Dutch Recipes
lynnescountrykitchen.net
"Hollanders" are great lovers of nice food. They like to prepare these tasty dishes from the best ingredients. They prefer to eat them at home in company of their family or friends, seated at a well-set table, covered in the Dutch way with tablecloth of white or colored linen, under a big lamp fixed in the middle of the ceiling of their dining room.
The people of the Netherlands have different "food habits" than other people. This probably sounds funny for such a small country. But it is a fact, and as the old saying goes "Do In Rome As The Romans Do". Translated, when in Holland, eat as they do!.
Below is a brief description of the way they serve their meals.
BREAKFASTFor breakfast they have bread and butter, or open sandwiches with jam, cheese, or "ontbijtkoek". They drink teas with it, milk, or maybe buttermilk. Sometimes they will have a boiled egg and the children have a plateful of "pap".
COFFEE
At 10 o'clock the drink one or more cups of coffee with cream or milk and treat themselves to a piece of buttered "koek" or some "boterkoek", or cake, for extra festive occasions.
LUNCH
At lunchtime they have another bread and butter meal. Maybe some rolls are put on the table (krentenbroodjes, cadetjes, croissants) and Dutch rusks topped with cheese or jam. They have some meat, liver sausage or ham, maybe a fried egg or two or an omelet. When guests arraive they make a special hot dish like croquettes or macaroni cheese, or ham and cheese savory. Fruits finish off the meal with which they drink coffee, milk, buttermilk, or cocoa.
TEA
At 3 o'clock it is teatime, a cup of tea and a biscuit is quite usual. For special occasions they might produce fancy cakes, cookies, or chocolates.
BORREL
At 5 o'clock some people drin a "borrel", Dutch gin, sometimes with a little snack.
DINNER
At 6 o'clock it is dinner time. The first hot meal, mainly consisting of a hot entrée (soup) or a cold entrée, meat or fish with vegetables and potatoes, something sweet or a fruit to finish. Only on special occasions wine or beer is served. Coffee may be served after the meal, but it is mostly not taken at the dinner table. (In some parts of the Netherlands the hot meal is served at midday and a bread and butter meal in the evening).
TEA OR COFFEE
At 8 o'clock they have tea again with biscuits, some people prefer coffee. Cookies, cakes or a more elaborate baked sweet is offered if there is company or visitors. Some people like to drink beer or wine or Dutch gin, maybe a liqueur or whiskey later on.
Dutch Sugar Cookies