To the list of warm Viennese desserts like Mohr im Hemd and Palatschinken one can add Wiener Wäschermädeln: hulled apricots, filled with marzipan, dipped in batter and deep-fried in hot oil. The name Wäschermädel, a young laundress, probably relates to the dessert's round form, which to those who christened the dessert reminded them of the city's jolly Wäschermädeln who, from the mid-eighteenth until the end of the nineteenth century, were a fixture of Viennese life, traipsing the city with baskets of clothes on their backs. At the time, the idea or image of the Wäschermädel was associated with feelings of genuineness and naivety, quick-wittedness and a zest for life, another reason why the laundress had her name attached to this sweet, fun dessert. It was, in a certain sense, an evocation of the Viennese's love for the friendly, humble laundry girl.
The Wäschermädel and its cousin, the Schlosserbub, which is a prune plum whose pit has been replaced by an almond, are made in much the same way. The apricots are first washed, dried, and hulled. The stone is replaced by an equally-sized piece of marzipan that has first been swimming in a little apricot brandy or schnapps. The apricots are then coated in a batter. The base for the batter is made from flour, egg yolks, salt, lemon zest, and one of either milk, wine, or beer, into which the whites, first whipped to stiff peaks, are folded for lightness. The battered apricots are then deep-fried in oil heated to somewhere between 160 and 180 C until golden brown. Wäschermädeln are usually served with custard, dusted with icing sugar.
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