Have you ever heard about a bread spread cum dip called Liptauer? It might be unknown to the world but in middle and east Europe it is a common delicacy. This particular spicy spread is traditionally made with sheep’s milk cheese also known as bryndza. It originated in the region of Liptov in Slovakia which used to be part of the Austrian Hungarian empire before the fall in 1918. The Liptauer was popular at that time amongst the royal circle and was served with a Caviar topping at court and in noble restaurants in Vienna. Nowadays it is served as snack in every household in middle and eastern Europe.
As child in kindergarten I used to watch my fellow colleagues unwrap a slice of black bread with some Liptauer at the side. I remember too taking a bite from a friends bread and shaking my head. It wasn’t my kind of slice at the time, black bread was never my forte and I had an unusual habit of keeping away from milk products. My mum wasn’t used to prepare Austrian dishes for us. My school snack was mostly some croissant or pain au chocolat, simply the french side of live.
But I remember when I fell in love with this spread! My family and I had taken a short vacation to east Austria with an aim of discovering and learning more from our culture. East Austria is known for its White Wine and Viticultural areas in the whole world. Life over there was a contrast to ours, the landscape itself was of a different kind. We soon discovered that the local inns were run by so called Weinhauer, known in English as winegrower. Our first day we were looking to have lunch and roamed the whole area up and down when we realised that the Inns were only opening after 4 pm in the afternoon. Seriously, we didn’t understand why but we had no choice and had to adapt!
Finally one of those Buschenschank Inns (also called Heuriger) opened their doors and we made ourselves comfortable in their open garden sitting arrangement. We kids ordered some fresh Grape juice and my parents started to test the wines. To the wine fitting we were served local brown bread with different types of cold meat cuts, lards, cheese and a spread, the Liptauer. When I am in holiday I roam about the plains with an open mind to try out things, that was the case that day. I was very pleased with the taste of the Liptauer all together with the bread and the grape juice, everything together, the whole experience took me on a journey and I all of a sudden understood the use of the Liptauer spread, its purpose in this world!
In case you are not convinced of this magnificent spread, then i suggest you get east/middle Europe into your house with grape juice/White wine, brown bread, cold meat cuts, lard, cheese and some home made Liptauer. You wont be disappointed!
Note that a Liptauer is usually red by adding paprika red. I couldn’t get this ingredient and so had to leave it out. I added the Paprika red to the ingredients list underneath, so yours will be more red if you use the coloring agent. =)
Ingredients
- 100 g Quark (20% fat) or fresh cottage cheese (best suitable bryndza - sheep cheese)
- 25 Butter soft
- 1 Tbs Onion - fine chopped
- 1 big clove Garlic - fine chopped
- 1 Tsp Dijon mustard
- 1 1/2 Tsp Paprika powder
- dash Paprika red
- dash grounded caraway seeds
- dash Salt
- dash Pepper
- Red Capsicum cut into small cubes
- Gherkins
- Capers
Instructions
- Grab a bowl and add the softend butter together with the quark and mix well. See that no bits are left and the mixture is smooth.
- Clean, rinse the Onion and Garlic and chop fine, add them to the quark/butter mix.
- Throw in the rest of the spices and salt to the combination and mix it well.
- Garnish with red capsicum, Gherkins and capers.
{ 27 comments… read them below or add one }
iwhat a fun story! and great recipe, sounds perfect to serve as an appetizer when feeding a small crowd (together with the breads, cold sausages and lard!)!
wow..awesome recipe
Aarthi
http://www.yummytummyaarthi.com/
Helene this sounds fantastic. I love dips and this is a new one for me. I have never heard of it before. Hope you are having a wonderful day.
Hi Helene! Thanks for visiting my blog and leaving your thoughts. This dip/spread looks creamy and delicious. It will be an instant hit with my family
Thanks for sharing
Actually bryndza is produced for centuries in both Slovakia and Poland. Both countries have registered the name as a regional product in the European Union. Frankly, I even didn’t know about the Slovakian one, but knew only the Polish bryndza.
Hungarians also add caraway seeds often. I must try making it one day.
This spread looks delicious and reminds me of a Hungarian cheese spread with paprika
Hungarian cheese spread what you mean is the same as in this post, the liptauer. Austria and hungary, slovakia etc used to be one empire and this spread used to be served to the royal court back then.
Never heard of this before. It looks and sounds delicious.
Hi Helene! It’s unfortunate that I’ve never heard of this spread. I learn so many new ingredients and recipes/food from blog hopping. I’d never know if I wasn’t visiting food blogs! I would love to try this spread – according to your recommendation it sounds amazing.
I’d definitely try this creamy spread on brown bread….new to me, too, but it sounds delightful!
My taste buds are watering..and I learnt something new..
thanks!
Given my love of all things cheese, it’s obvious that I need to try this!
I did have try this dip once, a long time ago when I was visiting a friend living in Vienna at the time. Thanks so much for posting the recipe, and for triggering a happy memory!
You really have such an enjoyable blog, Helene. I just never know what I will find when I arrive and your stories are always so personal.
I have experienced Liptauer and I immediately grew quite fond of it. Black bread has never been one of my fortes either. I love what you have done with this spread and the fact that there was no paprika available didn’t harm it one tiny bit:)
Thank you so much for sharing…
your description makes this dip sounds super amazing, would love to try it one day. thanks for sharing & the inspiration to visit austria one day
You made this dip sound super amazing, can’t wait to try this. Thanks for sharing & for the inspiration to visit austria one day
Thanks for visiting my blog and it’s a pleasure to discover yours. I’ve never heard of this dip before but sounds very interesting to try.
I’ve never heard of this spread/dip–but I love the flavors in it. Looks wonderful!
This looks like a delicious dip and spread! I’ll have to try it soon.
I never heard of this dip…but from the description and the ingredients it sure sounds and looks delicious…
Thanks for sharing such an interesting recipe and hope you are having a wonderful week Helene
I have never heard of this spread, but it sounds delicious and easy to make. Definitely a great simple recipe for spring, combination of cheese, onions, garlic and all the spices will go great with dark bread.
Yummy dip and a great Austrian inspiration :
I have never heard of that dip but then again, I’ve never eaten Austrian cuisine. I also wasn’t a fan of black bread when I was a child but I’m sure I would have loved this dip.
The dip look yum and healthy!
This sounds interesting…
Never heard of it – I wonder if any of the very few Austrian restaurants in Australia would have it on the menu. Probably not!
Liptauer spread is not something unknown to me, but I have never eaten it. I bet it tastes wonderful! We eat a lot of quark in Switzerland.
Cheers,
Rosa
It’s first time hearing this spread but now I know.
I’m really interested in Austrian dishes as I’m not familiar. I wish we can be more exposed to them in the US. Looks and sounds delicious though! Thanks for educating us! 
This looks good. I’ll bet you could put some on a regular sandwich too and turn it into something more special…