This is Hermann, our new family member for the next 10 days. Christopher brought him home from Kindergarten, and he seems to be a sourdough of some sort. If we treat him right, he will give birth to 3 Hermann-children, and we can bake a cake.
Until then, though, he has to be cared for quite carefully.
- Day 1. Hermann needs rest.
- Days 2-4. Hermann needs exercise. Stir once each day.
- Day 5. Hermann is hungry! Feed him with 1 cup flour, 1 cup sugar and 1 cup milk. He then needs a bigger bowl, otherwise he will run away.
- Days 6-9. Hermann needs time to digest. He needs a daily walk. Stir once each day.
- Day 10. Feed again with 1 cup flour, 1 cup sugar, 1 cup milk.
He is then ready to give birth to 3 children (1 cup each, to be given to good friends), and with the rest we can bake a cake (recipe to follow, or just click on the photo).
Christopher has already memorized the instructions and is making sure we follow them to the letter. Today is Day 1, and despite the rest Hermann seems to have a bad case of gas. We’ve had to open the cover several times.
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Hermann was huge in Germany some time in the 70s or 80s (can’t remember exactly). I remember pretty much everyone had this thing (as you write you had to pass the “children” on), recipes were swapped, you name it. I think it probably even made the main news in the evening.
And after a while the craze died again and Hermann disappeared. Until now, it seems.
Oh my – is Herman really still alive? I can’t believe it! I had several during my youth and onc we forgot one in the fridge… well, you better don’t try that!
Since we just arrived in Germany in 1990, we missed out on the Hermann wave. So how did he stay alive so long?
well, surely not by hiding in lilli’s fridge.
hermann is a simple sauerteig, just mix wheat flour, sugar, water and yeast and wait a day or two.
the rest is just clever marketing among housewives.
Hermann lives!
He was around in the 90′s too, and we had him at our house a couple of times until we got sick of him.
The resulting cake was…um…interesting.
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