Delicious

Ginger Bread Dutch Row Houses with a boat in the canal.

Well, well... It's been a while! I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas and Holiday Season - complete with lots of Dutch food! I did! My son and I made the Ginger Bread Dutch Row Houses with a boat in the canal (photo above). Over the last 2 months, we've been cooking up and sharing a lot of food. I didn't have the time to post anything so I am now catching up with myself. Enjoy!

Hollandse Appel Pannekoeken (Dutch Apple Pancakes)

We visited my mom and dad in Alaska for Thanksgiving. While we were up there, I made Hollandse Appel Pannekoeken (Dutch Apple Pancakes). Everyone loved it and it was so nice to come in from the icy outdoors and warm up a piece with our coffee's.
 

Prei Soep (Leek Soep) with Gouda sprinkling on top.
(Old Amsterdam aged, imported Gouda...Mmmm...)

On Saint Nicolaas Day, we had Prei Soep (Leek Soup) with bread before I went to see Andre Rieu in Seattle (great concert!).  This soup was very tasty!

Champignonsoep (Fresh Mushroom Soup)

 This Champignonsoep (Fresh Mushroom Soup) was very nice.

Hollandse Biefstuk (Dutch Beef)

 A simple dish of meat and potatoes. Hollandse Biefstuk (Dutch Beef) with some sugar and cinnamon apples. The Biefstuk was very peppery.

Hete Bliksem (Hot Lightning)

This Hete Bliksem (Hot Lightning) asks for blood sausage in the recipe. I had a very hard time finding blood sausage. I'm not sure if what I found was blood sausage or not. This dish was sweet, tangy, and meaty. A good tasting dish.

I have a mild allergy to peanuts. Over the years, I've been able to build up a little more of a tolerance to peanuts (not recommended) - or so I thought. Nasi Goreg I (Nasi Goreg I) has peanut butter listed as an optional ingredient. It sounded good so I put it in. I left the hot peppers out so my son could still enjoy it. It was awesome!--So awesome that I didn't mind when I turned red and itchy from the peanut butter. My husband went to the store to grab something to ease my allergic reaction. Next time I think I will leave the peanut butter out.

Nasi Goreg I (Nasi Goreg I) and Gebakken Banaanen (Fried Bananas)

 Gebakken Banaanen (Fried Bananas) were served with the Nasi Goreng. They were just as awesome tasting. I couldn't get them to look much like the photo in the book though.

Room En Wortel Soep (Cream of Carrot Soup)

 Room En Wortel Soep (Cream of Carrot Soup), a very good soup! Nice and creamy!
 
Chocolade Oranje Schillen (Chocolate-Covered Orange Peel). These got eaten before I had a chance to get my camera. So so good!

Saucijzeletter (Sausage Letter) and Bisschop's Wijn (Bishop's Wine

Saucijzeletter (Sausage Letter) and Bisschop's Wijn (Bishop's Wine) was great together.

Bitter Ballen (Bitter Balls)

Bitter Ballen (Bitter Balls) were a lot of work but I really liked them as an appetizer. They disappear fast! After deep frying a batch of them for my family's Christmas Eve get-together, I decided to freeze and bake the rest of them a few days later. They were just as good baked as they were fried.
 
Chocolade Borstplaat (Dutch Christmas Fudge). Notice the lack of photo. Well, at the top of the recipe, it says "[...] My mother never makes it on a cloudy day [...]". It rains a lot here in the Seattle area and I got tired of waiting. I tried it, even though our back yard was filling up with water from the never-ending rain. I don't know if I or the weather was the main factor in this fudge disaster. I was stirring it and stirring it, waiting for the fudge to form it's "[...] thick thread with a ball on the end" (was not sure what that meant, but I was waiting for it). It was looking very tasty, ...couldn't wait! ...and then- POOF! It turned to a powdery mess! * I saved the powdery mess to put on top of ice cream but I have yet to try it. Looking back, it's pretty funny but I was really disappointed at the time. I had been searching all over the place for Orange Blossom Water to make the Orange Boorsplat and I was anxious to finally try it.

*Did I ever mention that I'm not a great cook? I think my cooking has improved since I started this little project though!

...and OF COURSE - Oliebollen (Dutch Oliebollen)! Mine turned out lumpy. How do you get them smooth and round? No matter the lumpiness - they were still delicious!

Oliebollen (Dutch Oliebollen)

(Sigh...) Where is my bicycle?! Must find my bike now.

Happy New Year!