... and the first section of the journal proved to be recipes. The journal that provided these recipes was dated 1906, when Anna Laura would have been about 17 and, therefore, toward the end of the time she was in Mogersdorf, so it seems probable that the recipes are likely more of Burgenland origin than anywhere else.

Below we give you the complete transcribed German text of a recipe for "Sour Cherry Slices", followed by a translation of that text, including a translation of the quantities originally given in weight units (usually dekagrams, indicated as "dk") to the corresponding volume units used in the USA. [If you would like to see the original text of the recipe in more detail, click the thumbnail image of it.]

However, if you look at the translation, you will see that it is quite short on "assembly" instructions and does not include a baking temperature, so Louise had to experiment and develop a functional revised recipe. We present that revised recipe as the third section below.

(recipe begins on page 2)
WEICHSELSCHNITTEN / SOUR CHERRY SLICES
(by Anna Laura Weiss, shared by Louise Suppan Bugbee)

enlarged photo of original recipe
  • 32 dk Rindschmalz
  • 32 dk Zucker
  • sehr schaumig abtreiben
  • Zitronensaft und Schale
  • 3 gange Eier und 9 dotter
  • 32 dk Mehl
  • Blech mit Butter beschmieren
  • Masse daraufstreichen Weichseln auflegen und langsam backen.
image of Vavel pitted sour cherries SOUR CHERRY SLICES (translated)
  • 32 dk beef lard (= 1.4 cups)
  • 32 dk sugar (= 1.6 cups)
  • blend very frothy
  • Lemon juice and peel (zest)
  • 3 whole eggs and 9 yolks
  • 32 dk flour (= 3 cups)
  • Smear the tray (baking sheet/pan) with butter
  • Wipe the mass (mixture) on top, put on sour cherries and bake slowly.
(an alternate recipe is on page 3)


image of cherry slices REVISED SOUR CHERRY SLICES
(adaptation by Louise Suppan Bugbee)

It is sort of a dense pound cake bottom with the cherries on top.

Instead of lard, I used butter, and I made a half-recipe. Tasty. Definitely better with the butter. Lard was much cheaper than butter, so I think that is why so many of the recipes use it.

Ingredients:
  • 10 Tbsp. butter
  • 3/4 cup sugar
  • 2 whole eggs and 4 yolks
  • 1-1/2 cups flour
  • 1/4 tsp. salt
  • Juice and zest of one lemon
  • Pitted sour cherries, 24 oz. jar, drained
Preparation:
  • Butter a 10" square pan. Line the bottom with parchment.
  • Preheat oven to 325°F.
  • Cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy.
  • Add eggs and yolks, beat well.
  • Mix flour with salt and add in slowly, alternating with lemon juice and zest.
  • Spread mixture in pan, top with the cherries in one layer.
  • Bake about 45-50 minutes until golden brown.
  • When cool, sprinkle with powdered sugar. Cut into squares.