Mozartkugel, invented more than 125 years ago, is a small, spherical chocolate filled with a marzipan center and layers of pistachio and nougat. To make the balls completely round, confectioners place the bonbon on a wooden stick and dip it in the final layer of bittersweet chocolate, filling the hole left by the stick with chocolate as well. Each individually wrapped Mozartkugel is surrounded by a colorful blue-and-silver foil wrapper, depicting a portrait of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart himself.
Invented in 1890 by confectioner Paul Fürst as an homage to the composer, the candy, like Mozart himself, was born in Salzburg, Austria. Fürst’s bonbons are still produced by hand in Salzburg, where the family company is now run by the fifth generation of Fürsts.
Paul Fürst never patented his product, so today, a number confectioners make a version of the original, and some even call their chocolate orbs mozartkugeln. But only the Fürst company can label their product “Original Salzburg Mozartkugeln.” Look for this distinction as well as the signature blue-and-silver profile of Mozart himself.
