body art nürnberger lebkuchen biscuits made

zickuhr7745    April 29, 2023    Comment   

One of my favourite edible Christmas gifts this year was a simple box of German Lebkuchen. This is the good stuff from Nürnberg, the historical home of these popular Christmas biscuits. As you may know, the medieval season of Christmas extends to Candlemas so I’ve been happily munching my way through them this Epiphany…

My friend Nicki who gifted them to me also sent me an article explaining that it was Bavarian monks who first created these biscuits in the fourteenth century using special wafers called

As a base to build them on. It was an epiphany to her and to me to find out that this was essentially the same wafer used for Communion. Here’s a close-up viewed from the upper and lower sides so you can see it clearly:

German Lebkuchen Cookies (how To Make Lebkuchen)

It felt a little odd at first, but perhaps the idea that the same wafers used for the blessed sacrament should also be eaten in a mood of festive recreation is not so very strange when you remember the word

And connects back to older ideas about the observance of sacred leisure. These ‘traditionally built’ Lebkuchen are a surprisingly light bite given their size, not heavy in their texture but not insubstantial either, combining the Christmassy flavours of chocolate, ginger and citrus peel.

As the foundation for these biscuits got me thinking about foundations in general, which seems a good subject to consider at the beginning of the (modern) year.

Wicklein Mini Dark Chocolate Nurnberger Lebkuchen, Gingerbread, 150g (set Of 2), Made In Germany

, wrote Israel’s King Solomon, famous throughout the ancient world for his wisdom. This week I’ve been reading about the beginning of his reign again, of his magnificent building projects and scholarly works, and the discerning heart that God granted him to govern his people.

By wisdom a house is built and by understanding is it established, through knowledge its rooms are filled with every precious and beautiful treasure

Is one of his many recorded sayings, a beautiful image that encourages me to think about how I want to fill all the ‘rooms’ of the year ahead…

Lebkuchen Schmidt Butter Biscuits

As Solomon suggests the way we order our lives – what we prioritise and choose to focus on – will determine what we are able to build on and in them. Sometimes the first step to doing this may in fact be digging deeper and even dismantling to support a better structure over time. In a similar way in the gospels Jesus compares the person who hears his words and put them into practice to a wise man who builds his house upon a rock:

(Matt. 7). Perhaps the monks of Nuremberg saw an aptness in using the wafers used for the body of Christ as the foundation for their biscuits, much as Christ was held by the Church to be the foundation of God’s household, its cornerstone.

, St. Benedict tells us – author of the Rule that became a foundation text of the monastic culture that so profoundly shaped medieval Europe and generated extraordinary achievements in scholarship and creativity, not forgetting the

Authentic German Lebkuchen

. Each year – each morning – can be an exercise in beginning, and if we aren’t quite sure how or what to start it can be helpful to examine our foundations.

. (If you’re in the UK and would prefer to buy than make your own, you can get authentic Bavarian brands at a decent price from Lidl.)

… As I write this, a kind Catholic friend at the London Library has just appeared with a copy of Esther de Waal’s book on

Original Nuremberg Gingerbread Online Shop

, a beautiful fifteenth-century German carol preserved in a monastery in Trier, set in this form by Michael Praetorius and performed by Solomon’s Knot:

If you would like to keep this bestiary free from ads and see more entries more regularly you are welcome to contribute to the Biscuit Jar.This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challged and removed. Find sources: "Lebkuch" – news · newspapers · books · scholar · JSTOR (February 2011 ) (Learn how and wh to remove this template message)

This article may be expanded with text translated from the corresponding article in German. (December 2014) Click [show] for important translation instructions.

Lebkuchen Biscuits Recipe

The etymology of Leb- in the term Lebkuch is uncertain. Proposed derivations include: from the Latin libum (flat bread), from the Germanic word Laib (loaf), and from the Germanic word lebbe (very sweet). Another likely possibility is that it comes from the old term Leb-Honig, the rather solid crystallized honey tak from the hive, that cannot be used for much beside baking. Folk etymology oft associates the name with Leb (life), Leib (body), or Leibspeise (favorite food).

Bakers noticed that honey-sweeted dough would undergo a natural fermtation process wh stored in a cool location for several weeks, creating air bubbles that would improve the quality of the bread. Lebkuch was started in November and baked in December after undergoing this fermtation period.

