German Butterbrot Day – September 25, 2022, history significance why we celebrate
German Butterbrot Day takes place every year on September 25. The day celebrates the well-loved German meal staple of buttered bread. Although buttered bread sounds like a rather bland meal, it’s actually a wonderful basis for any type of meal. Whether you want a light breakfast of jam on toast or a hearty dinner of schnitzel on buttered bread, you’re always going to start with bread and butter. And that’s always a good place to start.
History of German Butterbrot Day
From the term literally meaning “buttered bread”, German Butterbrot hails back several centuries, to the 1300s when German people used to eat a slice of bread spread with butter for breakfast. It was originally a substitute for porridge and was often supplemented with another item on top.
Most people are familiar with the standard and basic bread and butter, but German Butterbot is so much more than that. Butterbrot isn’t just buttered bread on its own. It specifically refers to buttered bread that also bears a single additional topping to bring it all together.
What a person chooses to add to their butterbrot depends largely on the time of day that it is being eaten! Breakfast is time for a sugary burst of sweetness to get a person going. So butterbrot is often topped with marmalade, hazelnut spread, peanut butter, jam, or honey. Cream cheese is another favorite of butterbrot fans.
In the evening the ingredients on butterbrot tend to change to more hearty and savory mixes, occasionally even including an entire schnitzel (a breaded meat dish), minced meat or even smoked salmon and liverwurst. The range of delicious toppings one can put on butterbrot is only as limited as the palate and the imagination.
Even the bread choices for traditional butterbrot are beyond the pale. Given its birthplace in Europe, German Butterbrot Day is a celebration of the rich, full flavored and bodied breads that are favorites of Europeans. No simple white loaf here. Instead it is more likely to find a panorama of flavors with a hearty bread like rye, pumpernickel, and a special sort of heavy bread known as Volkombrot, which is a whole-grain bread made with a sourdough base.
Sometimes referred to as German Sandwich Day, this day was started in 1999 when the Central Marketing Agency of the German Agricultural Industry determined that its sandwich was losing its popularity. Having found that butterbrot was being overtaken by breakfast influences from other cultures, the agency worked hard to remind Germans of its popularity and bring it back.
Although the Central Marketing Agency of the German Agricultural Industry went defunct ten years later, the celebration of German Sandwiches has continued on.
With that in mind, German Butterbrot Day is a time to enjoy and appreciate all of the beauty and delight that comes through a simple slice of bread, a bit of butter and some other tasty toppings.
GERMAN BUTTERBROT DAY TIMELINE
1266
The Illegal 600
In England, it is illegal to sell bread weighing 600 grams.
1849
A Yeasty Legacy
The Boudin Bakery in France starts their original dough starter that is still being used in every loaf they bake today.
1928
The Best Thing Since Sliced Bread
Sliced bread is only invented in 1928.
2022
Modern Bread
Today, bread is made with different flour, yeast, and additives than traditional bread was made with.
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5 FACTS ABOUT BREAD THAT WILL BLOW YOUR MIND
No fresh bread
In WWII, it was illegal to sell freshly-baked bread while rationing was happening, as people feared that they wouldn’t be able to stop themselves from eating it immoderately.
Upper-class bread
The term “upper crust” originates from when bread was baked in stone ovens, so the bottom would be sooty and only the rich could afford to buy bread with the bottom crust cut off.
Don’t feed the ducks
Feeding ducks bread is not good for them as they can’t properly digest it.
The original eraser
Before erasers were invented, people used to use soft bread crumbs to erase pencil marks.
Dessert bread
In Australia, there’s a popular dessert served at children’s parties called ‘fairy bread,’ which consists of buttered bread and sprinkles.
How to Celebrate German Butterbrot Day
Celebrating German Butterbrot Day is simple and delicious! Consider some of these simple and tasty ideas for celebrating this German Sandwich day:
Enjoy Butterbrot for Meals
Make your day a true reflection of German Butterbrot Day by making it a part of every meal. For breakfast, enjoy a richly buttered piece of rye bread topped with jam or marmalade.
Later, for lunch, pack a butterbrot sandwich that includes a cold meat or cheese combo to be eaten atop a flavorful pumpernickel for the noon meal. When evening rolls around, it’s time for a dinner of ciabatta rolls topped with caviar and ham (separately, of course). What other new butterbrot experience will you have for German Butterbrot Day?
Throw a German Butterbrot Party
Whether a person with German heritage or simply someone who loves to celebrate different international cultures, German Butterbrot Day is a great opportunity to gather friends and family members together for a party. Play German music, decorate with German flags, and for snacks serve German Butterbrot.
In fact, it would be fun to put out an entire array of different types of bread, butter and all sorts of toppings. Let guests build their own creations of butterbrot with savory or sweet options that fill up a buffet table.
Watch German Films
To make the most of the German culture that influences this day, grab some butterbrot and get ready to watch a few German films. Turn on those English subtitles and try some German films such as these:
- A Coffee in Berlin (2012). As an aimless student who has dropped out of university roams the streets of the city of Berlin, he spends time trying to uncover and make sense of the meaning of life.
- A Friend of Mine (2006). This comedy drama follows a young man who is serious about his life and is annoyed by his chattery coworker, but he eventually wins him over and they become friends.
- Hut in the Woods (2011). As a young man, who is an escaped psychiatric patient, and a boy find each other, they build a cabin together and their journey of survival creates a strong bond that cannot be broken.
- Lessons of a Dream (2011). When an English teacher in Germany introduces the game of soccer to his students, it is well received.
