NEW: Hazelnut Elisen-Gingerbread (Haselnuss-Elisen-Lebkuchen)

We are happy to announce a new product at HONIG & PFEFFER: our delicious Hazelnut Elisen-Gingerbread - soft & with a delicious hazelnut taste. Now available in our store at www.honigundpfeffer.de

Birthday offer: 4 x 6 Elisen-Lebkuchen, assorted

Celebrate the 1st birthday of HONIG & PFEFFER with us:

Order 3 packages of the finest Nuremberg Elisen-Lebkuchen and get a 4th package for free.

4 packages of the finest Nuremberg Elisen-Lebkuchen for the price of 3 packages.
Each package includes: 2 chocolate covered Lebkuchen, 2 glazed Lebkuchen and 2 plain Lebkuchen.

Inhalt: 4 x 6 Stück (4 x 420 g netto)

>> order this offer at HONIG & PFEFFER >>

offer valid till December 6th, 2009

Opening ceremony of the Nuremberg Christkindlesmarkt

Impressionen of the opening ceremony of the Nuremberg Christkindlesmarkt on Friday November 27th, 2009. More information about the famous christmas market in Nuremberg can be found at www.christkindlesmarkt.de. There is even a video of the opening prologue of the Christkind (Christ Angel).

New: Nuremberg Gingerbread Chocolates (Lebkuchenkonfekt)

Try our new, delicious Gingerbread Chocolates. Our Gingerbread Chocolates are made of a Original Nuremberg Lebkuchen dough without flour and more than 45 % almonds and hazelnuts. After baking they are covered with the finest semi-sweet chocolate.

Our Gingerbread Chocolates do not contain preservative or any artifical colour or flavouring compounds. This product is glutenfree!

Order our Gingerbread Chocolates at HONIG & PFEFFER >>

Special blog and twitter offer: Chocolate Lebkuchen for Pelzmärtel

Pelz...what? Pelzmärtel is an old custom in Franconia. It's celebrated on St. Martin's Day, at November 11th and a similar tradition as the Saint Nicholas celebration (Nikolaus) in Germany (see also http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nikolaus#Celebration_in_Central_Europe).

Traditionally children get fruits, nuts and sweets for Pelzmärtel. So why not give some of our delicious Chocolate Lebkuchen this year? We promise, not only your kids will get excited about them. ;-)



This is a special offer for our blog readers and twitter followers and only avaibale via the following Link: Special blog and twitter offer: Chocolate Lebkuchen

On sale this week: Our Glutenfree Assortment

This week we have a special offer for all of those who have to go without gluten but not without Lebkuchen and Macaroons. Out glutenfree assortment offers a delicious selction of our products without gluten in one package:

• 12 Coconut Macaroons, assorted (chocolate covered and plain)
• Chocolate covered Hazelnut Macaroons
• 6 gluten-free Almond Elisen-Lebkuchen(gingerbread cookies) without flour and wafers

Check out the offer at our online store at www.honigundpfeffer.de.



On sale from 24.10. to 31.10.2009: only 13,90 €* instead of 15,90 €*.

* All prices are final prices plus shipping. VAT is not shown according to § 19 UStG (small business owner taxation). (Alle Preise verstehen sich als Endpreise in Euro zzgl. Versandkosten. MwSt. wird nicht gesondert ausgewiesen, da nach § 19 UStG (Besteuerung für Kleinunternehmer) gehandelt wird.)

On sale: Assorted Almond Gingerbread Lebkuchen

As Christmas is approaching faster and faster - only 3 months to go - we decided to ring in the Lebkuchen season with a special Lebkuchen offer. Our assorted Almond Gingerbread Lebkuchen are on sale. But only for a short time! Check them out at this page while the offer is valid.

100 days left till Christmas

100 days left till Christmas - and there's nothing better to start the season with than our delicious domino cubes (German chocolates made of Lebkuchen, marzipan and fruit jelly covered with semi sweet chocolate). All summer long we received request for domino cubes. But unfortunately they are only produced from September till December. So I am more than happy to announce that they are now finally back in stock again and available in our store.

