Paashaasjes

Easter is coming! And with that, we get ready to plan the biggest meal of the weekend: Easter breakfast/brunch with the family! Pretty bread rolls and pastries, cold cuts, sweet bread toppings, egg dishes, juices, and loads and loads of coffee and tea, of course. After which the kids go for the egg hunt, and the adults remain at the table, picking at things, talking about (what else) the weather, and having another cup of coffee. Gezellig!

And we don't celebrate Easter once, we celebrate it twice! That's right - when the rest of the world is going back to work on Monday, the Dutch take another day off and celebrate what is known as Tweede Paasdag, Second Easter Day! Many government offices and most stores will continue to be closed that day, but it's a great day for taking a stroll along the beach or in the forest, visiting one of the theme parks that the country is rich, and for finishing up the leftovers of the previous day's lavish breakfast or brunch.

One highlight of the Easter brunch is the variety of breads: croissants, crunchy rolls, sliced loaves that tend to be a bit more luxurious than what usually comes to the table. You'll find a similar bread to the Kerststol, an almond paste filled fruit bread called Paasstol, or a Paasbrood in the stores, and the bakers will have a great selection of Easter-inspired pastries, cookies, bonbons, cakes and more.

Here at the Dutch Table, we've been making our own Paashaasjes, Easter bunnies, for every Easter brunch. These bread bunnies are a great way of combining bread and eggs into one, and they're a great favorite with the kids as well as adults. The dough is savory, not sweet, so combines well with the hard-boiled egg. They come in various shapes: these ones are our own design.

Paashaasjes
4 cups flour (500 gr.)
1 cup warm milk or water (236 ml)
1/2 cup buttermilk (118 ml)
2 teaspoons active dry yeast
1 teaspoon salt
6 small eggs, rinsed and dry
18 dark raisins or currants
1 egg, beaten well

Mix the warm milk or water and buttermilk, sprinkle the yeast on top and let it proof for several minutes. The yeast should start to form bubbles and create foam on the liquid. Add the flour to a bowl or mixer, pour in the yeasty milk and knead for several minutes. Add the salt and continue to knead until the dough comes together into a ball and pulls away from the sides of the bowl. (If you're a heavy scooper, you may need to add a little bit of liquid for it to come together). Knead the dough on the counter for a couple of minutes, then cover and rest it in a greased bowl, at room temperature, and let it rise until double.

Punch down the dough and divide it into six equal parts, rolling each into a ball. Relax the dough for five minutes, covered, then roll into ovals of approximately 6 to 7 inches long with the help of a rolling pin. With a sharp knife or with scissors, make a cut of about two inches length-wise in the top of the dough: those will be the ears. Make a similar cut one inch on each side of the ear at an angle, and then cut back at an angle (see picture above, that's easier than trying to explain it!).

Put three raisins (two for the eyes, one for the nose) where the face is going to be. Stretch both of those arms a bit, put a raw egg in the shell (the egg will be hard-boiled when it comes out of the oven) on its tummy and fold the arms over. Place the bunnies on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat. Cover and let rise in a warm place until puffy. Push the raisins in just a bit so that they'll cook in the dough and not on top, as they may come off. Right before going in the oven, brush the bunnies with the egg wash, and press a toothpick in sideways to mark the whiskers, the ears and the paws.

Bake at 375F (190C) for about 20 minutes or until golden.

This will make six bunnies.



Bananensoes

So here I am, boasting how easy it was to make the Bossche bollen, how yummie they were and did I say how easy it was to make them, when somebody said: you should make those with banana pudding inside!
I'll be darned! We have something called bananensoes in Holland which is similar to a Bossche bol but with, yeah you guessed it, bananas. Check this out!

In this case I didn't add real bananas to the whipped cream because I had no intention to cutting the bol open, quite honestly for fear that the whole thing would collapse. But usually the bananensoes is an elongated éclair-esque pastry, with whipped cream and slices of fresh banana in the middle, topped with a white chocolate glaze colored yellow with food coloring and finished with brown chocolate drizzle (I'm sure there is a technical term for this but it eludes me this second).

Instead of splitting up the dough into two or four, I just made one whopping big soes. Just because.

