The Migrating Cake: Kuchen’s Journey to America

As North Dakotans, or those studying in the state of North Dakota, it should be no secret that there are a large number of Germans from Russia who live in our state. In fact, North Dakota has the highest percentage of Germans from Russia compared to any other state in the U.S. North Dakota State University, as you’ve likely heard, has the Germans from Russia Heritage Collection, which focuses on the Germans’ journey from Russia to America, extending beyond and exploring the many aspects of German culture as well.

So why is this so important? Well, I’m currently taking a course titled Glocalization and Cultural Empathy, and for this course we had to do research and present a part of our culture that has been glocalized. The concept of glocalization involves the combination of globalization and localization and how these two intertwine and influence each other. Therefore, I researched how Germans' migration from Germany to Russia and then from Russia to America transformed kuchen (German cake) through the local contexts they interacted with. So, how was this delicious dessert shaped by its migration?

First, it is important to note that because Germany was not yet a unified state, many Germans faced economic, religious and political hardships, making German princess Czarine Catherine the Great’s Invitation Manifesto of 1763 rather enticing. In this manifesto, she promised land and autonomy to Germans who were willing to move to Russia, hoping this movement would help modernize the country. Therefore, two groups of Germans emigrated: one group settled in the steppes of Russia by the Volga River and were named the Volga Germans, while the other group settled a few decades later in 1804 after the urging of Alexander I (Czarine’s grandson), where they resided in southern Ukraine and were called the Black Sea Germans.

The kuchen brought by both groups underwent some changes. For the Volga Germans, they unfortunately did not have the most suitable land or weather, and the farming seasons were quite short. Because of this, they dealt with a shortage of dairy, which was prominent in their kuchen back in Germany. Thus, they had to adapt and became creative, minimizing dairy and using molasses, burnt sugar, streusel, beet syrup or wild berries instead, when available. Additionally, rivelkuchen, a variant of shmandkuchen (sour cream kuchen), was created using a minuscule amount of sour cream for the purpose of maintaining the cake’s form.

Conversely, the Black Sea Germans were much more fortunate. They had significantly better land for farming and specialized in raising cattle, so they had an abundance of dairy and fruit for their kuchen, which resulted in custard-heavy fruit kuchen. However, white flour and sugar were still difficult to come by, so kuchen moved from an everyday delicacy to a dessert that could only be eaten on special occasions. This is what brought about wedding kuchen. Weddings — deemed a seriously special occasion — resulted in the Black Sea Germans spending their money to buy flour and sugar. This flour and sugar still had to be extended to the mass crowd (usually the entire village) that attended the wedding. Therefore, a thin kuchen with a tiny amount of custard topped with cinnamon sugar was created.

As we know, time often never allows things to remain unchanged. Russia decided that it needed to reconstruct its way of governing, and during this time, the country began revoking the rights that had originally been given to the Germans who settled there. Additionally, the German language was discouraged, and conscription was enforced.

During this time in America, the U.S. Homestead Act came about, offering opportunity, which prompted a decent number of Germans to snatch up such a chance. Many eventually came to reside in North and South Dakota in 1873 and after. So, how did resettling in America change kuchen?

Firstly, they both came to realize that the lack of flour and sugar (and dairy for theVolga Germans) was no more. There was no need to ration anymore, so kuchen, once again, became a daily enjoyment.

The Volga Germans were able to indulge in the thick custard fruit kuchen that the Black Sea Germans were allowed to enjoy back in Russia, though the Volgas kept it in their signature square, sheet pan style. As for the Black Sea Germans, their kuchen innovation came mostly from the difficult times brought about by the Great Depression and the Dust Bowl. During this time, they filled kuchen with cheap ingredients that were more available, such as dry curd cottage cheese and savory onions.

Ultimately, the concept of glocalization is very evident in kuchen’s migration with the Germans to Russia and then America. The global movement of emigration/immigration combines with the local contexts in Russia and America, specifically the land quality, weather, farming practices and the resulting available ingredients. This produced variants in cultural foods, such as with German kuchen, resulting in variants like rivelkuchen, wedding kuchen and savory kuchen.

While you may not have known what this combination of global and local was referred to, there is no doubt that you have observed it. I invite you to take a moment to think about your own culture and how glocalization reveals itself!