Happy Holidays

We wish our customers and the visitors of our online store Happy Holidays and a Sparking New Year!

We would like to thank you for your support and trust during the last weeks. We look forward to bringing you new products and more of our all-year-round freshly baked gingerbread lebkuchen in 2009!

If you have any questions or comments please to not hesitate to contact us or just leave a comment below.

New: Domino cubes with little flaws (Dominostein-Bruch)

In Germany gingerbread lebkuchen, macroons and other confectionery with little flaws are traditionally sold as 'Bruch' (broken confectionery). Our domino cubes have little flaws in the chocolate glaze or differ in size and shape but they have the same great taste as always...
We added the domino cubes with little flaws to our assortment - but only for a short time Domino cubes with little flaws 400 g for 4,00 €*.



Domino cubes (or domino stones from the German Dominosteine) are filled with marzipan and fruit gelly on a layer of gingerbread lebkuchen and covered with semisweet chocolate. They are primarily sold during Christmas season in Germany. But our domino cubes are freshly produced and sold all year round.

* All prices are final prices plus shipping. VAT is not shown according to § 19 UStG (small business owner taxation). (Alle Preise verstehen sich als Endpreise in Euro zzgl. Versandkosten. MwSt. wird nicht gesondert ausgewiesen, da nach § 19 UStG (Besteuerung für Kleinunternehmer) gehandelt wird.)

On sale: Glutenfree Almond-Elisen gingerbread and Hazelnut-Macaroons

From December 17th to December 20th our Glutenfree Almond-Elisen gingerbread Lebkuchen and our glutenfree Hazelnut-Macaroons are on sale.


Our Glutenfree Almond-Elisen gingerbread Lebkuchen from Nuremberg are made without flour and without baking wafers after old family recipes.



Our Hazelnut Macaroons contain 4o% pure, roasted hazelnuts and are covered with the finest dark chocolate. Glutenfree.

* All prices are final prices plus shipping. VAT is not shown according to § 19 UStG (small business owner taxation). (Alle Preise verstehen sich als Endpreise in Euro zzgl. Versandkosten. MwSt. wird nicht gesondert ausgewiesen, da nach § 19 UStG (Besteuerung für Kleinunternehmer) gehandelt wird.)

International orders are welcome. If you have trouble reading our German website or have questions about shipping to your country please do not hesitate to send me an email.

Nuremberg Christkindlesmarket

Gingerbread and Lebkuchen at the Nuremberg Christkindlesmarket

Here are some impressions from the Christkindlesmarket in Nuremberg. Each year the famous Christmas market opens its stalls for four weeks during Advent season. About 180 stalls sell at the Christkindlesmarket original Nuremberg gingerbread Lebkuchen, fruit cake, macaroons, gingerbread hearts, Nuremberg sausages, mulled wine (Glühwein) as well as wooden toys, christmas tree ornaments and other craft products. Another famous souvenir are the "Nürnberger Zwetschgenmännla" oder Zwetschgenmännchen (Nuremberg plum people). these little handcrafted dolls made of dried plums modelled on a chimney sweeper.The tradition of the Zwetschgenmännchen that are traditionally sold on Bavarian and Franconian Christmas markets goes back to the 19th century.

Nürnberger Zwetschgenmännla (Nuremberg plum people dolls) at the Nuremberg Christkindlesmarket

Christmas tree ornaments and Rauschgoldengel at the Nuremberg Christkindlesmarket

The packaging

One thing we knew from the beginning was that we wanted to sell our products in a special packaging. In Germany lebkuchen, gingerbread and macaroons from the pastry shop are mostly sold in cellphane bags. A wire bag tie is added. That's it. In supermarkets lebkuchen are often sold in terrbile plastic packagings that produce a lot of waste and do not keep the products fresh once opened. So I did A LOT of researching about the different packaging options. I wanted some simple but elegant boxes that turn a pack of gingerbread lebkuchen or domino cubes into nice present or favor. Into something you bring along if you are invited or want to give your friends or clients as a little 'Thank you' for Christmas.
But Germany is really a wasteland when it comes to pre-manufactured pastry packaging. Cookie or cake boxes when you buy cookies at a bakery? No. Favor boxes? No. Cupcake boxes? No. Ballotin boxes? No. So the only chance to sell our products in boxes was to design and develop our own packaging and have it custom made. A lot of prototyping, measuring, more researching for a manufacturer we ended up with plain, simple yet classic box in two sizes with a circular cut-out in the top. The small present box holds 3 gingerbread lebkuchen, 32 domino cubes or 165 g of coconut macaroons. The large present box holds 6 gingerbread lebkuchen or 64 domino cubes. A nice ribbon (I found some lovey ribbons from Denmark) and one of our home printed labels keeps the box shut. The goods inside are additionally wrapped in a sealed cellophane bag to keep them fresh.