Bananensoes
1/3 cup of flour
1/3 cup of water
2 tablespoons of butter
1 egg, beaten
pinch of salt

1/2 cup of white chocolate chips
1 tablespoon of water
1 drop of yellow food coloring

1/2 cup of whipping cream
2 tablespoons of sugar
1 tablespoon of banana cream pudding mix

1/4 cup of semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 teaspoon of water

Heat the water and the butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Bring to a boil, then take off the stove. Add the flour and stir until it all comes together in a ball. Throw in the pinch of salt, stir in the egg and continue to stir until the dough has absorbed all the egg and is a homogenous whole.

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper, divide the dough in four (for smaller bollen) or in two (for decent sized ones) and place it on top of the parchment. Bake in an 375F degree oven for about 20-25 minutes or until puffy and golden. Cool on a rack.

In the meantime, beat the whipping cream, the sugar and the banana pudding mix until it's stiff. Fill a pastry bag with small tip and poke through the bottom of the soes. Fill with whipped cream. Heat the chocolate chips and the tablespoon of water in the microwave (30 seconds on medium), stir until the chocolate has melted and the sauce has come together. Let it cool for about 10 minutes, add the food coloring, then carefully take the cream-filled bananensoes and dip, head first, into the chocolate. If you don't want to get your hands dirty, just set the soes on a rack and slowly pour the chocolate over the top, one spoonful at a time. Prepare the dark chocolate sauce the same way and drizzle over the bananensoes.

Cool in the fridge for about 20 minutes or until the chocolate is solid and everything has had a chance to firm up a bit.


Bossche Bollen

Anytime we travel by train in the Netherlands, I always check to see if, by chance, Den Bosch station is on the route. Ever since I found out that the pastry store of Jan de Groot is right outside the station, I try to stop in and have their signature pastry: the Bossche bol. I take my research very seriously! ;-) Their iconic pastries are like chocolate eclairs but bigger, fluffier, rounder, with better chocolate and much more cream. These Bossche beauties have made the city of 's Hertogenbosch famous (or is it the other way around?) and are the number one pastry that is served with a fork and knife* and a handful of napkins. Because there is no way, just like with the tompouce, that you will not end up with whipped cream on your lap, on your tie or blouse, and on your fingers. And that is just the charm of these bollen.

Now, these come together fairly quickly and are not all that hard to make, so give it a try! And if they don't come out looking exactly the same as Jan de Groot's - not to worry. Practice makes perfect - and it's better to have a funny shaped Bossche bol than no Bossche bol. Right? Right!

Bossche Bollen
For the dough:
1/2 cup (125 ml) water
3 tablespoons (50 grams) butter
Pinch of salt
1/2 cup (75 grams) all-purpose flour
2 eggs, beaten

For the filling:
1 cup (250 ml) whipping cream
2 large tablespoons powdered sugar

For the glaze:
1/3 cup (75 ml) whipping cream
1 cup (125 grams) semi-sweet chocolate chips


Heat the water and the butter and a pinch of salt in a saucepan over medium heat. Bring to a boil, then take off the stove. Add the flour and stir until it all comes together in a ball. Let it cool a little bit (just a few minutes), then stir in the eggs a few spoonfuls at a time, and continue to stir until the dough has absorbed all the egg and is a homogenous whole.

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper, divide the dough in four and place it on top of the parchment. Bake in a 375F/190C degree oven for about 20-25 minutes or until puffy and golden. Cool on a rack. As they cool, they will deflate some, but not to worry. 

In the meantime, beat the whipping cream and the sugar until stiff. Fill a pastry bag with a small tip and poke through the bottom of the bol. Cup the pastry, bottom up, in your hand, and fill with whipped cream. It will puff up nicely and give a round shape to the pastry.

Heat the cream on the stove to boiling, then pull it off the heat and stir in the chocolate chips. Let them melt, and stir the whole thing into a sauce. Let it cool for about 10 minutes or until lukewarm, then carefully take the cream-filled Bossche bol and dip, head first, into the chocolate. If you don't want to get your hands dirty, just set the bollen on a rack and slowly pour the chocolate over the top, one spoonful at a time. I have had the best luck with pouring over, for an even coating. 

