Funny Cake and Friends: 4 Pennsylvania Dutch Dishes With the Funniest Names

Welcome to The PA Dutch Kitchen! 😄 Today we're counting down four Pennsylvania Dutch dishes with the funniest names in the whole cookbook — and every one of them is a real, beloved, deeply traditional dish. Funny cake (yes, it's real!), schnitz und knepp, scrapple, and chow-chow, with the stories behind their names and the full written recipes below. Laugh with the tradition, then cook it at home! ⏱️ TIMESTAMPS 0:00 Welcome to The PA Dutch Kitchen 0:31 Funny Cake 1:28 Schnitz und Knepp 2:30 Scrapple 3:39 Chow-Chow 4:50 Thanks for stopping by! --- 🍫 FUNNY CAKE Serves 8 Ingredients 1 (9-inch) pie crust, in a pie pan For the filling: 1 cup molasses, 1 cup water, 1 teaspoon baking soda For the cake batter: 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, 1 cup sugar, 1/4 cup cocoa, 1 teaspoon baking powder, 1 egg, 1 cup milk, 1/4 cup melted butter Steps 1. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line a pie pan with the pie crust. 2. Whisk the molasses, water, and baking soda together and pour into the crust. 3. Make the batter: whisk the flour, sugar, cocoa, and baking powder together, then stir in the egg, milk, and melted butter until smooth. 4. Pour the batter over the filling. Do not stir — the batter will sink down funny into the filling as it bakes, making swirls of chocolate and molasses. 5. Bake about 50 minutes, until the cake is set and a toothpick comes out clean. Let it cool completely before slicing, or the molasses will run. --- 🍎 SCHNITZ UND KNEPP Serves 6 Ingredients 2 cups dried apples 1 ham hock, or about 2 lbs smoked ham 1/4 cup brown sugar For the knepp (dumplings): 2 cups all-purpose flour, 2 teaspoons baking powder, 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1 egg, about 3/4 cup milk Steps 1. Soak the dried apples in water overnight, or simmer gently until soft. 2. Put the ham hock or ham in a large pot, cover with water, and simmer about 1 1/2 hours, until the meat is tender. 3. Add the soaked apples with their liquid and the brown sugar. Simmer 20 minutes more. 4. Make the knepp: stir the flour, baking powder, and salt together, then mix in the egg and milk just until a soft dough holds together. 5. Drop spoonfuls of dough onto the simmering ham and apples, cover the pot tight, and do not peek for 15 minutes, until the dumplings are puffed, soft, and steamy. Serve hot. --- 🥓 SCRAPPLE Makes 1 loaf (about 8 servings) Ingredients 1 pork shoulder (about 3 lbs) Salt, black pepper, and a little sage Cornmeal (about 1 cup for every 3 cups of broth) 1 teaspoon sage (plus more to taste) Flour, for dusting Butter or lard, for frying Steps 1. Simmer the pork shoulder in water with salt, pepper, and a little sage until the meat falls apart, about 2 hours. 2. Take the meat out and chop it fine. Strain the broth and measure it. 3. Bring the broth back to a boil. Whisk in the cornmeal (about 1 cup per 3 cups of broth), along with the chopped pork, a teaspoon of sage, salt, and plenty of black pepper. 4. Cook and stir until thick like porridge. Pour into a greased loaf pan and chill overnight until firm. 5. Slice about 1/2 inch thick, dust lightly with flour, and fry in a hot skillet with butter or lard until crisp and golden on both sides. Serve with apple butter or a fried egg. --- 🥒 CHOW-CHOW (PENNSYLVANIA DUTCH PICKLED VEGETABLE RELISH) Makes about 2 quarts Ingredients 4 cups cauliflower florets 2 cups green beans, cut into pieces 2 cups carrots, sliced 2 cups chopped cabbage 1 onion, chopped 1–2 sweet peppers, chopped For the pickling liquid: 2 cups vinegar, 1 cup water, 1 cup sugar, 1 tablespoon mustard seed, 1 teaspoon celery seed, a pinch of turmeric Steps 1. Chop all the vegetables. Simmer them in salted water just until barely tender, then drain well. 2. Bring the vinegar, water, sugar, mustard seed, celery seed, and turmeric to a boil. 3. Pour the hot liquid over the vegetables and let cool. 4. Pack into clean jars and refrigerate. Let it rest at least a day before serving, if you can wait that long. Spoon beside meats, sandwiches, and anything that needs a bright, tangy lift. --- Thanks for pulling up a chair at The PA Dutch Kitchen! New Pennsylvania Dutch recipe videos — shoofly pie, chicken pot pie, whoopie pies, apple dumplings, and all the comfort food grandma used to make. Eat hearty, and always save room for pie — even if the pie has a funny name. 🥧