Fotoeins Fotografie

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Weihnachten, Backwaren, Cafe Gundel, Karlsplatz, Hauptstrasse 212, Heidelberg, Germany, fotoeins.com

My Heidelberg: Café Gundel’s Christmas cakes & cookies (Weihnachtsgebäck)

Short sensory list

•   Sights of the Weihnachtsmarkt: bright lights; Christmas pyramid; red and yellow stars; unveiling of the Backwaren (backed goods) made especially for the holiday season.

•   Sounds of the Christmas market: the klang of full mugs distributed and empty ones collected, shouts of laughter from conversations scattered throughout the area.

•   Smells and tastes of the Christmas market: candied almonds, cashews, and peanuts; roasted chestnuts; balls of fried dough with powdered sugar; mugs of hot mulled wine, available in several fruit flavours; grilled bratwurst; fried potato pancakes with apple sauce.

When the Christmas season brings out special baked goods, it’s time to pay attention. In Heidelberg, my favourite café in the university town doesn’t hold back as photos of the “Backwaren” (baked goods) show. There’s something for everybody at Café Gundel.

And on it goes: small lifetimes can be spent, seeing, smelling, and sampling the entire collection.

A short exchange

Noch einen Wunsch?

Something more?“, asks the lady behind the counter when I’ve ordered a few of this and a few more of that.

Das war’s. Komm ich wieder morgen …

That’s all. I’ll come back tomorrow …” I reply, with the sound of hope and promise in my voice. I’m sure she’s heard it all before. And yet, she humours me with a smile and a chuckle.

“Wir sind noch für Sie da …”

We’ll still be here …


The goodies

Weihnachten, Backwaren, Cafe Gundel, Karlsplatz, Hauptstrasse 212, Heidelberg, Germany, fotoeins.com

Window, 1 of 3

Weihnachten, Backwaren, Cafe Gundel, Karlsplatz, Hauptstrasse 212, Heidelberg, Germany, fotoeins.com

Window, 2 of 3

Weihnachten, Backwaren, Cafe Gundel, Karlsplatz, Hauptstrasse 212, Heidelberg, Germany, fotoeins.com

Window, 3 of 3

Weihnachten, Backwaren, Cafe Gundel, Karlsplatz, Hauptstrasse 212, Heidelberg, Germany, fotoeins.com

Frücht-Brot | fruit-bread with nuts, almonds, raisins, fruit pieces (lemon, orange), a shot of rum.

Weihnachten, Backwaren, Cafe Gundel, Karlsplatz, Hauptstrasse 212, Heidelberg, Germany, fotoeins.com

Hildabrötchen | little Hilda cookies, with raspberry-currant jelly centres.

Weihnachten, Backwaren, Cafe Gundel, Karlsplatz, Hauptstrasse 212, Heidelberg, Germany, fotoeins.com

Hönig-Nussminten | honey-nut clusters.

Weihnachten, Backwaren, Cafe Gundel, Karlsplatz, Hauptstrasse 212, Heidelberg, Germany, fotoeins.com

Butterspritzgebäck | butter cookies.

Weihnachten, Backwaren, Cafe Gundel, Karlsplatz, Hauptstrasse 212, Heidelberg, Germany, fotoeins.com

Heidelberger Kurfürstenkugel | “Electors’ balls”: small cream cake spheres with a core of nougat creme, surrounded by a mantle of marzipan and a chocolate crust.

Weihnachten, Backwaren, Cafe Gundel, Karlsplatz, Hauptstrasse 212, Heidelberg, Germany, fotoeins.com

Basler Bruns: gluten- & lactosefrei | Gluten- and lactose-free, made with chocolate and crushed hazelnuts and almonds.

Weihnachten, Backwaren, Cafe Gundel, Karlsplatz, Hauptstrasse 212, Heidelberg, Germany, fotoeins.com

Buttersterne | star-shaped butter biscuits.

Weihnachten, Backwaren, Cafe Gundel, Karlsplatz, Hauptstrasse 212, Heidelberg, Germany, fotoeins.com

Malteser, topped with chocolate and filled with raspberry-currant jelly.

Weihnachten, Backwaren, Cafe Gundel, Karlsplatz, Hauptstrasse 212, Heidelberg, Germany, fotoeins.com

Zimtsterne | No-flour cinnamon stars with crushed almonds.

