Taste of Holland

Last summer, I visited Amsterdam with a close friend of mine. We only stayed for a week, but it was a great trip. I'd love to go back to Holland again, and revisit all those amazing sights-- the beautiful canals,  Oude Kerk, the Van Gogh Museum, Anne Frank House... I'd like, also, to go back to many of the restaurants we visited. I could definitely go for some of those delicious Dutch pancakes right about now. Owm!

Until I can book that Expedia flight, though, I've found a few imported foods that give me a small taste of Holland.

Beemster Lite Cheese:

Beemster Lite Cheese

         

Love the taste of Gouda and other fine Dutch cheeses? Beemster Lite is an excellent choice. I know it's available at my local A&P Food Mart (AKA "The Fresh"). I'm not sure where else it's stocked, though. While I don't usually like lower fat foods, I do recommend this one. It's rich, super sharp, and, most importantly, has that Gouda taste I crave.

How to eat it: Try it plain, or with some Triscuit crackers. Or, if you'd like to jazz up your burger, opt for Beemster instead of cheddar.

            

Stroopwafels:

These classic Dutch treats consist of  waffle-like cookies with a sweet caramel filling.

 Stroopwafel cookie

Ever since I tried them in Amsterdam, I've been looking for a way to enjoy them at home. I finally found some. I ordered the Stroopie Stroopwafels in Delft Netherlands Blue Tin, via Amazon. While not quite of the same caliber as the ones I tried in Holland, they are still pretty tasty. And, as an added bonus, they come with this cute Delft tin:

The only negative thing I can say about this product has to do with quantity. Inside the Delft tin, there  are only eight siropwafels! I really would have liked a few more. Next time, I'm going to try out 

these:Stroopwafels - 20 Dutch Caramel Syrup Waffle Cookies. Hopefully, they'll be as good as the Stroopie Stroopwafels. 

How to eat them: Stroopwafels are good plain, but I prefer to dunk them in hot coffee.  

Sometimes when I'm in my kitchen eating a stroopwafel, I almost feel like I'm back in Amsterdam. I'm in a small Dutch bakery, enjoying a hot coffee with my stroopwafel. Naturally, a bakery kitten is by my side.

Though, of course, nothing beats the real thing: