722 replies to this topic

[Chufi]

Hi!
I'm so happy I found this thread! My Boyfriend's family is dutch.  we were in holland with them last year for a bit, and had so much fun getting to taste the food, we can't wait to try your recipes!

We've been looking for a good recipe for a soup we tried in Gronigen (sp?) that we were told was called Mustard Soup. . . does this ring any bells?

thanks again, keep up the great work!

Well, it took me a couple of weeks, but here it is: Groningse mosterdsoep, Mustardsoup from Groningen.

They key to this soup is using the right kind of mustard and a light, but good flavored stock.
The Dutch mustard is coarsely ground, with whole mustardseeds, and more sweet than hot. It looks like this:



What you´ll need for 2:

500 ml. stock, hot
25 grams butter
25 grams flour
The white part of 1 small leek, chopped
A couple of slices of smoked bacon, chopped
Mustard, 2-3 tablespoons
2 tablespoons heavy cream
Salt and pepper


Melt the butter in a heavy-bottomed pan. Add the flour and stir over low heat for a minute. Add the hot stock, whisk until smooth, and let simmer over low heat for about 10-15 minutes.
In the meantime, fry the bacon and leeks. If the bacon is very lean, add a little knob of butter to the fryingpan. You want the bacon and leeks to get soft and slightly caramellized.

After the 10-15 minutes, whisk the cream and mustard into the soup. (After this, don´t let the soup boil again). Start with 2 tablespoons of mustard and add more if you like. Taste and adjust salt and pepper.



Serve in shallow bowls with the bacon/leek garnish spooned on top.

Ofcourse you could use other garnishes. Chives are nice, as is tarragon. Chopped panfried mushrooms are also very good.

Edited by Chufi, 20 July 2007 - 11:11 AM.

[Mirandar]

That's it! Thank you for the recipe and the lovely pictures, such happy memories of holland!

[KitchenQueen]

I have only one question.

Why on earth has Chufi not published a cookbook?

I would not care in the least what it cost. I'd buy one for me and one for every person I care for.

Her talents are being wasted when people not on this site don't know about her.

This woman is a treasure and needs to be shared.

Let me rephrase that with apologies to Chufi's husband.

[JTravel]

I agree, what a treasure Chufi is, and this thread is. I have read the whole thing, most of it in anticipation of some time in Amsterdam in July. We did the barge trip from Brugge to Amsterdam. Good food from a German cook, cooking "local". First meal we had started with a mustard soup....which is where you've ended. It was very good though I would have enjoyed it more as lunch than as first course, it didn't go with wine.
Thanks for all the insights into Dutch cooking, it made my trip so much more enjoyable.

[Mirandar]

So I made the mustard soup this weekend for my boyfriends oma and family! We made a whole feast, actually, using many of your lovely recipes and keeping many of your insights in mind!

We began with french fries, which i wrapped in little parchment paper cones, served with mayonnaise of course! then bitterballen, followed by that lovely mustard soup. The leek and bacon garnish really was a perfect touch.

Dinner was stamppot with the butter braised delicousness of beef, and the little crunchy cookie that i can't spell (spekkelok?)

Anyway, thank you for all your work! His oma was absolutely thrilled beyond belief.

[Chufi]

KitchenQueen and JTravel, thank you so much for your kind words. You're making me blush and smile (see?)

Believe me, I'm thinking of turning this into a book. I need just a little bit more time, and maybe a publisher who believes in me would help too if it ever gets to that point you all will be the first to know.

Mirandar, I am so glad your dinner went well! What a great idea to serve the fries and bitterballen as a starter.

I am puzzled about the cookie though. Spekkoek (Indonesian layer cake) is not a crunchy cookie, so I'm really curious what you made!

[spaghetttti]

Klary, could it be that Mirandar made your yummy spekulaas cookies?

[Chufi]

ofcourse! I'm sure she did.
Nice to see you spaghettti...

[Mirandar]

thats' the one! I didn't make them though, we used the store bought variety, because Oma keeps everyone with cupboards full of them, so it was a good opportunity to eat them up!

[curlylocks]

Chufi, Was just wondering if you have a recipe for Kletskoppen (I think that is the name of the biscuit) They are also called Peanut Snaps on the packet. My father loves them but they cost quite a bit to get the ones imported from Holland so I thought I would surprise him with some as a father's day present. If you could help me with a recipe for them that would be fantastic.

