Stroopwafel

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Stroopwafels

Stroopwafels (Dutch for “syrup waffles”) are Dutch cookies made from two round waffle-like wafers with a caramel filling in the middle. Nuts or other flavors may be added to the filling. They are usually about four inches in diameter. They are traditionally prepared by cutting a thin, freshly-made waffle in half, spreading the filling and rejoining the two halves, gluing them together with the syrup.

Stroopwafels are an old Dutch treat, invented in Gouda in 1784. The story goes that a baker in Gouda made a biscuit from all the left over crumbs and spices then smothered it in caramel syrup. Thus the stroopwafel started out as a sweet of the poor and eventually the most popular tea or coffee accompaniment in Holland. They may seem exceptionally sweet to some.

Traditionally, the Dutch eat them with a cup of coffee, tea, or cocoa. Some place a stroopwafel on top of the hot cup in order to soften it just before it is eaten. The stroopwafel is the single best selling food item at Amsterdam's Schiphol airport, and in Dutch supermarkets there are a variety of stroopwafels sold in Holland-style containers, bags and boxes.

At many street markets, the stroopwafels are made freshly by bakers (these are preferred over supermarket or other shop version by most Dutch natives). The stroopwafel stand can be recognized from afar by the smell of the warm stroop (syrup). Besides packages of 10 waffles, these booths usually sell single larger waffles – a plate size (8–10 inches in diameter), to be eaten right away. Offcuts and crumbs, usually in clotted lumps from the syrup that oozes at the edge during pressing, are also sometimes sold in bags as stroopwafelstukjes (stroopwafel pieces) or koekkruimels (cookie crumbs).

For residents of other countries, stroopwafels can be purchased in specialty shops, or in the gourmet foods section of a supermarket; sometimes with maple syrup filling instead of conventional stroop. Starbucks has recently begun selling the mini version of the stroopwafel as well.