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Papua New GuineaFlavors · Zug
Layered cake of almond meringue discs and a sponge soaked in kirsch syrup, with buttercream, covered with almonds and powdered sugar in a diamond pattern. Created in Zug by pastry chef Heinrich Höhn, who advertised it in 1915.
Traditional sweet from Zug, Zug
Also known as: Zuger Kirsch-Torte, tourte au kirsch de Zoug
Illustrative images. The pictures in this guide are illustrations based on the real place, not photographs, and may differ from it.
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Zuger Kirschtorte — Zug, Switzerland
The Zuger Kirschtorte originated in the town of Zug, in a region known for cherry orchards and kirsch distilleries, the cherry brandy. Its creator was pastry chef Heinrich Höhn (1889–1957), from Herisau in Appenzell, who took over a café in Zug in 1913 and set up a small pastry shop with his wife.
Inspired by the region’s kirsch production, Höhn spent several years experimenting with a cake soaked in the brandy. Shortly before Christmas 1915 he offered his creation for the first time, and an advertisement published that year in the Zuger Nachrichten already used the name Zuger Kirschtorte. The cake won awards at pastry exhibitions and spread across the country. In 1943 Höhn handed the business to his head pastry chef, Jacques Treichler.
The cake has well-defined layers: two crisp meringue discs with almonds or hazelnuts sandwich a soft sponge cake, drenched in a syrup made half of sugar and half of kirsch. The filling is a pink buttercream, also scented with kirsch. On the outside the cake is covered with toasted almonds and dusted with powdered sugar, and the diamond pattern on the surface was already part of the 1915 recipe.
Since 2015 the Zuger Kirschtorte has protected status in the Swiss register of geographical indications: it may only be called that if made in the canton of Zug, using AOP kirsch from the Zug and Rigi region, according to a controlled specification. Höhn’s original recipe was not preserved, and several pastry shops in Zug produce the cake.
The town has a small museum dedicated to its history.
Zug , Zug
Created in Zug by pastry chef Heinrich Höhn, who advertised it in 1915. Depends on the town of Zug having been founded earlier.
Egg whites, sugar, ground almonds or hazelnuts for the meringue discs; sponge cake; syrup of sugar and kirsch from Zug or the Rigi; buttercream with kirsch; toasted almonds and powdered sugar.
Served in slices at room temperature with coffee. It contains spirit, so it is not suitable for children or for those avoiding alcohol.
All year round, in cafés and pastry shops; a festive sweet and traditional souvenir of Zug.
Your questions
The pastry chef Heinrich Höhn, in Zug. He advertised the cake in 1915.
Yes. The sponge is soaked in a syrup with kirsch, cherry brandy, and the buttercream also contains kirsch.
No. Since 2015 the name is protected: the cake must be made in the canton of Zug, with kirsch from the region, according to controlled specifications.
Flavors of Switzerland
The solid chocolate bar that made Switzerland a world reference from the 19th century onward, with mechanized production by Cailler, Daniel Peter’s milk chocolate in Vevey, and Rodolphe Lindt’s conching in Bern.
Melted cheese with white wine in a caquelon, kept warm over a burner, into which each person dips bread cubes on a long fork. Promoted as a national dish from the 1930s onward, it is served across Switzerland in the cold months.
Hard honey biscuit with almonds, hazelnuts, candied orange and lemon peel and kirsch, covered by a thin layer of sugar. Mentioned in Basel at least since 1711, it is the city’s most closely associated sweet specialty.
Large platter with several cooked and smoked meats and sausages, served over sauerkraut and green beans, with potatoes. It is the festive dish of Bernese cuisine, traditionally linked to the victory at Neuenegg in 1798.
Grated potato patty fried in butter until a golden crust forms on both sides. It was the breakfast of peasants in the German-speaking part of Switzerland, including the canton of Bern, and became a symbol of German-speaking Switzerland, even lending its name to the Röstigraben.
Dry, crunchy meringues served with Gruyère crème double, a thick cream with at least 45% fat. The quintessential dessert of the Bénichon feast, it is one of the symbols of the Gruyère region in the canton of Fribourg.
Chocolate cauldron bearing the coat of arms of Geneva, filled with marzipan vegetables and sweets, which is broken at the end of the Escalade celebration in December. It recalls the legend of Mère Royaume and the defense of the city on the night of December 11–12, 1602.
Shortcrust pastry tart, closed on top, filled with chopped walnuts coated in caramel and cream. It is the best-known sweet specialty of Graubünden, linked to pastry chefs who emigrated from the Engadine to work elsewhere in Europe.
Chard leaf rolls filled with spätzli-like dough and Bündnerfleisch (air-dried beef) or local salami, cooked in broth and milk and gratinated with cheese. Emblematic dish of Graubünden, originating in the Surselva, with as many recipes as there are families.
Puff-pastry dome filled with veal, meatballs, mushrooms and raisins in a creamy sauce. It’s named for the city and canton of Lucerne and is also called Fritschipastete, after the local carnival figure.
Dense cake made from day-old bread soaked in milk, with cocoa, amaretti, raisins, pine nuts and often a splash of grappa. Born from a desire not to waste bread, it is considered the quintessential Ticino sweet and every family has its own recipe.
Half a wheel of cheese held close to the fire, with the melted part scraped onto the plate and served with boiled potatoes in their skins, pickled cornichons and pearl onions. It originated in Valais and was presented as a Valais national dish in 1909.
Distilled from wormwood, anise, and fennel, green or colorless, served diluted with cold water and turning cloudy when mixed. Production began in the Val-de-Travers, in the canton of Neuchâtel, at the end of the 18th century, and it was banned in Switzerland from 1910 to 2005.
Rustic purée of leek and potato cooked in water and white wine, served with saucisse aux choux, a smoked pork-and-cabbage sausage. It is the best-known culinary specialty of the canton of Vaud and is part of its intangible heritage.
A mixture of soaked rolled oats, grated apple, walnuts or almonds, lemon and milk, created around 1900 by physician Maximilian Bircher-Benner for patients at his clinic in Zurich. It gave rise to the muesli eaten worldwide.
Thin strips of veal sautéed and served in a cream, white wine and mushroom sauce. It’s the dish Zurich residents name first when talking about the city’s cuisine, almost always accompanied by rösti.