Cheers and keep those dutch recipes coming we LOVE them
Tina

[Chufi]

Chufi, Was just wondering if you have a recipe for Kletskoppen (I think that is the name of the biscuit) They are also called Peanut Snaps on the packet.  My father loves them but they cost quite a bit to get the ones imported from Holland so I thought I would surprise him with some as a father's day present.  If you could help me with a recipe for them that would be fantastic.

Cheers and keep those dutch recipes coming we LOVE them
Tina

the recipe for kletskoppen is here (I made them with almonds but you can substitute peanuts!)

[christine007]

Klary, Just thanks again for your lovely, informative blog. My zuchinni are ripe and I'm going to make the fritters you introduced me to last year. Cannot wait.

Edited by christine007, 11 August 2007 - 06:36 PM.

[JTravel]

When I have told friends at home about the Belgium/Netherlands cruise I always tell them that the Dutch bacon alone was worth the price of the trip. It was always VERY brown/black.....looked burned for sure. But it was crisp and porky, and smokey and perfect. We just don't find taste like that. A bit of that crumbled on the soup or anything savory would make the dish.
In addition the hams and cheeses were fabulous. Never had ham and cheese sandwiches been so tasty. We tasted 2 cheeses each evening, and really liked the Delft Blue (though others found it too mild) and the Old Amsterdam.

[markemorse]

hey klary....

i have a tiny request: could you in future recipes maybe include the dutch name of your cuts of meat and/or fish? stewing veal, smoked bacon, etc. I know these specifically have been adressed already (I think), but in any case, it would be helpful for those of us playing along in the netherlands.

or i can just keep PMing you every time

thanks!!!

Edited by markemorse, 19 August 2007 - 03:50 AM.

[pennylane]

Dutch applepie is usually made with selfraising flour, which produces a light, crumbly crust. The filling is rather dry and firm, with recognizable slices of apple. Not much liquid. (which is maybe why so many people prefer a large serving of whipped cream with their pie..)

The traditional apple to use is the goudreinette, which I think is known abroad as Belle de Boskoop. It is a large, tart, crisp apple that doesn't fall apart when cooked in the pie.

For the crust:

300 grams selfraising flour
200 grams soft butter
150 grams sugar
pinch of salt
1 egg

For the filling
ca. 1 kilo tart apples (unprepared weight)
50 grams (vanilla) sugar
50 grams raisins
2 tablespoons of sucade
1 - 2 teaspoons cinnamon
oatmeal or breadcrumbs, if necessary

1 beaten egg to glaze
1 springform tin 22 cm, buttered and floured

Preheat oven to 175 C / 350 F.
Mix all the ingredients for the dough together and use about 3/4 to line the springformtin. The dough will be sticky and a bit hard to handle, the easiest way to get it into the tin is to put clumps of it on the bottom, and then use your fingers (dipping them in cold water every now and then to prevent sticking) or the back of a spoon (ditto) to spread it evenly over the bottom and sides.



Peel, core and quarter the apples and slice them thinly. Mix with the other filling ingredients and put in the tin (If you use apples that will collapse during cooking and will shed a lot of liquid, put a handful of breadcrumbs or a layer of oatmeal on the bottom before putting in the filing).
Roll the leftover dough into thin strips with your hands, and use them to make a lattice pattern on top of the filling.  Glaze with the beaten egg.


Bake for about 50 minutes at 175 C / 350 F, or until golden brown and risen. Don't overbake or it will be dry.

Hey Chufi, I made your apple pie for Thanksgiving! I wanted to take a picture but we've finished it all already (just the two of us)!

I actually did have some problems, though. The dough just wouldn't come together - it was too dry. I was thinking that maybe I was supposed to cream the butter and sugar together and then add the egg and flour? Because I cut the butter into the flour and sugar and added the egg afterwards. But I still had no dough to speak of. I had to add water, and tons of it, to get that slightly sticky texture shown in your picture.

And then I had another problem baking it (I'm hopeless, I know). I took the pie out of the oven after half an hour because it had already turned that beautiful golden brown colour and I was afraid of it getting dry, as you warned. But when I cut into it later, the dough at the bottom was completely raw! I guess I should have baked it the full 50 minutes. The thing is, the crust on the sides and top was really delicious. So this morning I just put it back in the oven and finished it off!

