what's the most trying part of mennonite cooking?

.
Dealing with all the bierock-racy.*


This photo isn't really my favorite example of my bierock adventures because this batch got more brown than I like my bierocks (first time making them with this oven and at this altitude), they've been smashed in a Ziplock in the fridge for almost a week, and, shame, the three that are left are embarrassingly mismatched in size. I'm just willing to sacrifice my pride for a good (that's debatable) joke.

Here's a snapshot of the first bohne beroggi I've ever made.


The resident Swiss Menno in our household did give his stamp of approval on the taste but suggested that they don't look quite right. I've never been taught how to make bohne beroggi. I've never even witnessed them being made. I was just going off of what the end product looks like. We hope to get some instruction in shaping them this summer. Hey, at least I didn't just make them in the shape of a bierock, which I was somewhat tempted to do.

Speaking of the shape of a bierock, what shape do my readers know them to be? One of my grandmothers made square bierocks, which I have never seen any place else, nor do I know exactly how she did that. Did she roll out the dough and cut squares rather than pinch off buns? It seems more difficult and more labor intensive to make square ones. Who knows. I should ask her.

*It's very possible I thought up that pun and then spent a few days trying to come up with a good joke to use it in...and I still may not be entirely pleased with the results, but it's as good as I got.