VII

Chapter · Kaas & Zuivel

Cheese & Dairy

A dairy nation on reclaimed grass: Gouda and Edam, hangop and vla, buttermilk and the cheeses of the weigh-house.

Holland

Kwark met Muesli & Honing (Quark Breakfast Bowl)

Kwark met Muesli & Honing

Creamy Dutch quark layered with toasted muesli, honey and fruit — the fresh, high-protein breakfast bowl of the modern Netherlands.

22 minBeginner

Cheese

Friesland

Karnemelksepap (Buttermilk Porridge)

Karnemelksepap

Tangy buttermilk thickened with a little flour and pearl barley, sweetened with syrup — Friesland's homely everyday porridge of the dairy farms.

35 minBeginner

Cheese

Friesland

Friese Nagelkaas (Frisian Clove Cheese)

Fryske Nageltsjiis

Friesland's ancient skimmed-milk cheese spiked with cloves and cumin — dark, dry and aromatic, the northern dairy's most storied wheel.

90 minAdvanced

Cheese

Holland

Komijnekaas / Leidse Kaas (Cumin Cheese)

Komijnekaas · Leidse Kaas

A firm, low-fat cows'-milk cheese studded with cumin seed — Leiden's spiced weigh-house cheese, pressed with the city's crossed-keys brand.

90 minAdvanced

Cheese

The East

Krentjebrij (Groninger Fruit Porridge)

Krentjebrij / Watergruwel

The northern fruit porridge of barley, currants and berry juice bound to a glossy set — Groningen and Drenthe's beloved cold-or-warm brij.

65 minBeginner

Cheese

Holland

Watergruwel (Fruit & Barley Porridge)

Watergruwel

A cold water-based porridge of pearl barley and dried fruit, thickened and spiced — the lean-day Dutch gruel that predates the milk pudding.

65 minBeginner

Cheese

Holland

Rijstebrij (Dutch Rice Pudding)

Rijstebrij

Pudding rice simmered slow in whole milk until thick and creamy, served warm with brown sugar and cinnamon — the oldest Dutch comfort in a bowl.

70 minBeginner

Chipolatapudding (Layered Gelatin Pudding)

Cheese

Holland

Chipolatapudding (Layered Gelatin Pudding)

Chipolatapudding

A festive Dutch gelatin pudding of whipped cream, ladyfingers, candied fruit and liqueur, set in a mould — the grand table pudding of the old cookbooks.

50 minAdvanced

Cheese

Holland

Hopjesvla (Coffee-Caramel Custard)

Hopjesvla

Pourable Dutch custard flavoured with hopjes — the burnt coffee-caramel sweet born in The Hague — a grown-up vla the colour of strong tea.

35 minIntermediate

Griesmeelpudding (Semolina Pudding with Redcurrant Sauce)

Cheese

Holland

Griesmeelpudding (Semolina Pudding with Redcurrant Sauce)

Griesmeelpudding met Bessensap

A turned-out semolina milk pudding, pale and quivering, flooded with tart red bessensap — the frugal Dutch dessert that outlived austerity.

35 minBeginner

Cheese

Holland

Vanillevla (Dutch Custard Vla)

Vanillevla

The pourable vanilla custard every Dutch fridge holds — thin enough to drink, rich enough to be pudding, the dessert of a thousand weeknight tables.

25 minBeginner

Cheese

Holland

Hangop (Drained Yoghurt Dessert)

Hangop

Yoghurt or buttermilk hung overnight in a cloth until thick as cream, then sweetened with sugar and cinnamon — the Dutch dairy nation's oldest dessert.

15 minBeginner

Cheese

Holland

Gebakken Goudse Kaas (Fried Gouda)

Gebakken Goudse Kaas

Slices of young Gouda in a crisp breadcrumb coat, fried until molten inside — the Dutch cheese country's simplest, most reckless pleasure.

23 minBeginner