A Schneeball () or Schneeballen (plural: ''Schneebälle'' () and ''Schneeballen'' respectively), snowball in English, is a deep-fried

pastry Pastry is baked food made with a dough of flour, water and shortening (solid fats, including butter or lard) that may be savoury or sweetened. Sweetened pastries are often described as '' bakers' confectionery''. The word "pastries" sugges ...

made from

shortcrust pastry Shortcrust pastry is a type of pastry often used for the base of a tart, quiche, pie, or (in the British English sense) flan. Shortcrust pastry can be used to make both sweet and savory pies such as apple pie, quiche, lemon meringue or chicken ...

especially popular in the area of

Rothenburg ob der Tauber Rothenburg ob der Tauber () is a town in the district of Ansbach of Mittelfranken (Middle Franconia), the Franconia region of Bavaria, Germany. It is well known for its well-preserved medieval old town, a destination for tourists from around the ...

. Its name derives from its round, ball-like shape, its diameter of about eight to ten centimeters, and its traditional decoration with white confectioner's sugar. It is also known as a (stork's nest).

History

This kind of pastry has been known for at least 400 years in the regions of

Franconia Franconia (german: Franken, ; Franconian dialect: ''Franggn'' ; bar, Frankn) is a region of Germany, characterised by its culture and Franconian languages, Franconian dialect (German: ''Fränkisch''). The three Regierungsbezirk, administrative ...

and Hohenlohe (northeast of Baden-Württemberg) where it is very popular. Served only on special occasions such as weddings in the past; they are nowadays available throughout the year and can be found around

bakeries A bakery is an establishment that produces and sells flour-based food baked in an oven such as bread, cookies, cakes, donuts, pastries, and pies. Some retail bakeries are also categorized as cafés, serving coffee and tea to customers who w ...

, pastry shops, and

cafe A coffeehouse, coffee shop, or café is an establishment that primarily serves coffee of various types, notably espresso, latte, and cappuccino. Some coffeehouses may serve cold drinks, such as iced coffee and iced tea, as well as other non-caf ...

s. In the town itself there are even companies that specialize in the pastry, constantly coming out with new variations. Beside the classical ones dusted with confectioner's sugar, there are recipes glazed with chocolate and nuts or filled with marzipan. As the pastry is considered the signature dish of the town, it is a very common

souvenir A souvenir (), memento, keepsake, or token of remembrance is an object a person acquires for the memories the owner associates with it. A souvenir can be any object that can be collected or purchased and transported home by the traveler as a m ...

Preparation

The main ingredients are flour,

eggs Humans and human ancestors have scavenged and eaten animal eggs for millions of years. Humans in Southeast Asia had domesticated chickens and harvested their eggs for food by 1,500 BCE. The most widely consumed eggs are those of fowl, especial ...

, sugar,

butter Butter is a dairy product made from the fat and protein components of churned cream. It is a semi-solid emulsion at room temperature, consisting of approximately 80% butterfat. It is used at room temperature as a spread, melted as a condimen ...

cream Cream is a dairy product composed of the higher-fat layer skimmed from the top of milk before homogenization. In un-homogenized milk, the fat, which is less dense, eventually rises to the top. In the industrial production of cream, this process ...

, and plum schnaps. To give it the characteristic shape, the dough is rolled out and cut into even strips with a dough cutter. The strips are then arranged alternately over and under a stick, or the handle of a wooden spoon. Eventually the stick is lifted and slowly removed while the dough strips are formed into a loose ball. Using a special round holder called a ''Schneeballeneisen'' in order to retain the shape, the ball is deep-fried in boiling fat until golden brown, and finally dusted with confectioner's sugar while warm. The schneeball is a dry, cookie-like pastry, so it has a long shelf life - about eight weeks without refrigeration.

Gallery

File:Schneebälle - IMG 6998.JPG, Schneeballen display, with the specialized holder for deep frying File:RodT Schneebälle 7021.jpg, Schneebälle in Rothenburg ob der Tauber File:Schneebälle shop Seoul.jpg, Schneebälle shop in an underground shopping center in Seoul, South Korea

References

External links

{{pastries Bavarian cuisine German pastries Swabian cuisine