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Local legend has it that marzipan was invented in Lübeck during the great medieval famine. According to the story, a local baker ran out of grain for bread and, in desperation, began experimenting with the only four ingredients he had: almonds, sugar, rose water, and eggs. The result was a sweet almond paste known today as marzipan. The story is more fiction than fact; it is generally agreed that marzipan's true origins lie in the Middle East. Lübecker Marzipan, an appellation that has been trademarked, is now considered among the best in the world. Any marzipan that uses the appellation Lübecker must be made within the city limits.
Lübeck's most famous marzipan maker, Niederegger, sells the delicacy molded into a multitude of imaginative forms at its Konditorei-Café flagship store. Upstairs is a small museum about marzipan, as well as some life-size marzipan figures.
