The Culinary Connoisseur
Dutch Jewish Food—Our Next Stop
Jun
tolerant of any religious practices. This meant freedom for both Christians and
Jews who flocked there in large numbers. They mostly came from Spain where only
Catholicism was acceptable. These Jews were Sephardic and brought with them
traditional Sephardic foods. But as word spread Ashkenazi Jews arrived as well
and by the 1700’s made up a large part of the Jewish population. Each culture
brought its own influence to Holland and contributed dishes that remain popular
today. One of the most famous is called Zeeuwse bolus sweet
spiral buns. These sweet sticky buns are covered in cinnamon and sugar and are
for this reason are sometimes referred to as “inside out buns.”
2 teaspoons instant yeast
1 ½ cups whole milk or soy milk
1 stick butter or margarine
1 egg
1 cup brown sugar
2
tablespoons cinnamon
Sift all of the flour into a bowl and add the yeast. Heat the milk until it is
lukewarm. Make a depression in the flour
and add ½ cup of the warm milk. Now add the egg and butter or margarine into
the same depression. Start the mixer slowly and add the rest of the lukewarm
milk one bit at the time into the flour, kneading until you have a silky smooth
dough. Let the dough rise for about 1 hour under a damp cloth in a warm place.
Cut the dough into 60 small pieces of about 2 ounces each. Let the dough rise
for about 15 minutes under a plastic bag or tarp. Spread cinnamon and sugar on
your countertop. After 15 minutes, roll each ball in the cinnamon-sugar
mixture. Set aside to rise for another 15 minutes.
Roll the dough pieces through the sugar, making long strings about ¾” in diameter.
Make sure they’re well coated. Twist the
rope around your finger to make a knot. Put the boluses on a lined baking sheet. Cover
with plastic wrap and let them rise for another half hour.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Bake for 10-12 minutes until the boluses are
golden brown. After baking turn the boluses over immediately. Be careful, the melted
sugar is HOT! Let the boluses cool down a bit before serving.
These are best served warm and sticky!
Another traditional Dutch Jewish food is their version of potato kugel
knows as Pom. It combines shredded potatoes and chicken along with a delicious
mix of spices.
2 small onions, roughly chopped (about 2½ cups)
2 pounds skinless, boneless chicken breasts, cut into 2-inch chunks
2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon freshly ground white pepper
1 pint grape or cherry tomatoes, each cut in half
2 cups chicken stock, divided
Juice and zest of 2 small oranges
3 tablespoons brown sugar
1 teaspoon ground allspice
¼ teaspoon nutmeg
2 pounds russet potatoes, peeled, shredded in long strips
1 cup chopped flat-leaf parsley (about 1 large bunch)
3 eggs
cooking oil spray and set aside.
heat until it shimmers. Add the onions and stir, cooking for 8 to 10 minutes,
until onions have softened and are translucent. Remove the onions to a bowl
and set aside. Reserve the pan.
Add the chicken to the pot in a single layer, sprinkle with ½ teaspoon salt and
½ teaspoon pepper and sear until lightly browned. With tongs, turn the pieces,
sprinkle with ½ teaspoon salt and the remaining pepper and cook on the other
side until lightly browned. Its fine if the center is still pink.
tomatoes, 1 cup of the stock, the lemon juice and zest, brown sugar, allspice,
and nutmeg and stir well. Pour this mixture into the prepared casserole
dish.
parsley, the eggs, 1 teaspoon salt, the remaining stock and 1 tablespoon oil
and stir to combine. Arrange this mixture evenly over the chicken stew mixture
in the casserole dish. Drizzle the remaining oil over the potato layer and
place in the oven.
and crunchy on top. Remove from the oven and serve immediately, or allow to
cool and refrigerate, covered. To reheat, cover with foil and bake at 300°F
until heated through; then uncover, increase the heat to 450° and allow
the top to get crunchy again. The potatoes will have soaked up the liquid the
second day and it won’t be as crunchy, but it will be equally delicious.