Foods in the Alsace region of France
Spending time in the Alsace region of France, we discovered a definite German influence. Apparent in both food and wine…some we enjoyed. Some…not as much.
Here are a few we tried…
Flammekueche
This is to Alsace what pizza is to Italy. It’s basically a tarte flambee garnished with a blend of cream, possibly cream cheese, lardons or bacon, and onions. You will find it on most menus. The crust is thin and crispy. Some chefs bake this in a bread oven. Even though it sounds heavy, it’s not. The crispy crust adds to the creaminess of the sauce. We found it on just about every menu, with slight variations.
We enjoyed it with a glass of Alsatian Riesling.
Pretzels
Pretzels in Alsace are more like a savory brioche. Garnished with rock salt, these are slightly crisp on the outside. The insides are light and tender. We noticed these at the market with pepperoni and cheese on top, similar to what you might see as a slice of pizza.
Choucroute garnie
Sometimes called the national dish of Alsace, this is a version of German sauerkraut. The fermented cabbage is cooked in white wine, beer, or cider and seasoned with juniper berries and black peppercorns. We saw it served with boiled potatoes and a variety of different meat.
Kugelhopf
Looking like a bundt cake, we found these in a variety of sizes. Something between a bread and a cake, this is usually baked with almonds and raisins. We found it to be a little dry as a cake. It was better when we dipped it in our morning coffee.
Alsace Wines
Most of the wines in this area are dry Rieslings, similar to what we found in Germany. Gewurztraminer is also popular, as are different sparkling ones. If sweeter wines are your favorites, you can find those as well. We opt for the dry ones.