Intro
I have been thinking a lot about what kind of gifts shall we give to our American friends when we finally return to the US. We wanted something that is unique, fancy, and Hungarian. So we decided to buy some of the famous gingerbreads with Hungarian motives of Judit Poor (@mezesmanna). They are small, famous since appeared in The Oprah Magazine, and one can even eat them if need be. Gingerbread has been made in Hungary since the Middle Ages. This photo was sent us by the artist:
The Gingerbread
The gingerbread comes in a great variety, primarily thanks to its shape and decoration. Main ingredients are flour, honey, egg and spices. It has a long tradition, originally the food was offered to deities, then it served as gift among people. Making a fine gingerbread requires excellent manual skills, and to make high quality folk art decorations good craftsmanship (and lots of time) are also inevitable.
The Gingerbread museum in Szekszárd
During one of our family trips we visited the Gingerbread Museum in Szekszárd, in Tolna county. This is a private collection of the Petrits family. The history of the Petrits Company goes back to 1825, when they started to make gingerbread, candies, and candles. In the museum we get an overview of the history of gingerbread craft, the hundred-year-old icing tubes, all the tools used by old masters, the machines and tools in candy and lollypop production. The equipments and tools of gingerbread, candy and candle production and their uses are also shown in a form of an entertaining movie.
It’s not easy to make this special delicacy, but anyone can try their skills in the museum. If you are not 100% content with the result, you can still purchase the beautiful gingerbread hearts, cavalrymen, dolls and numerous variety of beautiful candles in the gift shop of the museum.
