I’ve had this photo for a while, and I finally dared ask hubby… “What on earth is this?” I find it to be a wholly disturbing baked good. He looked at me as if I was the crazy one and simply told me: “It’s Krampus.”
Aha. Now I see it. The horns, the bunch of birch rods it carries to beat the children with… it’s definitely Krampus. It’s actually pretty impressive. But then the question… why?
I’ve already mentioned Austria’s disturbing tradition of Krampus, whereby on the night of December 5th, Krampus come to terrify small children and beat them with sticks if they haven’t behaved during the year. In contrast, on the 6th, Saint Nicholas delivers sweet treats to those who have been good.
So now I’m confused, because since I’ve been in Austria, at this time of year I’ve been gifted with both an evil Krampus baked good, and a delicious Saint Nicholas chocolate. Does that mean I’ve been naughty or nice during the year?
Well, I guess it’s just good to cover all bases. And hey, sweet treats, be they naughty or nice, are always welcome in our home!
an aussie in austria 
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