Thorner gingerbread

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Toruńskie pierniki - Thorner gingerbread.
Traditional wooden gingerbread molds

Thorner Lebkuchen or Thorner Honigkuchen ( Polish Toruńskie pierniki ) are gingerbread , which are named after their town of origin Thorn in Prussia (Polish Toruń , today in Poland ). You can look back on a centuries-old tradition, the first beginnings of which date back to the 13th century, when Thorn belonged to the Teutonic Order .

The Thorner gingerbread handicraft was first mentioned in 1380, but probably existed since the 13th century. The Kathrinchen are said to have originated in the Thorn nunnery around 1557 . Traditionally, baking started on November 25th , the feast day of Saint Catherine of Alexandria . Figure gingerbreads in the shape of the kings of Poland were very common in the 17th and 18th centuries . Johann Weese started a company in Thorn in 1763, which under Gustav Weese employed 500 people in the first years of the 20th century. The Lebküchler or Pfefferküchler, as the special bakers are called, were united in guilds. They kept their special recipes secret and only passed them on from father to son. You can also find a Pulsnitzer baker and pastry maker named Tobias Thomas ( Pulsnitzer Pfefferkuchen ), who worked in Thorn around 1745. Together with the G. Weese factory, a Hermann Thomas was still working in Thorn in the 20th century.

Thorner gingerbread is available in a variety of forms, some of which can vary depending on the occasion. Among the classic variants, the following are best known:

  • Thorner Kathrinchen ( Katarzynki ) - simple gingerbread cookies without filling, with or without a chocolate coating. They are very common in a six-leaf shape based on a rectangle.
  • Thorner paving stones ( Pierniki glazurowane ) - smaller round or angular gingerbread cookies with or without filling. Their white icing is characteristic.
  • Thorner figure gingerbread ( Pierniki figuralne ) - elaborately designed and sometimes very large breads , including councilors and noblemen, carriages, coats of arms, walls and towers or with imprinted images.

Thorner gingerbread hearts, which are often decorated with a characteristic dough lattice, are also very popular.

The Thorner Lebkuchen are widely regarded as a symbol of their city of origin, similar to the Nuremberg gingerbread or Aachener Printen .

See also

Commons : Thorner Lebkuchen  - Collection of pictures, videos and audio files

Web links