Thanks for this wonderful recipe!

Oh yeah, and I used the same apples you recommended - you're right, those are some great apples for pie, and even for eating plain!

[Chufi]

pennylane:
I am honored that Dutch applepie was on your Thanksgiving table!

about the dough: Flours can be so different, I'm sorry you had problems, but adding water was a good idea.
You have to use VERY soft butter though, or even melted and cooled butter. That makes it easier to get that sticky texture.

[Paul Stanley]

Since we are praising the pie, I should say I made it a couple of weeks ago for my mother's birthday party, and it was sensationally good and easy.

My dough was fine. Good and soft. So soft in fact that it was quite hard to roll out those snakes for the top as my hand warmed it up. But it all worked out beautifully. I agree pennylane's problems may have been with ingredients. There are so many little differences (US flour a bit harder, US butter a bit wetter, US eggs a little smaller) that collectively can make quite a difference.

[Cadbury]

Since we are praising the pie, I should say I made it a couple of weeks ago for my mother's birthday party, and it was sensationally good and easy.

My dough was fine. Good and soft. So soft in fact that it was quite hard to roll out those snakes for the top as my hand warmed it up. But it all worked out beautifully. I agree pennylane's problems may have been with ingredients. There are so many little differences (US flour a bit harder, US butter a bit wetter, US eggs a little smaller) that collectively can make quite a difference.

I think you're right about variations in ingredients. I've not had any problems with making Klary's apple pie, except that very soft butter can actually be too soft in an Australian kitchen and can result in a slightly oily pie. The next pie with slightly cooler butter was much better.

[pennylane]

I think you're right about variations in ingredients.  I've not had any problems with making Klary's apple pie, except that very soft butter can actually be too soft in an Australian kitchen and can result in a slightly oily pie.  The next pie with slightly cooler butter was much better.

Well, if we are still analysing the pie, can I just ask one question, please? Is one supposed to cream the butter and sugar, then add the egg and then the flour? Because I cut the butter into the dry ingredients, then added the egg (and water), and I was thinking that could have been part of the problem?

[Chufi]

I think you're right about variations in ingredients.  I've not had any problems with making Klary's apple pie, except that very soft butter can actually be too soft in an Australian kitchen and can result in a slightly oily pie.  The next pie with slightly cooler butter was much better.

Well, if we are still analysing the pie, can I just ask one question, please? Is one supposed to cream the butter and sugar, then add the egg and then the flour? Because I cut the butter into the dry ingredients, then added the egg (and water), and I was thinking that could have been part of the problem?

pennylane: if your butter is soft enough, you should be able to just mix everything together. However, because you say you ´cut the butter into the sugar´, I think that was the problem: the butter should be so soft that there´s no question of cutting it! My mom used to melt the butter and then let it cool, but that makes the dough very very sticky indeed so that´s why I stipulated soft butter instead.
I hope this helps. It does make one wonder about recipe writing doesn´t it? How soft is soft butter, how sticky is sticky dough?

[pennylane]

pennylane: if your butter is soft enough, you should be able to just mix everything together. However, because you say you ´cut the butter into the sugar´, I think that was the problem: the butter should be so soft that there´s no question of cutting it! My mom used to melt the butter and then let it cool, but that makes the dough very very sticky indeed so that´s why I stipulated soft butter instead.
I hope this helps. It does make one wonder about recipe writing doesn´t it? How soft is soft butter, how sticky is sticky dough? 

Thanks, Chufi! I know my butter wasn't soft enough. Just wasn't sure about that and thought it better to err on the side of too-cold butter as that's what's usually used in pie crusts. But I think my flour tends to be really dry as well so next time I'll go with your mom's method of melting the butter beforehand - that should do the trick!

[shelly59]

Chufi,

LOVE all of your recipes and have put several of them into regular rotation in my house, much to the delight of people who eat there :-)

I recently had a very sweet-spicy-fruity cookie called a leckerli. It was part of a gift basket of gourmet cookies. A friend of mine's mom said that it was Dutch, so I thought I would come here and ask about it. It was very sweet & spicy, filled with candied fruit and was in a bar-shape. Are they Dutch? Are they difficult to make?

