Crumbs, Bread and Cake

Appears in
Kaffeehaus: Exquisite Desserts from the Classic Cafes of Vienna, Budapest, and Prague

By Rick Rodgers

Published 2002

  • About
Many central European recipes call for bread or cake crumbs as a batter ingredient or as a garnish. The use of crumbs in a batter goes back to when cooks were especially frugal and needed ways to use up stale baked goods. Both types of fresh crumbs can be made in a food processor or blender. Dried unflavored bread crumbs are easily purchased.
Fresh bread crumbs should be made from sturdy white bread with a tender crust. White sandwich bread or soft-crusted French bread are perfect. If you don’t want to buy a whole loaf, use a dinner roll or two. I never trim the crust when making bread crumbs. Get in the habit of turning day-old bread into bread crumbs and storing them in a self-sealing plastic bag in the freezer for up to three months.