Speculoos
Speculoos ( in southern Bavaria also Spekulatis ) is a product from Belgium and the Netherlands, but also the Rhineland and Westphalia shortcrust pastry. Dutch it is called Speculaas, French called Spéculoos. During the speculoos in Germany is a typical Christmas cake, it is eaten all year round in the Netherlands and Belgium. Speculoos are also available year-round in Indonesia, a former Dutch colony.
The most common is the speculoos spice spiced biscuits, which receives its typical taste from the spices cardamom, clove and cinnamon. Next to him there is the almond speculoos, which is seasoned a bit more discreet and is coated in addition to a larger amount of almond flour on the underside before baking with almond slivers. Also popular is the speculoos butter, which contains a significant proportion of butter. Dutch and Belgian speculoos have a characteristic caramel flavor that is achieved by the addition of sugar with a high molasses content.
The dough before baking is provided by a form ( model ) of wood or metal with a motive. The pictures on the pastries traditionally represent the Nicholas story that could be told by sorting the pieces based on the pictures. However, today there are also contemporary Belgian, Dutch or German designs such as ships, farm houses or windmills. The origin of the name Spekulatius is unknown. One possibility is that he ' speculator (' overseer ' to the Latin term for, Bishop, observers ') back. According to another view, there is a connection to the Latin speculum ( mirror ), because of the mirror-image representations that are cut into the baking pans.
The production was due to the high price of spices until after the Second World War is quite expensive and the pastries are not always affordable for the general population. It had a reputation as an exotic and valuable specialty. Today, it is industrially produced in various quality levels. The thickness of the pastry varies depending on quality and manufacturer, finer products are often thinner. The pastry is typically plate-shaped, rectangular and stackable to save space. It was formerly often sold individually in metal cans out, but today mostly industrially produced and packaged. Then there are the handcrafted products in the bakery industry.