Weihnachten, Backwaren, Cafe Gundel, Karlsplatz, Hauptstrasse 212, Heidelberg, Germany, fotoeins.com

Mandel Florentiner, gluten-frei | gluten-free almond florentines.

Weihnachten, Backwaren, Cafe Gundel, Karlsplatz, Hauptstrasse 212, Heidelberg, Germany, fotoeins.com

Husarenkrapfen | Husars’ biscuits filled with raspberry-currant jelly.

Weihnachten, Backwaren, Cafe Gundel, Karlsplatz, Hauptstrasse 212, Heidelberg, Germany, fotoeins.com

Nussecken | Nut wedges, draped with chocolate.

Weihnachten, Backwaren, Cafe Gundel, Karlsplatz, Hauptstrasse 212, Heidelberg, Germany, fotoeins.com

Basler Lackerli | Baselers’ tasties, mini-gingerbread squares with almonds and chocolate.

Weihnachten, Backwaren, Cafe Gundel, Karlsplatz, Hauptstrasse 212, Heidelberg, Germany, fotoeins.com

Heidelberger Pflasterstein | “Heidelberg cobblestone”: fine sponge cake with almonds, chocolate flakes, nougat cream filling, and a delicate layer of marzipan under a milk chocolate coating, topped with an extra thin layer of white chocolate.

Weihnachten, Backwaren, Cafe Gundel, Karlsplatz, Hauptstrasse 212, Heidelberg, Germany, fotoeins.com

Schwäbisches Buttergebäck | Schwäbisch-style butter cookies.

Weihnachten, Backwaren, Cafe Gundel, Karlsplatz, Hauptstrasse 212, Heidelberg, Germany, fotoeins.com

Mandel-Hörnchen | gluten-free almond crescents

Weihnachten, Backwaren, Cafe Gundel, Karlsplatz, Hauptstrasse 212, Heidelberg, Germany, fotoeins.com

Flammendes Herz | flaming-heart shaped biscuits with nougat cream.

Weihnachten, Backwaren, Cafe Gundel, Karlsplatz, Hauptstrasse 212, Heidelberg, Germany, fotoeins.com

Vanillekipferl | vanilla crescents with sprinkled sugar.

Weihnachten, Backwaren, Cafe Gundel, Karlsplatz, Hauptstrasse 212, Heidelberg, Germany, fotoeins.com

Schokladierte Mandelplätzchen | chocolate-covered almond wafers.

Weihnachten, Backwaren, Cafe Gundel, Karlsplatz, Hauptstrasse 212, Heidelberg, Germany, fotoeins.com

Apfel-Strudel | apple strudel.

Weihnachten, Backwaren, Cafe Gundel, Karlsplatz, Hauptstrasse 212, Heidelberg, Germany, fotoeins.com

Liebesknochen | Éclairs with nougat creme and dipped in chocolate.


Café Gundel is located at the eastern end of the Hauptstrasse near Karlsplatz, site of one of the Christmas markets in Heidelberg.

I made the photos above on 25 and 26 November 2014 with a Canon EOS6D mark1. I wrote about Café Gundel as one of my first experiences in Germany. City and regional public transport was kindly provided by the city of Heidelberg. This post appears on Fotoeins Fotografie at fotoeins DOT com as http://wp.me/p1BIdT-6eL.

5 Responses to “My Heidelberg: Café Gundel’s Christmas cakes & cookies (Weihnachtsgebäck)”

    • fotoeins

      Danke, Ramin! A complete inventory through Gundel’s Christmas selections (or similarly at a neighbourhood Bäckerei) must be considered a worthy resident’s “life-long” project. I even miss the “chain” bakeries so ubiquitous at any Bahnhof. 😉 Thanks for reading and for your comment!

      Like

  1. My Heidelberg: Highlights from Home

    […] Café Gundel on the Hauptstrasse at Karlsplatz is a sentimental favourite, because it’s one of the first places my friends introduced to me shortly after I moved to Heidelberg. A smaller version of Gundel is at the west side of Universitätsplatz; business traffic is mostly takeaways by university students and staff. For examples of what’s available from Gundel during Christmas season, click here. […]

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