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Mutzen

Rhenish deep-fried pastry for Carnival and New Year's Eve — diamond-shaped dough fried golden in hot oil and dusted with powdered sugar.

The spelling Mutzen exists alongside the variant Muze(n). In the Rhineland, this pastry is firmly tied to recurring festive periods throughout the year.

At a glance

Type
Rhenish deep-fried pastry
Occasions
Carnival and New Year's Eve
Basic ingredients
flour, eggs, sugar, flavorings
Regions
Greater Cologne area, Lower Rhine, Middle Rhine, Bergisches Land, Eifel

Preparation

The dough is made firm and rolled out thin. Diamond shapes are cut from the sheet and fried in hot oil until golden. They are typically finished with a dusting of powdered sugar.

© me · CC BY-SA 3.0

Distinguishing from similar pastries

Colloquially, Mutzenmandeln are sometimes also called Mutzen, even though they are a distinct product. In Thuringia and the Ore Mountains, the name Mutzen additionally refers to Schmalzgreben, which are likewise something different.

© user:Traitor · CC BY-SA 3.0

Gallery

© user:Traitor · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Commons
© Andreas Kosmehl · CC BY 3.0 · Commons

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Auto-generated, last verified: 2026-09-23

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