Lebkuch was invted by monks in Franconia, Germany, in the 13th ctury. Lebkuch bakers were recorded as early as 1296 in Ulm, and 1395 in Nürnberg (Nuremberg). The latter is the most famous exporter today of the product known as Nürnberger Lebkuch (Nuremberg Lebkuch).

The Organic, Vegan Lebkuchen Letter Without Eggs, Without Honey

Local history in Nuremberg relates that emperor Friedrich III held a Reichstag there in 1487 and he invited the childr of the city to a special evt where he prested Lebkuch bearing his printed portrait to almost four thousand childr. Historically, and due to differces in the ingredits, Lebkuch is also known as "honey cake" (Honigkuch) or "pepper cake" (Pfefferkuch). Traditionally, the cookies are usually quite large and may be 11.5 cm (4.5 in) in diameter if round, and larger if rectangular. Unlike other cities where wom could bake and sell the holiday cookies at will, in Nuremberg only members of the baker's guild were allowed to bake the cookies.

Since 1808, a variety of Nürnberg Lebkuch made without flour has be called Elislebkuch. It is uncertain whether Elise was the daughter of a gingerbread baker or the wife of a margrave. Her name is associated with some of the Lebkuch produced by members of the guild. Since 1996, Nürnberger Lebkuch is a protected designation of origin, meaning that it must be produced within the boundaries of the city.

Lebkuch range in taste from spicy to sweet and come in a variety of shapes with round being the most common. The ingredits usually include honey, spices such as aniseed, cardamom, coriander, cloves, ginger, and allspice, nuts including almonds, hazelnuts, and walnuts, or candied fruit.

Lebkuchen Schmidt Choice Chocolate Coated Lebkuchen

In Germany, types of Lebkuch are distinguished by the kind of nuts used and their proportions. Salt of Hartshorn and potash are oft used for raising the dough. Lebkuch dough is usually placed on a thin wafer base called an Oblate. This was an idea of the monks, who used unleaved communion wafer ingredits to prevt the dough from sticking. Typically, they are glazed or covered with very dark chocolate or a thin sugar coating, but some are left uncoated.

Lebkuch is usually soft, but a harder type of Lebkuch is used to produce Lebkuchherz ("Lebkuch hearts"), usually inscribed with icing, which are available at many German regional fairs and Christmas fairs.

The Nuremberg type of Lebkuch is also known as Elislebkuch and must contain no less than 25 perct nuts and less than 10 perct wheat flour. The finest artisan lebkuch bakeries in Nuremberg boast close to 40% nut contt. Lebkuch is sometimes packaged in richly decorated tins, chests, and boxes, which have become nostalgic collector items.

Nürnberger Lebkuchen (german Gingerbread) Recipe

Several Swiss regional varieties also exist and have be declared part of the Culinary Heritage of Switzerland, such as the case with Berner Honiglebkuch.The Nuremberg or Nürnberger Lebkuchen manufacturers have always baked, not only for the needs of the Nuremberg residents, but also for long-distance trade. The Gingerbreads went “all over the world” on old trade routes and with them the good reputation

The most famous Nuremberg Lebkuchen are the “Elisen” which are round shaped gingerbread cookies baked on thin white wafers. They are named after the Baker’s daughter

When was the Lebkuchen or Gingerbread made? The story of Lebkuchen began thousands of years ago. A first written reference to Gingerbread can be found around 350 BC. BC, but even the ancient Egyptians coated cakes with honey and baked them together. According to the mythology of the Egyptians, Greeks, Romans and Teutons, honey was a gift from the world of Gods. And the Bible also speaks of the “promised land in which milk and honey flow”. This explains why in ancient times honey was ascribed as a divine gift as having demon-driving, healing and life-giving effects.

Wicklein Nurnberger Gingerbread Lebkuchen 3 Varieties 7.05 Oz. (pack Of 2) 899668000411

You will need dried fruits like the ones you can buy on Amazon below, or make your own candied Orange and Lemon peel in the Instant Pot here

Lebkuchen was mentioned in 1296 in Ulm and in 1395 in Nuremberg. Why it was called Lebkuchen is uncertain. It might has derived from Laib (loaf), Leben (life), lebbe (sweet), or Leib (body). Some say it could have been “Leb-Honig” which is crystallized honey and used mostly for baking. Lebkuchen is also known sometimes as Pfefferkuchen or Honigkuchen , depending