Much thanks for all of your help and insights, they are invaluable.

[Chufi]

Chufi,

  LOVE all of your recipes and have put several of them into regular rotation in my house, much to the delight of people who eat there :-)

  I recently had a very sweet-spicy-fruity cookie called a leckerli. It was part of a gift basket of gourmet cookies. A friend of mine's mom said that it was Dutch, so I thought I would come here and ask about it.  It was very sweet & spicy, filled with candied fruit and was in a bar-shape.  Are they Dutch? Are they difficult to make?

Much thanks for all of your help and insights, they are invaluable.

Thanks shelly59

about your cookies: I´ve never heard of them, and the name sounds German, not Dutch... I googled them and found them here: laeckerli. Apparently a famous cookie from Basel, Switzerland. There´s a recipe here! Hope that helps!

[shelly59]

THat certainly looks like them,and the ingredients would make a cookie similar to what I had. Much thanks!!


FYI - I have a nice big pot of pea soup, your recipe, of course, simmering on my stove right now. Yummmm!!

[pennylane]

Just thought you might like to know, Chufi, that this thread is what inspired me to finally become a member after years of lurking!

Haven't tried any of the recipes yet, but believe it or not that buttermilk pap thing is actually quite high on my list... along with the magnificent apple pie of course!

Thanks pennylane! I'm pretty sure you'll be the first person to try the buttermilkpap
I actually have a bit of a craving for some right now! Wit lots of syrup, ofcourse

Well, I did try the buttermilk pap! I messed it up badly, though. I made sure not to let it boil but the heat must still have been too high - it split. Oh well, I will try again soon, although I am also planning to make those gouda cheese balls and the vlaai!

[helenjp]

A friend of mine's mom said that it was Dutch,

That puzzled me for ages too, until I figured out that many people mean something like "Pennsylvania Dutch" = Deutsch = German! So "Dutch" apple cake" is really "Apple Cake with German-style dough"!

[Chufi]

Just as popular as the oliebollen are these appelbeignets - applefritters. You will often see them erroneously labelled as appelflappen, but those are puffpastries filled with apple (like apple turnovers). The applebeignet, traditional New Years Eve fare, is a fritter consisting of an appleslice, dipped into yeasted batter and deepfried.

250 grams flour
pinch of salt
2 tablespoons vanillasugar
400 ml. milk
1 tablespoon butter
half of a 7 gram sachet instant yeast
apples: I used 4 huge ones. Choose a tart apple that will keep its shape when cooked.
oil for deep frying
flour for dusting
cinnamonsugar for dusting



Whisk flour, salt, yeast and vanillasugar together in a large bowl. In a small saucepan, heat the milk with the butter. When the butter has melted, let the milk cool to lukewarm. Pour the colled milk into the flour mixture and mix till you have a smooth batter. Cover the bowl and set aside to rise for about an hour, after which the batter should be puffy and almost doubled in volume.




Core, peel and slice your apples.


When ready to fry, heat the oil in a suitable pan (I used my cast iron wok today, which I like to use for deepfrying) to 180 C.

Just before frying, lightly coat the appleslices with flour. Then, dip them into the batter, moving them around to make sure the whole surface of the appleslice is coated with batter. Drop the coated slices into the hot oil and fry, a couple at a time, until puffy and golden brown on one side. Turn them over and cook some more until golden brown all over. Lift from the oil and drain on paper towels. immediately after frying, while they are still hot, dust them with a thick layer of cinnamonsugar.





These are delicious warm, but I also like them cold and I have to say they make a great breakfast treat for the Morning After.



Thank you, everyone who has been making the recipes, giving me feedback, encouraging me and sharing your thoughts. All your kind words have meant a lot to me. I hope to put up some more recipes in 2008, but for now: a very happy New Year to all you wonderful eGulleters all around the world!

Edited by Chufi, 31 December 2007 - 08:57 AM.

[Abra]

Yum! We had oliebollen at a party last night, and brought home a couple of leftover ones to warm for breakfast this morning. But your beignets look totally irresistable, even so.

[Shaya]

These beignets look incredible. I must try them soon.

[MikeyMike]

Made a big pot of Snert last weekend. Sorry, no pictures but the soup was great.