Schneeball, Rothenburg ob der Tauber’s Sweet Treat (with update)

Schnee = snow

Ball = ball

Schneeballen (that’s the plural form) are everywhere in Rothenburg. Every bakery has its own, and there are even entire shops devoted to them.

It’s the specialty sweet of Rothenburg ob der Tauber. It’s basically a ball of fried dough strips sweetened with sugar and/or other flavorings. The original schneeball is simply powdered sugar, hence the snowy appearance and name.

Since preparation ahead of the festival times can help relieve stress during celebrations, the long shelf-life of the schneeball surely helped its popularity and abundance. Schneeballen can be kept for 4-6 weeks without spoiling (no refrigeration needed).

A local guide told us that each schneeball tastes different depending on the maker. Some are crispier, some are chewier, and many are flavored with cinnamon, chocolate, caramel, hazelnut—even lemon and strawberry.

In our limited experience of two original schneeballen, they tasted pretty similar to me. Crunchy, dense, and not-too-sweet, it reminded me of a Chinese dessert called “butterflies,” though I much prefer the honeyed-chewy-crush of the butterfly I’m used to over the schneeball.

We did buy some mini-schneeballen in a few other flavors to try as we continue our travels, I’ll update you if there are any particularly flavorful details worth sharing!

UPDATE: These schneeballen bakery Brothaus impressed me much more! Possibly more butter or something in the dough, but it was a moist-er, slightly chewier ball (closer to the Butterfly treat I was talking about). Also impressive: the bakery started in 1616.