max and moritz

Max and Moritz bread

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Max und Moritz 015

I have just discovered recently a new kind of bread in the German bakeries. I noticed it first of the witty name: Max & Moritz (A Story of Seven Boyish Pranks) which is a well known German illustrated story in verse. This highly inventive, blackly humorous tale, told entirely in rhymed couplets, was written and illustrated by Wilhelm Busch (published in 1865).

Busch’s classic tale of the terrible duo has since become a proud part of the culture in the German-speaking countries. Even today, parents usually read these tales to their not-yet-literate children. To this day in Germany, Austria, and Switzerland, a certain familiarity with the story and its rhymes is still presumed, as it is often referenced in mass communication. The two leering faces are synonymous with mischief, and appear almost logo-like in advertising and even graffiti. It even occurs that young German couples name their boy twins Max and Moritz respectively, depending on their individual sense of humor and the intended parenting.

I don’t want to tell all seven stories now, only the last two (shortly), which are connected to the bread baking:

The sixth tricks: The baker

The boys invade a bakery which they believe is closed. Attempting to steal pretzels, they fall into a vat of dough. The baker returns, catches the breaded pair, and bakes them. But they survive, and escape by gnawing through their crusts.images

Final Trick: The Farmer

Hiding out in the grain storage area of a farmer, Bauer Mecke, the boys slit some grain sacks. Carrying away one of the sacks, Bauer Mecke immediately notices the problem. He puts the boys in the sack instead, then takes it to the mill. The boys are ground to bits and devoured by the miller’s ducks. Later, no one expresses regret! (The mill really exists in Ebergötzen, in Germany, and can be visited)

So knowing the terrible end of the story it was rather morbid or very smart naming the bread after the 2 rascals. But I have to admit the bread is not at all terrible just the opposite it’s divine.

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Max & Moritz 9 seeds bread (500 gs 2,29 Euros)

How can I describe the bread: it is tasty with “tons” of different seeds but despite the many seeds they don’t make the bread heavy at all. Not forget to mention its shape which is very attractive, the half of the bread is dark the other half is white but both part is light and easy to digest.

Ingredients: rye flour, rye cut, wheat flour, water, soya bean groats, flax seed, oat, potato flour, sunflower yields a seed, yeast, wheat bran, spelled groats, salt (uniodinated), wheat germinates, E270, E262ii, rye spring flour, pinch of sugar and cumin seed.

Directions: Place ingredients into the pan of the bread machine in the order suggested by the manufacturer. Select Whole Wheat cycle, and Start. After the first rise, remove dough from the machine. Shape, and place into a lightly oiled 9×5 inch loaf pan. Cover, and let rise for 1 hour. Bake at 350 degrees C (175 degrees C) for 45 minutes. Remove from oven, and let cool before slicing.

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