Cool in the fridge for about 20 minutes or until the chocolate is solid and everything has had a chance to firm up a bit. Enjoy with a nice cup of coffee and some good company. And keep those napkins handy!



And this is what happens when you turn your back for a moment and somebody else is with you in the kitchen.......Needless to say, the Bossche bol is messy enough to easily identify the culprit, although I wasn't sure if the whipped cream on their chin or the cheesy grin on their face gave them away. Both, I guess!

* purists will shudder at the thought of being given a knife and fork! They turn the pastry upside down and just bite into it. 

Tijgerbollen

Tiger rolls, tiger bread, or Dutch crunch are a typical and traditional Dutch bread. When I grew up, it would mostly appear as a luxury bread on weekends, or during special holiday breakfasts or brunches, such as Easter or Christmas. I am not sure why it's called tiger bread, although I assume because it has a rather exotic looking crust, but it could just as well have been called giraffe bread or leopard bread. But tiger bread it is, so that's what we'll call it!  The unique crust is achieved by spreading a rice flour and yeast paste on the bread dough. As the bread rises, the crust splits into separate crunchy little morsels. Eat these rolls warm out of the oven or re-heated: the crust will have a pleasant crunch and the taste will be optimal. For a richer dough, you can use milk instead of water. 

© Maas en Scheldebode 14 June 1901 pg.8

The earliest advertisement that I was able to find stems from 1901, where master baker Wessels from 
Sommelsdijk (Zuid-Holland) announces the availability of "tijgerbrood" daily, but no information whatsoever as to where it came from, who invented it, or how it came about. One source online suggests that it must have come from Asia, seeing as how rice flour was not used in the Netherlands. But Aaltje's cookbook from 1845 includes several recipes with rice, and rice flour, so it wasn't all that uncommon. It was however considered a bread in its own category, as many baking competitions and baker certifications had a separate category for tiger bread. 

Oh well. I will keep digging to see if I can figure it out, but in the meantime, let's bake! 


For the dough
4 cups all-purpose flour (550 gr.)
1 1/2 cup warm water (355 ml)
2 teaspoons active dry yeast (8 gr.)
1 teaspoon kosher salt (8 gr.)
1 teaspoon sugar (6 gr.)
1 tablespoon butter, melted (15 gr.)

For the crust paste
3/4 cup rice flour (100 gr.)
1/2 cup warm water (118 ml)
1 tablespoon active dry yeast (9 gr.)
1 tablespoon sugar (15 gr.)
1 tablespoon vegetable oil (15 gr.)
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt (1 gr.)

For the dough, mix the flour, salt, yeast and sugar. Add the warm water and knead until a soft dough. Add in the tablespoon of melted butter, knead together. Let rise for an hour, or until doubled, punch down and divide into equally sized rolls ( I measure mine out at approx. 3.5 oz/100 grams each)

For the crust, mix flour with water, yeast and the sugar. Stir, then add the salt and the oil. Let sit for about fifteen minutes (get a cup big enough because it will rise extensively!). Brush the rolls with the mixture, applying a layer of paste on the top and sides of the rolls. (You will not use up all the paste, somewhere up to 3/4 of the mixture - just don't spread it on too thick)

Proof the rolls for another ten minutes, then bake in a 375F oven for about 20-22 minutes or until golden brown. Best eaten the same day.




Makes nine rolls.

Saucijzenbroodjes

The fastest way to describe saucijzenbroodjes is to say they're like worstenbroodjes, sausage rolls, but fancier. Instead of bread dough encasing the ground meat sausage, a saucijzenbroodje wraps the meat in a delicate pillow of crisp, flaky puff pastry. The common worst gets bread dough, the saucijs (a fancier name for sausage, from the French saucisse) gets the buttery pastry.

It's the culinary version of a famous Dutch saying: "Er zijn werkpaarden en er zijn luxe paarden"(There are work horses and there are luxury horses). The saucijzenbroodje is definitely a luxury horse!

Saucijzenbroodjes are readily available, warm, at Dutch train stations, in fast food places and often consumed for lunch with a salad or a cup of soup. The puff pastry makes it a fairly rich treat (and a bit messy if you're eating it on the go!) but is also very versatile. This recipe makes a basic, pretty standard flavored roll, but you are welcome to add your favorite spices to the mix. How about shoarma flavors, or a spicy hint of curry? It's your choice!

