Cakes created 'by accident'

Cakes created 'by accident'

Maria Endah Hulupi, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Famous as a land of stunning castles, arts and breathtaking
landscape, Austria is also renown for its centuries old tradition
of baking.

For Austrians, enjoying delicate cakes after lunch and dinner
or at coffee time is simply one of life's richest and oldest
pleasures.

This enduring tradition is preserved in families, where
special cakes and pastries are served during a picnic or family
week-end get together.

"Cakes are part of family tradition and are usually
accompanied by a cup of brewed coffee for adults and hot
chocolate for the children," said Austrian master pastry chef
Richard Mayr.

This is not only family tradition, but is also reflected in
the Austrian capital city, Vienna, which boasts thousands of
pastry shops and coffee houses that line the streets.

Commercial counselor at the Austrian Embassy Raymund Gradt
explained that the country's baking tradition can be traced back
over 500 years, when Emperor Frederick V of Austria ordered
special bread rolls to please his palate and this royal demand
then sparked fierce competition among Austrian bakers to produce
exquisite cakes and pastries.

This old rivalry is still preserved today, with bakers and
pastry shops competing to be best in the sector.

Its baking history, as well as its arts, music and lifestyle,
further flourished when Vienna was the capital of the vast
Austro-Hungarian Empire, which covered half of Europe. During
this period, Austrian bakers incorporated foreign influences to
make recipes for exquisite cakes and pastries. "... We took
cooking items from other countries and modified them to make
something completely new," said Mayr.

Among the foreign influences are those from Hungary, known for
its famous Applestrudel -- internationally known apple strudel
(pastry filled with cinnamon-seasoned chopped walnuts, raisins
and of course apple), from Italy the Vienna's schnitzel and other
pasta-based treats and from the Czech Republic: dumplings.

Gradt also added that Austrian sumptuous baking traditions
have a role in fostering cultural ties between countries.

And although it is a small country, Mayr said, Austria's
baking tradition has also influenced its neighboring countries
and Austrian baked products have made their way onto the shelves
of pastry and coffee shops throughout Europe.

Mayr is currently in Jakarta for the Austrian Cake and
Pastries promotion, jointly held by the Austrian Embassy, at
Hotel Borobudur Jakarta's Pendopo Lounge, from Sept. 8 to Sept.
15, 2002 with Rp 65,000++ for the afternoon tea buffet and Rp
36,000++ for the cake set with coffee or tea. He is also
scheduled to give cooking demonstration on Sept. 6 and Sept. 15
with a registration fee of Rp 80,000.

Apart from using fresh produce such as milk, cream, flour and
eggs to make its rich delicacies, Austrian cakes and pastries are
also well known for their pronounced flavors of rum and different
kinds of liquors, such as almond-flavored Amaretto, Baccardi and
Schnapps -- a strong alcohol with nutty flavors, among others.

For the food promotion, Mayr prepares at least nine popular
Austrian delicacies, including linzerschnitte, (traditional nut-
based cake with red currant marmalade from Linz), dobostorte
(hazelnut-nougat cake with caramel topping), a sort of pancake
topfenpalatschinken, buchteln (yeast dumplings with vanilla
sauce) and of course, luscious chocolate cake sachertorte and
Mayr's own signature cake steiermarktorte, which was certified
and patented by the Austrian government in 1998. The chef, who
produces a new variety of cake every month, named his creation
steiermarktorte, for the Styria province where it is created.
This cake too is made using a Styrian cooking item, pumpkin seed
oil.

People may find inspiration from music or paintings but for
Mayr, the ingredients themselves can be inspiring and he laughed
while saying that some of his cakes were created "by accident" or
"from mistakes".