Weihnachtsmarkt & lebkuchen

Weihnachtsmarkt & lebkuchen

Posted on December 8, 2016 by likearollingstone1090

It’s been over a month since my last entry, but as to be expected Erasmus is probably one of the busiest period of one’s academic years.The constant struggle to balance academic pursuits with social life, leaves you with  little time for anything else, really.
Speaking about time, Christmas is almost here, you can pretty much smell it in the air by now.Well, to be more precise, what you actually smell is the intoxicating scent of all the treats available at the Christmas market.Christmas market food includes savoury treats such as reibekuchen, which is a form of  pancakes made from potatoes, the well-known bratwurst and some exceptional roast meat dishes.Recently I also noticed that they sell Spätzle as well, which is a delightful dish of soft egg noodles that is  popular in the southwest of Germany, Baden-Württemberg in particular.
However, savoury food is not everything the market can offer food-wise. There are plenty of mouthwatering treats for those who have a sweet-tooth, like the author of this blog. Lebkuchen, is one of the most renowned Christmas recipes, it is the German version of gingerbread cookies.It is crucial to mention that the are nothing like the gingerbread cookies that I’ve tried in Scotland, the Scottish version is more biscuit-like and harder, while the German version has a softer texture at least the most common one, although you can find more biscuit-like lebkuchen as well.It is quite bizarre how many different varieties of this baked good exist, yet in Greece we haven’t even heard of it.You see, The most famous Greek Christmas treats are melomakarona (spiced cookies that are soaked in honey and covered with nuts), kourampiedes(almond shortbread covered in icing sugar) and diples (thin pastry rolls,that are fried in oil and then soaked in honey syrup).If cookies and biscuits are not your cup of tea, then there are other sweets, such as candied apples and chocolate treats.
It would be outraging to talk about the German Christmas markets without mentioned the delightfully warm Glühwein, which is the German word for mulled wine and as the name suggests it couldn’t be anything else but spiced wine, that has been heated up so that it makes the cold more bearable.While mulled wine is the most popular choice, there are other beverages such as spiced honey mead, as well as non-alcoholic ones such as hot chocolate.

As far as Christmas markets are concerned, I’ve so far been to the ones in Bonn, Cologne and Siegburg. The Christmas markets in Bonn and Cologne are more traditional, with wooden decorated stalls and plenty of Christmas lights and decorations, although as it is to be expected, Cologne has more than one market and each of the has a different theme, therefore the decorations are not identical.And then there’s Siegburg, which is a medieval-themed market and during the night is only lit by candles. I personally believe that the Christmas market in Siegburg is something extraordinary by itself, kind of feels like time-travelling  back in the middle ages.The food is different, although you’ll still see some of the treats mentioned above, you will also see roasted pigs on a skewer, like in the movies and very aromatic snacks that fill the air with the scent of fragrant herbs, that are based on actual medieval recipes.Merely passing by the stalls is enough to make you drool, let alone actually eating the food there.At the same time it kind of reminds me how simplified the cuisine has become.When it comes to decorations, the market has various stalls that are as expected medieval-themed and they all sell relevant products, such as medieval objects, clothing  and trinkets.
There is also a stage kind- of  structure where there are various medieval-themed performances taking place, every now and then.While the market itself is not very Christmas-looking, there is a giant Christmas tree in the middle of the square.I highly recommend visiting this particular one, would you ever find yourselves in Germany.Especially if you’re a history nerd.

Germany is certainly an excellent destination for Christmas holidays, as the Christmas spirit is quite prominent, thanks to the Christmas markets, but also due to the fact that there are so many events to attend during this time of the year.The parties are numerous and so are the concerts and festivities that you can attend.I for sure am looking forward to that.

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