The Leipziger Lerche is a pastry of Leipzig. The name originates from a delicacy popular in the Leipzig area until the 1870s. The dish used the songbird lark (German: Lerche), which was roasted with herbs and eggs and served as a filling in a pastry crust. In the year 1720, 400,000 larks were sold in Leipzig.Irene Krauß, Chronik bildschöner Backwerke, Stuttgart 1999, P. 261 f.
The hunting of the songbirds was officially banned by the saxonian King Albert I in 1876 after recognition of their agricultural importance.Information of the Historical Museum Leipzig According to the Vienna Appetit-Lexikon, larks were still exported from Leipzig until the end of the 19th century.Robert Habs/Leopold Rosner, Appetit-Lexikon, Badenweiler 1997 (reprint of the original version Vienna 1898) Today's pastry replaced the traditional meat-filled pastry after the ban.Irene Krauß, Chronik bildschöner Backwerke, Stuttgart 1999, P. 262 The local pastry chefs are credited for helping to preserve the larks by creating the new, sweet version of Leipziger Lerche shortly after the hunting ban was imposed.Duden, Das Deutsche Test 2015, P.302
Today's version consists of a shortcrust filled with a mixture of crushed almonds, nuts and a cherry. The cherry symbolises the heart of the bird. It is topped with a grid of two crossed dough strips. The term Leipziger Lerche has been protected by the Saxonian Bakery Guild since 1998.Leipziger Lerche at Deutsches Patent- und Markenamt (German)
See also List of almond dishes
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