Lebkuchen Time

That chill in the air signals a few things in these parts, not the least of which being the annual local lebkuchen (say "leb-kook-hen") fest in Lorenzer Platz downtown (and thankfully far away from the stinky "Fish Days" running at the same time on the far side of the altstadt). Lebkuchen are closely associated with Nuremberg and while they are available year-round, they really come into the national consciousness during holiday season. Taste-wise, lebkuchen are a bit hard to describe to the uninitiated and my explanation will make them sound iffy, but they are a dense, flourless, chewy cookie that takes the best elements of gingerbread and fruitcake, served up on a base that is similar to a communion wafer. I know it sounds like a strange combination but believe me, these things are good, and extremely addictive. How big are lebkuchen in this country? big enough that Starbucks Germany rolls out its lebkuchen latte every winter. Sorry for poor quality of photo-- some assclown jostled me as I took the shot of this stand. Here you can see the different varieties-- the cookies are available plain, glazed, or dipped in white or milk chocolate. Cookie size is around a 4" diameter.