Dutch tradition: Spiced speculaas biscuits on warm winter tables
Thin, crispy, and spicy, biscuits are the perfect accompaniment to coffee or tea on a chilly winter day. At least, that's what the Dutch believe, as they can't imagine this time of year without speculaas. It's worth seeing if they're right.
Biscuits baked in the shapes of various animals, human figures, St. Nicholas, windmills, houses, or rectangles with ornaments are undoubtedly one of the symbols of the Netherlands. Their history dates back to the 17th century and is linked to the Dutch East India Company, which held a monopoly on importing spices from Asia for decades. This made cinnamon, cloves, or nutmeg, once available only to the wealthiest, widely accessible.
Dutch pastry chefs eagerly embraced these spices, best exemplified by speculaas biscuits, initially baked mainly for Sinterklaas, celebrated in the Netherlands on 5th December, the eve of St. Nicholas Day. Later, these treats started to appear on tables during the Christmas season as well.
Their shape often held symbolic meanings, such as a pig symbolising a warning against greed, while a woman in long trousers symbolised authoritarianism. Decorated with icing and nuts, speculaas are sometimes given by young men to their sweethearts as gifts.
Today, spicy biscuits are available year-round and can be bought in numerous bakeries and delis. The residents of the Netherlands love to nibble on them with coffee or tea, although they also serve well as an addition to ice cream, especially creamy and vanilla flavours.
What's inside them
The ingredients for speculaas biscuits are not complicated. To prepare them, you'll need wheat flour, butter, eggs, and sugar, preferably cane sugar, which gives the biscuits a nice colour. Muscovado works great as it has a caramel-honey taste and a fairly sticky consistency.
Of course, traditional Dutch treats must include spices: cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, white pepper, ginger, and cardamom. They not only enhance the taste and aroma of the biscuits but also increase their nutritional value.
Cloves can help with hypertension and also lower blood sugar and "bad" LDL cholesterol. Cinnamon is a treasure trove of polyphenols, which neutralise the harmful effects of free radicals, responsible for accelerating the ageing process and the development of many diseases. Ginger improves blood circulation, aids digestion, and soothes nausea. Nutmeg contains a hallucinogenic substance called myristicin, making the spice calming and soothing, aiding sleep. Cardamom exhibits antidepressant properties – the essential oils in it effectively alleviate sadness and depression.
You can easily buy ready-made spice mixes for speculaas in Dutch stores, but you can also prepare them yourself. Just mix cinnamon (4 teaspoons) with nutmeg and cloves (1 teaspoon each), white pepper, ginger, and cardamom (0.5 teaspoons each). Of course, all spices should be powdered.
Online, you can buy special wooden moulds for speculaas in various shapes and with various ornaments. However, regular biscuits or gingerbread cutters will also work.
Recipe for speculaas
Cream soft butter (about 250 grams) with brown sugar (440 grams) until light and fluffy. Add two eggs and mix thoroughly.
Combine wheat flour (about 400 grams), spice mix (2.5 tablespoons), baking soda (2.5 teaspoons), and salt (1 teaspoon), then add to the butter mixture. Mix until the dough starts pulling away from the bowl's sides. Then divide it into two parts, wrap each half in plastic wrap, and place it in the fridge for a few hours, preferably overnight.
The next day, remove the first portion of the dough and leave it at room temperature for half an hour. When it's flexible enough, roll it out quite thinly to about 3 millimetres thick. Cut shapes with a cutter or press the dough into speculaas moulds.
Place the biscuits on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and bake in an oven preheated to about 175°C. Bake for 10-12 minutes until lightly golden.
Repeat the same with the second portion of dough.
