Mozart Kugel – the one and only Salzburger chocolate

You definitely heard about Mozart Kugel, the traditional austrian chocolate sweet. And if it happens to visit Salzburg or any other city in Austria, don’t hesitate to taste the famous candies.

Mozart Kugel is the creation of salzburger confectioner Paul Furst, who manufactured it in 1890, being awarded for that with a gold medal at the Paris exhibition in 1905. Even today, his descendants keep the tradition alive and are still producing Original Salzburger Mozartkugeln in the Furst Cafe in Salzburg, according to the original recipe.

A Mozart Kugel it’s a chocolate specialty made of pistachio marzipan and nougat, covered in dark chocolate. Furst created it in honor of the famous composer Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart.

Today, the Mozart Kugelns can be brought all over Austria and Germany, but many of them are not handmade manufactured, like the originals (and that’s because long time Frust and his family didn’t apply for a patent). Later on, the descendants of Paul Frust have initiated more court processes trying to keep their trademark, and now, they are now the only ones that can name their product Original Salzburger Mozartkugeln.

To tell the difference between other Mozart sweets and the originals, you need to know that the original Mozart Kugeln from Furst come in silver and blue wrappers and are perfectly round.

You can buy them in one of the four Furst shops located in Salzburg Old Town, among with other luscious cakes (Sachertorte, Apfel Strudel, Esterhazy Torte, Cremesscnitte) and coffees (if you’re on mixing oranges with coffee, refresh yourself with a Maria Theresia Kaffee – strong espresso mixed with orange liqueur and milk).

We’ve been to Cafe-Konditorei Furst in a cold evening, on 31 December, a couple of hours before the start of the New Year’s Eve fireworks.  As we were watching the people passing by, preparing for the upcoming parties, Salzburg was turning silent; only a few hours separated us from a new year and a new beginning.

When we went outside the Cafe, all the noisiness was gone, and walking to the old town cobbed narrow streets, you could imagine you’re few hundred years ago and maybe, from a balcony you can hear a piano playing. Maybe it’s Mozart?

 

Best places to buy Mozart Kugeln in Salzburg: Cafe-Konditorei Frust

If you want to put your cooking skills to the test, try this recipe.