From Carnival onwards it’s donut time. The sweet pastries with delicious fillings are a must-have in spring. It’s not without reason that the sweet pastry is extremely popular in this country: airy, fluffy simmered pastries, fried in plenty of oil, traditionally filled with jam and sprinkled with a thick layer of powdered sugar – a treat for young and old.
A controversial discussion is certainly this one about the name of the popular pastry. What do you say: Kreppel, Berliner, donuts or would you rather Berlin pancakes? In Bavaria and Austria the delicacy is known as doughnut, in Hesse it is called kreppel, in the Rhineland it is simply called Berliner – a reference to the origin of the pastry. In the capital, the pastries are said to have been created by a well-known baker during the time of Frederick the Great. The Berliners themselves never call the Berliner Berliner – but rather Berliner Pfannkuchen.
According to an old legend, the origins of the Berliner are not in Berlin, but in Vienna. Here the baker Cäcilia is said to have invented the donut by chance during an argument with her husband. Out of anger, she threw a piece of yeast dough at him – but the man quickly ducked and the dough fell into a pot of hot fat: the donut was born.
By the way, the name donut goes back to the Middle Ages. Back then, people preferred to eat rich food before the fasting season in order to have a really good time – the sweet yeast pastries fit perfectly into people’s pre-fasting diet. The term is derived from the Old High German word “Krapho”, which in turn means claw or chop and refers to the original shape of the pastry.
But no matter whether doughnuts, Berliners, kreppels or Berliner pancakes – one thing is certain: the baked pastry has become an indispensable part of any bakery counter. Not only does it impress as a classic version with jam filling, but it also tastes fantastic when filled with chocolate, plum jam or quark. Over time, truly exotic creations have emerged: here the range ranges from a filling of eggnog, salted caramel or peanut butter.
According to a traditional recipe, the pastries are made with ingredients such as milk, sugar, butter and eggs. But donuts also work without animal products: a fine yeast dough can be achieved with plant-based milk and margarine – the key to success here is a correspondingly long rising time. Don’t be too impatient, the waiting time invested will pay off afterwards in the form of an airy, light dough consistency. Any vegan jam can be used as a filling – make sure that neither honey nor gelatine has been added to it. A filling made of peanut butter or dark chocolate is also usually vegan and makes the Berliners the ultimate treat. Let your imagination run wild – enjoy your meal!
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