German Cold Plate with Pickled Eggs

What German dinner would be complete without a mug of beer? Card 46 of the 2 in 1 International Recipe Card Collection suggests heating up the beer with vodka or Scotch and a dash of hot sauce.

And for dinner? A mixture of fresh tomatoes, cold cuts, pickled herring, pickled eggs, and cucumber salad. Use your favorite cold cuts like ham, roast beef, hard salami, Lebanon bologna, head cheese, corned beef, and so on. Purchase quantities according to number of guests expected.

Beer Buster

1 jigger iced vodka
Beer or ale
1 dash hot sauce
Pour iced vodka in bottom of chilled pilsner glass. Fill with beer or ale and add a dash of hot sauce. For a Scotch Buster, substitute Scotch for the vodka.

German Cold Plate with Pickled Eggs

4-6 tomatoes
Delicatessen Cold Cuts
Cucumber Salad
Sliced, pickled beets
Pickled herring in sour cream
Baby gherkins
Pickled eggs

Peel and slice tomatoes; place in bowl and drizzle with oil and vinegar dressing or sprinkle with sugar; chill for 1 hour.
Arrange all on a large platter. Serve with pumpernickel bread and bowls of mustard and mayonnaise.

Pickled Eggs

1/4 cup kosher salt
4 cups water
4-5 yellow onion skins
6-8 eggs
Combine salt, water, and yellow skin of onions in saucepan. Simmer until the water turns brown, 10-12 minutes. Cool and set aside.
Hard-cook eggs. Crack shells but do not peel.
Place eggs in onion brine and marinate, refrigerated, at least 24 hours.
To serve, peel eggs and slice lengthwise in quarters.

Cucumber Salad

4-6 medium cucumbers, peeled and thinly sliced
1 large white onion, thinly sliced
1 cup white sugar
3 cups white vinegar
Mix cucumbers and onion in deep bowl.
Dissolve sugar in vinegar; pour over cucumber-onion mixture and marinate covered, in refrigerator, at least 24 hours.