By Brett Ziegler
Both sides of the Ziegler family originated from Southwest Germany along the France border near the Shine River. Both immigrated to Russia to have better lives.
My great grandpa, Theodore Ziegler, came to the states from Odessa, Russia, when he was 17 years old. They sailed on ships to New York and headed west. He settled in Topeka and later moved to Ellis County. My grandma Irene’s roots were in Saratov, Russia. My great grandpa Joseph Schmitburger came to the states when he was five years old and his family settled in Pifer.
Moving to a new home
My Grandpa, Grandma Pete and Irene settled in Grainfield after they were married.
Grandma Irene Ziegler specifically remembers milking cows every day at 6 a.m. for seven years. After their first two kids were born and were old enough to work she stopped. Milking cows was redundant she was glad to cook and do house chores. For years they separated the cream from the milk and sold it. This was a big part of their income.
Another fond memory of Grandma’s was the ice houses that Grandma and Grandpa Schmidtburger had. She said “they would crack and shape ice from the creek during the winter months.” They would take these chunks they carved and bury them in the ice houses. During the summer months Grandma and Grandpa Schmitdburger made homemade ice cream. Homemade ice cream is one over Grandma’s favorite childhood sweet.
Bierock rising
Bierocks were a very memorable food for my dad, Ken, and Grandma. My dad recalls the smell of the dough rising and the strong pungent smell of the cabbage. He remembers grandma working extremely hard and always having food on the table.
For the bierocks, Grandma would pick and wash the cabbage herself. The men took care of the beef. She would brown the hamburger and combine it with the cabbage, chopped onions and spices. Dad remembers her kneading and rolling out the dough. Vinegar was in the original recipe, but the Germans that came and settled in western Kansas did not like it so they left it out.
Bierocks
From Grandma Irene Ziegler
Yields 40 medium bierocks
Dough
3 tablespoons salt
4-1/2 cup water
3 eggs
3/4 cup lard, melted
1 cup sugar
3 tablespoons yeast
15 cups flour
Filling
5 pounds cabbage
2 1/2 pounds ground beef
1 onions, chopped
5 tablespoons pepper
2 tablespoons salt
¼ cup vinegar
Mix egg, sugar, salt and melted lard. Mix together well. Add water and yeast to mixture and knead into a nice dough. Let dough rise, double punch it and let it rise again. Roll and cut in 5 ½-inch, 4-inch or 3-inch squares.
While dough is rising, brown beef and drain grease. Add cabbage, onion and seasoning to ground beef and mix together in a bowl. Put a few tablespoons of filling in center of each dough square and pinch sides together to seal. Bake at 375°F until brown.