Heißwecke facts for kids
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A Heißwecke (say "HICE-veck-uh") is a traditional sweet bun from Germany. People have been eating them since the Late Middle Ages, which was a long time ago! In northern Germany, people usually eat Heißwecken before Easter, during a time called Lent. This special time starts around Rose Monday and ends on Ash Wednesday.
It's a sweet bread roll made with milk and wheat flour. It's always eaten hot, which is why it's called 'Heißwecke' – it means 'hot roll' in German! Heißwecken are popular in northern Europe, especially in areas that were once part of the Hanseatic League. This includes places from the Netherlands to Poland and along the Baltic Sea coast. These buns have many different local names, but most of them come from the word Heißwecken. Some common names are Hedewäggen, Hetwegge, Heiteweggen, and Heetwich.
What is a Heißwecke?
There are many old descriptions of Heißwecken, and they were a bit different in various regions. They were usually round, but sometimes had other shapes. People often ate them covered with hot milk and melted butter. These buns were not made at home; bakeries always made them.
In 1928, a dictionary from Schleswig-Holstein described them. It said bakers made Heißwecken, often using secret recipes. They were round cakes, about 10-15 centimeters wide. The main ingredients were wheat flour, butter, and sugar. Bakers also added spices like cinnamon and cardamom, plus raisins. People would cover them with butter or fill them with sugar, cinnamon, and butter. Then, they soaked them in milk or egg milk. They were often eaten at every meal during the first week of Lent.
A very similar description from 1781 comes from Western Pomerania. It called them Heetweggen and said they were a special carnival roll. They were made with spice, butter, and eggs in hot milk, eaten like a soft, spoonable treat.
In the 1800s, servants in cities like Hamburg would go to the bakery in the morning. They carried a basket with cushions to keep the fresh rolls warm. In those days, there were three kinds of Heetwegen:
- Simple sweet dough with spices.
- Finer milk rolls with extra raisins.
- Plain, unsweetened round rolls.
In Hamburg and Altona, families and friends would gather for these hot breakfasts. They often served nice drinks like wines, spirits, or tea with the buns.
In 1737, a Swedish cookbook had a recipe for hedvägg. This was a fancy version of the bun. A hole was made in the soft milk roll, and the inside was scooped out. This scooped-out part was cooked in cream and butter. Then, it was used to refill the roll. Finally, the bun was sprinkled with cinnamon and sugar before being eaten.
Where are Heißwecken Eaten?
Germany
Heißwecken were known in Westphalia and North Germany as early as the Late Middle Ages. Records from the 1500s and 1600s show they were made in places like Soest, Geseke, Lübbecke, and Münster. They have been mentioned in Hamburg cookbooks since the 1400s. In 1755, Heetwegge were described as "warm white rolls" eaten during the first week of fasting.
An old map from 1930 shows where Heißwecken were popular in Germany. They were eaten in Schleswig-Holstein and Hamburg. They were also found in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern up to a river called the Zarow. Beyond this river, people traditionally ate pretzels instead. In other areas like Farther Pomerania or Brandenburg, the popular carnival pastry was the Berliner (a type of doughnut). However, Heißwecken were also found far away in East Prussia.
In Mecklenburg, people ate Heißwecken for carnival as early as the 1500s. Around 1930, in the Greifswald/Wolgast area, a carnival roll called a Böller was eaten. This region was influenced by Sweden after the Thirty Years' War. The word Böller comes from the Swedish word bullar, which means milk roll.
Because these rolls are mostly found in the Low German language region, historians think Heißwecken first came from Westphalia or northern Lower Saxony. They believe the buns then spread eastward during the Middle Ages as people moved and settled new areas.
In Sweden today, there are buns called fastlagsbulle or fettisdagsbulle. These names mean "Fastnacht rolls" or "Fat Tuesday rolls." They are sweet milk rolls filled with marzipan and whipped cream. These modern versions became popular in the 1800s. However, even before that, there were simpler Fastnacht rolls. These older rolls were very similar to the German Heißwecken. In southern Sweden, Shrove Monday is still called bullamandag, meaning "Roll Monday."
In the 1700s, these buns were called hetvägg in Sweden. There's a famous story about the Swedish king Adolf Frederick. He died in 1771 after eating a huge meal that included Heißwecken! The oldest known mention of these rolls in Sweden is from 1698.
Historians believe that merchants from the Hanseatic League and German settlers brought Heißwecken to Sweden and the Baltic States during the Middle Ages. There's even a record of them in Riga from the 1400s.
United Kingdom
In the United Kingdom, sweet milk rolls are called buns, and there are many types. Hot cross buns are round yeast rolls with sugar, butter, egg, raisins, and spices like cinnamon or nutmeg. They are traditionally eaten on Good Friday and are usually sold and eaten warm. They have a cross made of lighter dough on top, which is a symbol of the Easter cross.
The word 'bun' has been used in English since the 1400s. Spiced buns became popular during the Tudor period in the 1400s. In 1592, a rule was made that these rolls could only be sold on special days. These days included Good Friday, Christmas, and funerals. Today, you can buy them much earlier, sometimes as early as January!
