It’s that time of year when everything is about family traditions, and I bet that the love for specific German cookies simply made its way into the English language by way of flavor. How else would you explain that Kipferl (pronounce exactly like this) and Pfeffernuss (pronounce: ‘pfeffer-nooss) have been adopted so easily? They are so typical German AND they simply taste amazing.
Indeed, I’m not much of a baker, but for tradition’s sake I usually bake a couple of batches of Christmas cookies each and every year. From scratch. One of the kinds I make are Kipferl, which is an Austrian German term for a crescent. And those come in many shapes, from the croissant you might eat for breakfast to the dainty-shaped and sugar-dusted cookies. My mother used to make her Vanillekipferl (yep, right, you read vanilla crescents!) with hazelnuts, and I have her recipe for those. But I haven’t ever found ground hazelnuts around here, and I lack a mill through which to grind the nuts the traditional way. So, I have simply replaced hazelnuts with oat flakes.
A lot of Austrians and Germans create Vanillekipferl for the holiday season. Legend has it that these Kipferl celebrate the Austrian’s victory over the Turkish nearby Vienna in 1683. You would like to have a taste of Vanillekipferl? My friend Angela has a marvelous website and even explains a lot of mouthwatering, typical recipes on her channel on YouTube. I’m not sure whether I accidentally scrolled past the recipe for Vanillekipferl, but you find her recipe for these light delicacies also right here, on her website, and I bet hers are fantastic. I can even “taste” the kick of the ground walnuts as I’m reading HER recipe. It is also a great treat to create with children, by the way. Kids love to have their hands on dough – if you have some little guests at your home, have them help you with your Christmas baking!
Another very traditional German patisserie item is the Pfeffernuss, which means pepper nut. The latter clearly hints at the shape of the cookie, the former simply at the spices that are used in the dough, among which used to be pepper. The cookie recipe was created by a pastry chef in Offenbach near Frankfurt in the 1750s, and Pfeffernüsse (that’s the plural) have been considered a typical Christmas item ever since. Probably because they are in the same realm as Pfefferkuchen (pronounce: ‘pfeffer-koo-hen, meaning pepper cake aka gingerbread). Back in the Middle Ages when those were invented, the more spices you were able to put into a dish, the richer you proved to be. Pfefferkuchen definitely carried away a victory in their spice combination. And so did Pfeffernüsse. If you want a taste of home-made ones, try Angela’s recipe for them: https://alltastesgerman.com/pfeffernusse/. And definitely watch the video on her YouTube channel.
If you are not into baking or just would like a small taste without the work that goes into making delicious German Christmas cookies, you might find Vanillekipferl at a German pastry shop. I’m not sure whether they always have Pfeffernüsse, as you can also buy them at German delis during the Advent season (as long as their order lasts). At any rate, at the very first bite into either you’ll simply get an idea of what German Christmas tastes like. Give it a try!
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