This is also a great treat to share with friends at a potluck, as a snack for TV watching, or for lunch with a salad.

Saucijzenbroodjes
8 squares of 5 x 5 inches frozen puff pastry
1 lb ground beef
1 tablespoon fresh parsley, minced
1/2 teaspoon onion powder
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
Pinch of nutmeg
1 teaspoon salt
1 egg, beaten
2 tablespoons panko or bread crumbs

Lay the puff pastry squares on the counter to defrost. Mix the meat, parsley and the spices together, add half of the beaten egg and all of the breadcrumbs. Mix and roll into a large sausage. Divide it in eight equal parts and roll each one into a log, about 4.5 inches long, a little shorter than the length of the puff pastry square.

Heat the oven to 425 F. Place the sausage on one half of the pastry square, brush a little egg on the edges and fold over the other half. Press the long edge shut with a fork. After you've folded all eight pastry squares, brush the tops with the rest of the beaten egg. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper, put the saucijzenbroodjes on top and bake in the oven for approximately 20 minutes or until golden brown.

Best eaten hot or warm - keep in fridge and consume within 24 hours.


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De snelste manier om een saucijzenbroodje te beschrijven is door te zeggen dat ze op worstenbroodjes lijken, maar dan sjieker. In plaats van brooddeeg om het worstje van gehakt, omarmt het saucijzenbroodje het vlees in een broos kussen van knapperig, luchtig bladerdeeg. De gewone worst krijgt brooddeeg, de saucijs (een sjiekere naam voor worst, van het Frans saucisse) krijgt het smeuïge korstdeeg.

Het is de culinaire versie van het bekende Nederlandse spreekwoord "Er zijn werkpaarden en er zijn luxe paarden". Het saucijzenbroodje is beslist een luxe paardje!

Saucijzenbroodjes zijn kant-en-klaar verkrijgbaar, warm, op Nederlandse treinstations, in cafetarias en worden vaak gegeten tijdens het middagmaal met een salade of een kopje soep. Het bladerdeeg zorgt ervoor dat het best wel een machtige versnapering is (en kruimelt nogal als je hem uit het vuistje eet!) maar is ook vrij veelzijdig. Dit recept is voor een standaard saucijzenbroodje, maar u kunt er natuurlijk uw eigen draai aan geven. Wat dacht u van shoarma kruiden, of een pittige kerriesmaak? Kiest u maar!

Dit is ook een lekkere traktatie om te delen met vrienden tijdens een gezamenlijk etentje, als een snack tijdens het televisie kijken, of voor het middagmaal met een salade.

Saucijzenbroodjes
8 plakjes bladerdeeg van 12 x 12 cm
500 gram rundergehakt
1 eetlepel verse peterselie, fijngehakt
1/2 theelepel uienpoeder
1/2 theelepel zwarte peper, gemalen
Mespuntje nootmuskaat
1 theelepel zout
1 ei, geklopt
2 eetlepels panko of broodkruimels

Leg de plakjes bladerdeeg op het aanrecht om ze te ontdooien. Meng het vlees met de peterselie en de specerijen, voeg de helft van het ei toe en de volledige broodkruimels. Meng het nogmaals, en rol het dan in een grote worst. Verdeel het in acht gelijke stukken en rol ieder stuk uit tot een stammetje, ongeveer 10 cm, iets korter dan de lengte van het bladerdeeg.

Heat the oven to 225C. Plaats ieder worstje op de ene helft van het plakje bladerdeeg, strijk een beetje ei op de randjes en vouw de andere helft er over heen. Druk de lange kant vast met de tanden van een vork. Nadat u alle acht plakjes bladerdeeg gevouwen heeft, strijk de bovenkant dan in met de rest van het ei. Leg een blaadje bakpapier op een bakplaat, leg de saucijzenbroodjes er op en bak ze in de oven voor ongeveer 20 minuten, of totdat ze mooi goudbruin zijn.

Het lekkerste warm uit de oven of lauw gegeten - bewaar ze anders in de koelkast en gebruik ze binnen een dag.