16 German local snacks you may not have heard of
First thoughts about typical German lunch are probably sausage and beer, but what happens afterwards? Even though the after lunch snack doesn’t have a common name as the Swedish fika, or the English high tea, coffee and cake at 3pm is something that rarely gets skipped.
And every state has its own trade mark.
Berlin – Berliner Donut
Giving the honour to the capital, and the worldwide famous berliner. The donut itself deserves special honour, because only in Germany it has more than ten different names.
Curious about these names? Here you go:
- Faschingskrapfen
- Glaskrapfen
- Fastnachtsküchelchen
- Kreppel
- Krapfen
- Pfannkuchen
- Puffel
- Ballen
Don’t try to pronounce the others. However everyone agrees that it is a sweet dough filled with mostly raspberry jam, but watch out if you are consuming one on a New Year’s eve, mustard filling might surprise you.
Brandenburg – Crumble Cake (Streuselkuchen)
Nothing screams German dessert more than buttery crumbles on top of fruit. The fruit depends on the season, and as the plum season approaches, the lines in front of the bakeries are getting longer.
Mecklenburg-Vorpommern – Swedish Ice-cream Cup
Going North towards the Baltic Sea (Ostsee), in one of the most known summer destinations for the locals, the Rugen island, people love to indulge with the Swedish Ice-Cream Cup. The sundae consists of vanilla-flavored ice cream, applesauce, eggnog and whipped cream.
Schleswig-Holstein – Crisp Sweetened Bread (Zwieback)
Staying at the sea, but in another state on the border with Denmark, crispy sweetened bread Zwieback is a typical sweet dish. Often consumed with raisins or dried plums.
Hamburg – Red Groats (Rotte Grütze)
Scandinavian influence is present in the northern part of Germany, and that is how the red berries jelly made it to the top favorite dessert in Hamburg. Usually combined with vanilla sauce. Nowadays Germans are making colorful variations of the desert, as the green groats, made out of gooseberries, rhubarb and apples.
Bremen – Klaben
This stollen type of cake with dried fruits is typically eaten around Christmas, and the best thing about it is that it gets better with time. People tend to prepare it up to 3 weeks before holidays.
Lower Saxony – Almond Butter Cake
A great amount of butter over dough, doesn’t sound very healthy, but in combination with caramelized almonds it makes you ask for more. This cake is typically served at weddings and funerals, therefore it has the name “the cake of joy and sorrow”. Well that is a classic.
North Rhine-Westphalia – Baked Apples
Baked apple maybe doesn’t sound very inviting, but filled with nuts, cinnamon and sugar, coated in yummy pastry and vanilla sauce on top, surely does.
Rheinland-Pfalz – Semolina Dumpling (Griessknepp)
In the wine region of the country, the most enjoyed dessert is semolina flour dumpling accompanied with fresh fruit. The locals like it so much, they sometimes eat it instead of lunch.
Saarland – Baked and coated almonds
The smallest state kept it simple, almonds, but that is not all folks, they also enjoy coated almond dragées. And when it comes to holidays, pastries with raisins in different shapes take over.
Baden-Württemberg – Schwarzwald Cake
Chocolate dough, cream, and sour cherries, as cake, ice-cream, puddings, you name it. The name represents the Black Forest, but it is a worldwide synonym for mouthwatering dessert as well.
Hesse – Frankfurt Crown Cake (Frankfurter Kranz)
Hesse is the home of the oldest family owned bakery, with a tradition of more than 400 years. The beauty named Crown Cake consists of a sponge base filled with buttercream and red fruit jam, coated with caramelized nuts.
Thuringia – Prophet Cake
When it comes to the state’s sausage there isn’t competition, that is why the dessert is not so complicated, crispy dough, sprinkled with sugar, but to spice it a little bit they’ve added a bit of rum.
Saxony-Anhalt – Tree Cake (Baumkuchen)
It looks like a chocolate layered chimney cake, but it is more than that. It is flaky sugary pastry, slowly baked close to open fire. Also considered as the “King of the sweets”.
Saxony – Potato Cake with Apple mousse (Bambes mit Apfelmus)
Nothing sounds as easy as preparing one dough out of potatoes and splitting it into lunch and dessert. This is a real grandma gem, and the fastest time-machine to childhood.
Bavaria – Prinzregentorte
Seven parts of thin sponge cake, layered with chocolate buttercream, finished with apricot jam, and dark chocolate glaze. Seems like bavarians are not only beer specialists.
And this is just a very tiny part of what the bakers in Germany have to offer. Whoever hasn’t tried these pastries should immediately put on their list.