Small box of unglazed coconut macaroons and a large present box filled with 6 assorted gingerbread Elisen lebkuchen

More work ahead

Although the biggest pile of work (the development, designing and programming of the store and all the researching) is now done there is still lot of work ahead. On the weekend we packed and shipped our first orders, I made the labels with all the ingredients, there are tons of typos on the website that had and still have to be corrected, I have written a press release that will be sent out tomorrow.... And I decided to start an own HONIG & PFEFFER blog in English especially as there is no Enlish website yet. I hope it makes it easier for readers as well as for me to maintain it...

About Honig & Pfeffer

In case you are wondering about the name HONIG & PFEFFER and why we started a gingerbread online store here's a little background information about the idea and about the history of hingerbread in Germany:

Honey & Pepper was born this summer when we were craving for our favorite gingerbread (Lebkuchen) - despite the summer heat. Fortunately the gingerbreads from our favorite gingerbread bakery - a family-run gingerbread bakery with almost 100 years of tradition - are baked all year round. The bakery is located in St. Johannis, the most traditional part of Nuremberg, just a few blocks from where we live.

If you take a stroll through St. Johannis especiall in the pre-Christmas-season and follow the smell of cinnamon, nutmeg, clove, ginger and cardamom you will directly be let to the bakery where the most delicious gingerbread, domino cubes (Dominosteine) and macaroons (Makronen) are waiting for a thick coat of bittersweet chocolate. All products are made with the finest ingredients based on old family recipes that are passed on over generations and kept secret since 1911.

Tradionally gingerbread lebkuchen are baked around Christmas but due to the huge popularity they are produced all year round nowadays. The tradition of gingerbread in Nuremberg goes back to 1395, the first time a gingerbread manufacturer is documented in Nuremberg.

Since the Middle Ages Nuremberg is known as the capital of Lebkuchen. Back then the most important trade routes led through Nuremberg and brought the "pepper" along with other exotic trade goods from the Orient via Venice and Geneva to Nuremberg. Another main ingredient, the honey, was provided by the honeybee forests around Nuremberg.

In the 17th century, the Lebkuchen manufacturers in Nuremberg agreed to purity requirements for their Lebkuchen, which set very high quality standards and applies to Nuremberg gingerbread ever since. Since 1927 Nuremberg gingerbread (Nürnberger Lebkuchen) is a Protected Designation of Origin and must be produced within the borders of the city of Nuremberg. The queen of gingerbread – the Elisen gingerbread (Elisen-Lebkuchen) – is made without flour and contains more than 40% of grounded almonds and other nuts.

First and foremost thanks to its exquisite ingedients and its exotic spices (like cinnamon, clove, anise, cardamom, cilantro, ginger and nutmeg) the original gingerbread lebkuchen is a real indulgence. Based on these ingredients and due to historically reasons lebkuchen are also called pepper cakes or honey cakes. The name pepper cake goes back to the Middle Ages, when all those then exotic spices like cinnamon, ginger and cardamom where referred to as pepper. The english gingerbread, the French Pain d'épices as well as the Scandinavian words Pepperkake (Norway), Peberkage (Denmark) or Pepparkakor (Sweden) do also refer to importance of the spices in the different recipes. Honey cake (Honigkuchen) points out another essential ingredient, the honey as natural sweetener. Hence we decided to call our shop name Honig & Pfeffer, which means Honey & Pepper in German.

Almond Elisen gingerbread: chocolate covered, sugar covered and uncovered