Wednesday, July 06, 2005

Aachener Printen (the tale of Aachen continues)

After departing Charlemagne’s chapel, we headed in the general vicinity of the Aachen town square. It was already well past lunchtime and both Buddy and I were ready for a snack. The day was a glorious one for sure….about 70 degrees, a light breeze was blowing, and a warm sun was beating down on us. After selecting an outside table at quaint little café for lunch and coffee, a string quartet proceeded to set up in the square and began to play for the diners, tourists, etc.

As we finished our meal, Buddy remembered reading about the local Aachener Printen, or gingerbread. Having been well trained by Joe Grubbs that one should always try the local foodstuffs of a given area, we shared a piece of Gingerbread for dessert.

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As it turns out, most bakeries in Aachen offer “variations on the gingerbread dessert theme”. According to the sales clerk (who sold us not one but three loaves of gingerbread), the gingerbread can be stored up to 3 months in nothing more than a plastic bag. Should it become a little hard, simply place the gingerbread in a tin with a little cup of water and store overnight. The humidity from the water will make the gingerbread soft again.

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Of course, when all else fails, simply dunk it in your coffee.

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