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Best Austrian desserts

The Hungarian Girl | March 15, 2009 | 0 Comments

Austria has a long history and tradition of making some of the finest desserts in the world. If your traveling to Austria or are interested in trying something new or different, here are just a few of their most popular desserts. Just be sure to come prepared with a big appetite!

Sachertorte

The original Sacher Torte from Hotel Sacher in Vienna, Austria. Sachertorte is often served with unsweetened whipped cream.

Made with layers of dense chocolate and apricot jam in the center along with icing on the top and sides, sachertorte is one of Austria’s most well-loved desserts. It is traditionally served with unsweetened whipped cream to compliment its overall taste.

Sachertorte was named after its inventor Franz Sacher who created the dessert in 1832 for Wenzel Clemens Prince Metternich. The trademark for the “Original Sacher-torte” is registered by the Hotel Sacher, which was built in 1876 by the son of Franz Sacher.

However, Hotel Sacher was involved in a long legal battle with the pastry shop Demel, who had also produced a cake called the “Original Sachertorte.”

Numerous tales have circulated to explain how Demel came by the recipe. The cake at Demel is now referred to as “Demels Sachertorte” and differs from the “Original” in that there is no layer of apricot jam in the middle of the cake, but directly underneath the chocolate cover, and covering the entire cake.

Today, visitors from around the world come to both Hotel Sacher and The Demel just to sample this famous dessert.

Linzertorte

Linzertorte is considered to be the oldest torte or cake in the world dating back from the 16th century. It is a short-crust pastry filled with red currant preserves with a decorative lattice pattern on top.

The name of the person who first recorded the recipe or named this dessert is unknown. However, the ingredients can be traced back to a 350 year old cook book. These ingredients are still used today when making the “Original Linzer Torte”. For the past 65 years, the confectioner Jindrak has reproduced what is known as the “Original Linzer Torte” throughout Austria.

Kaiserschmarrn

Kaiserschmarrn was first prepared for the Austrian Emperor Francis Joseph I from 1830 to 1916.

Kaiserschmarrn is a light, caramelized pancake that is combined with raisins and fruit preserves and then topped with powdered sugar. It is believed the dish was first prepared for the Austrian Emperor Francis Joseph I from 1830 to 1916.

There are several stories about how this dessert was actually created and named. One particular story involves the Emperor and his wife, Elisabeth of Bavaria, of the House of Wittelsbach. Obsessed about maintaining a minimal waistline, she directed a royal chef to prepare only light desserts for her, much to the annoyance of her strict and rigid husband. Upon being presented with the chef’s confection, she found it too rich and refused to eat it. Instead, her exasperated husband Francis Joseph proclaimed, “Now let me see what “Schmarrn” our chef has cooked up”. It apparently met his approval and he finished his along with Elisabeth serving.

With the term “Kaiser” referring to emperor and “Schmarrn” meaning mishmash, the dessert was called Kaiserschmarrn across the Empire.