Speculaas (; ; ) is a type of spiced

shortcrust Shortcrust is a type of pastry often used for the base of a tart, quiche, pie, or (in the British English sense) flan. Shortcrust pastry can be used to make both sweet and savory pies such as apple pie, quiche, lemon meringue or chicken pie. A ...

biscuit A biscuit is a flour-based baked food item. Biscuits are typically hard, flat, and unleavened. They are usually sweet and may be made with sugar, chocolate, icing, jam, ginger, or cinnamon. They can also be savoury, similar to crackers. ...

originated in the

Low Countries The Low Countries (; ), historically also known as the Netherlands (), is a coastal lowland region in Northwestern Europe forming the lower Drainage basin, basin of the Rhine–Meuse–Scheldt delta and consisting today of the three modern "Bene ...

(

Belgium Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. Situated in a coastal lowland region known as the Low Countries, it is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeas ...

and the

Netherlands , Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...

) and baked with speculaas spices, which is a mix of 80%

cinnamon Cinnamon is a spice obtained from the inner bark of several tree species from the genus ''Cinnamomum''. Cinnamon is used mainly as an aromatic condiment and flavouring additive in a wide variety of cuisines, sweet and savoury dishes, biscuits, b ...

, and 20% other spices:

nutmeg Nutmeg is the seed, or the ground spice derived from the seed, of several tree species of the genus '' Myristica''; fragrant nutmeg or true nutmeg ('' M. fragrans'') is a dark-leaved evergreen tree cultivated for two spices derived from its fru ...

clove Cloves are the aromatic flower buds of a tree in the family Myrtaceae, ''Syzygium aromaticum'' (). They are native to the Maluku Islands, or Moluccas, in Indonesia, and are commonly used as a spice, flavoring, or Aroma compound, fragrance in fin ...

ginger Ginger (''Zingiber officinale'') is a flowering plant whose rhizome, ginger root or ginger, is widely used as a spice and a folk medicine. It is an herbaceous perennial that grows annual pseudostems (false stems made of the rolled bases of l ...

cardamom Cardamom (), sometimes cardamon or cardamum, is a spice made from the seeds of several plants in the genus (biology), genera ''Elettaria'' and ''Amomum'' in the family Zingiberaceae. Both genera are native to the Indian subcontinent and Indon ...

and pepper, the exact proportions were often a signature and secret of the bakery who made them. They are usually flat, crisp and moulded to carry certain traditional images. Historically it was popular to eat speculaas around the feast of

Saint Nicholas Saint Nicholas of Myra (traditionally 15 March 270 – 6 December 343), also known as Nicholas of Bari, was an early Christian bishop of Greeks, Greek descent from the maritime city of Patara (Lycia), Patara in Anatolia (in modern-day Antalya ...

(Dutch: ''

Sinterklaas Sinterklaas () or Sint-Nicolaas () is a legendary figure based on Saint Nicholas, patron saint of children. Other Dutch names for the figure include ''De Sint'' ("The Saint"), ''De Goede Sint'' ("The Good Saint") and ''De Goedheiligman'' (derive ...

''). The oldest sources on speculaas also mention weddings and fairs. However, in the Low Countries it has become normal to eat speculaas all year round, especially with coffee or tea, or with ice cream. Although speculaas stuffed with almond paste (Dutch: ''gevulde speculaas'') and the thicker speculaas chunks (Dutch: ''speculaasbrokken'') remain a specialty of the holiday season. Apart from Belgium and the Netherlands, it is also well known in adjacent areas in

Luxembourg Luxembourg, officially the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, is a landlocked country in Western Europe. It is bordered by Belgium to the west and north, Germany to the east, and France on the south. Its capital and most populous city, Luxembour ...

, northern

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

, and in the west of

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

(

Westphalia Westphalia (; ; ) is a region of northwestern Germany and one of the three historic parts of the state of North Rhine-Westphalia. It has an area of and 7.9 million inhabitants. The territory of the region is almost identical with the h ...

and the

Rhineland The Rhineland ( ; ; ; ) is a loosely defined area of Western Germany along the Rhine, chiefly Middle Rhine, its middle section. It is the main industrial heartland of Germany because of its many factories, and it has historic ties to the Holy ...

). It gained popularity in the former Yugoslav countries, where it is manufactured by the Croatian food company Koestlin. The cookie can also be found in

Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania, between the Indian Ocean, Indian and Pacific Ocean, Pacific oceans. Comprising over List of islands of Indonesia, 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, ...

and is usually served there at

Christmas Christmas is an annual festival commemorating Nativity of Jesus, the birth of Jesus Christ, observed primarily on December 25 as a Religion, religious and Culture, cultural celebration among billions of people Observance of Christmas by coun ...

or on other special occasions.

Etymology

The Dutch name "speculaas" evolved from the older form ''speculatie'' (speculation), used to mean "desire" or "pleasure". Originally, ''speculatie'' described fine baked goods, appealing to sophisticated tastes. Over time, this term developed dialectal variations like ''speculacie'' and ''speculasie'', in which later the ie-suffix was erroneously interpreted as diminutives —eventually resulting in the non-diminutive form we know today as "speculaas". In Belgium, a variant called ''speculoos'' arose, especially in French-speaking regions. '' Speculoos'', thought to derive from a

Brabantian dialect Brabantian or Brabantish, also Brabantic or Brabantine (, , ), is a dialect group of the Dutch language. It is named after the historical Duchy of Brabant, which corresponded mainly to the Netherlands, Dutch province of North Brabant, the Belgi ...

pronunciation, omits the traditional spices in favour of caramelized sugar for flavour. It became internationally popular, especially with the introduction of speculoos cookie butter.

History

Speculaas roots go back to the ''klaaskoek'' or "Saint Nicholas cake", a festive treat linked to Saint Nicholas Day on December 6. These early ''klaaskoeken'' were among the precursors to what we now recognize as speculaas. Speculaas likely originated in the Low Countries during the Middle Ages, when exotic spices arrived via expanding trade routes. Once a luxury treat, it became associated with Saint Nicholas festivities, often featuring figures of the saint or festive symbols. As the Dutch spice trade grew in the 17th century, speculaas became more accessible.

References

Almond cookies Sinterklaas food Biscuits Christmas in Germany Dutch cookies {{dessert-stub

Etymology

History

See also

References