American Sweets

Pancakes are apparently seen as a dessert here in Germany. At every festival and concession stand are crepes and waffles. If you go to a restaurant for breakfast in Germany, they often have a Parisian breakfast (croissants, juice, and coffee), a Norwegian breakfast (an assortment of smoked fish and bread), and “American Sweets” (pancakes and waffles).

Now, I’ve always considered both pancakes and waffles to be entirely breakfast foods (well, besides a waffle ice cream sandwich), but here these are desserts. And if they are offered at breakfast time, they are labeled “American.” I like to think of Germans scratching their heads in wonder. Why do these crazy Americans eat dessert for breakfast? And, I mean, they’re not wrong. We eat flat carb cakes covered with fat and additional sugar and call it a balanced breakfast. (Not that Parisians are any better. I think the only reason a Parisian breakfast works for Parisians is that they’re going to eat enough calories for an entire day in foie gras for Elevenses.)

In German grocery stores, you can find precooked, prepackaged pancakes like this:

So if you’re wondering what legacy we Americans are leaving on the German population, it’s that we like to eat dessert for breakfast.