I love spices; and I have a collection of spices much more than my mom ever had. May be because of I am from the spice land of world. I cook with spices every day; it will be my tea, breakfast and even dinner. After coming here I got introduced to Cajun spices, I love that blend too.
So how can a spice lover can sit quiet when daring baker challenge is to make Gevulde speculaas/Dutch spice pastry? This month challenge was hosted by Francijn from Koken in de Brouwerij . Even after several no from my hubby, I made this delicious dessert.
My connection with Netherlands is that I traveled with KLM and done transits at Amsterdam. I want to visit Amsterdam once; but I don’t know when that day will come.
What is Gevulde Speculaas?
Gevulde speculaas means stuffed speculass, and stuffing is usually done with almond and egg paste. The bottom and top part of pastry is made with flour, butter, baking powder, brown sugar and spices.
Speculaas spices / Speculaaskruiden includecinnamon, cloves, mace and ginger, and also these spices to taste: pepper, cardamom, coriander, anise seeds and nutmeg.
Ratio in which speculass spices is like this Cinnamon is 40 to 60 % of the total amount, ground cloves 1 or 2 parts, mace ½ or 1 part, ginger ½ or 1 part .
If you can find following spices then you should add along the rest of spices and its ratio should be white pepper ½ or 1 part, cardamom ½ or 1 part, coriander ½ or 1 part, anise ½ or 1 part and nutmeg 1 or 2 parts of total spices.
I made this pastry with whole white wheat flour and also reduced the amount of sugar and butter as much as possible.
However, with spices I didn’t want to compromise so I used entire list of spices, freshly grind using my coffee grinder.
I made my own almond meal too. I used 16 almonds for decoration on the top. They are delicious and rich. I have some scrap left, and made them into a cookie with it. It is really tasty.
Adding whole wheat flour doesn’t affect the taste. It is really good with tea. It is in between a cake and pastry.
If you are spice fan like me try this, it is easy to put together and delicious. These spice mix is really good, may be in future I may try it in cake or muffin.
Instructions
Grab your ingredients, and first blanch the almond and makes speculaas spices.
Then makes almond egg paste with egg, lemon zest and ground almonds and speculaas dough.
Almond Paste
Speculaas Dough
Once you made speculaas dough refrigerates it and after chilling, spread it into rectangle and press it into loaf tin. Spread almond egg paste and then cover with rest of speculass dough.
Assembling and baking the Gevulde Speculaas
Then do egg wash and decorate with almonds Bake it at preheated oven at 350F for about 45 minutes. Cut it into pieces and enjoy with your tea or coffee.
Gevulde speculaas
Ingredients
- Speculaas Spices
- Mandatory:
- cinnamon 40 to 60 % of the total amount
- ground cloves 1 or 2 parts
- mace ½ or 1 part
- ginger ½ or 1 part
- Optional:
- white pepper ½ or 1 part
- cardamom ½ or 1 part
- coriander ½ or 1 part
- anise ½ or 1 part
- nutmeg 1 or 2 parts
- A convenient way to mix the spices is as follows:
- 1-2 teaspoon Take at least 1 or 2 teaspoons of ground cloves
- ½-1 teaspoon ½ or 1 teaspoon of mace and
- ½-1 teaspoon ½ or 1 teaspoon of ginger.
- ½-1 teaspoon ½ or 1 teaspoon of cardamom, ½ or
- ½-1 teaspoon 1 teaspoon of coriander,
- ½-1 teaspoon Add to taste ½ or 1 teaspoon of white pepper
- ½-1 teaspoon or 1 teaspoon of anise
- 1-2 teaspoon 1 or 2 teaspoons of nutmeg.
- Measure or weigh the amount of spices you have now and add an equal amount of cinnamon.
- Almond Paste
- 1 cup Raw almond
- 3 tablespoon Sugar
- 1 large egg
- 1 teaspoon 5 ml (3 gm) lemon zest
- Speculaas Dough
- 11/4 cup (150g) Whole wheat flour
- 1 teaspoon (5 ml) (5 gm) baking powder
- ⅓ cup + 2 tablespoon brown sugar
- a pinch salt
- 1 tablespoon (30 ml) (15 gm) (½ oz) speculaas spices
- 5 tablespoon butter
- 3 tablespoon water
- 1 large egg
- 16 whole almonds without skins for decoration
Instructions
- If the raw almonds still have their brown skins, remove them as follows. Bring water to a boil, add the almonds, cook them for one minute, drain immediately and let cool for a few minutes. Rub them between your fingers to remove the skins.
- Grind the almonds for one or two minutes in a food processor, until you see nothing but very small pieces.
- (Or skip this step if you use ground almonds.)
- Add the sugar, and grind for another one or two minutes. It must be very fine after this step.
- Add the egg and let the food processor combine it - if it is powerful enough. Otherwise you will have to combine it with your fingers.
- Store the almond paste in an airtight container in the refrigerator. Although the flavor gets better as days pass by, it is not wise to store the paste for too long, as it contains a raw egg. For the same reason you should not eat the paste unbaked.
- Speculaas Dough
- Put flour, baking powder, sugar, salt and spices in a bowl.
- Cut the butter in pieces and add.
- Knead until smooth.
- Feel free to add a little milk if the dough is too dry.
- Wrap in cling film and put in the refrigerator for two hours.
- You can choose to make the dough a few days in advance, just like the almond paste, that will benefit the flavor. Freezing is no problem.
- Assembling and baking the Gevulde Speculaas
- almond paste
- Grease 9 x 5 loaf pan
- Preheat the oven to moderate 350°F/180°C/gas 4
- Divide the dough into two portions. One is slightly bigger than other one.
- Roll out both portions on a lightly floured surface, until they are exactly as big as the baking pan
- Put one of the layers in the pan and press it lightly to fill the bottom.
- Lightly beat the egg with teaspoon cold water.
- Roll out the almond paste between two sheets of cling film, until it is exactly as big as the pan, and put it on the dough in the pan. (If you chose to make the paste soft, you can smear the paste instead of rolling it.)
- Press the paste lightly down to fit in the pan
- Now put the second layer of dough on top of the paste, press it lightly, and make as smooth as possible.
- Brush the top with egg wash.
- Decorate the pastry with the almonds.
- Bake for 45 minutes in the preheated oven.
- Let cool completely in the pan, then cut it in portions as you like.
Nutrition
Pin it for later
This is Swathi ( Dr. Ambujom Saraswathy Ph.D) from Zesty South Indian Kitchen who loves to explore cuisines from all over the world. Whenever possible I try to to give an Indian touch to several of the world cuisine, and has weakness for freshly baked bread. All the recipes you see here are created by me and approved after taste-test by my family.
Sunita says
Hi, how long can I keep it in room temperature? If covered in an air right container.
Swathi says
You can keep it for 2-3 days, if you keep it refrigerator it will stay more time. You can also freeze them.
Suja Manoj says
Wow Swathi visiting this recipe again, after doing the cookie just can't wait to try this..beautiful recipe.
Pat Nicolson says
First time ever a recipe of spice pastry i am seeing. How delightful and delicious it looks.
Spices in India
kenz says
Lovely recipe..am seeing this for the first time but it luks tasty..will try soon.
http://novicescuisine.blogspot.com/
kitchen queen says
lip smacking moist and spongy pastry.
Abhilash Pillai says
Reading your post at 11 Am in the morning, even after my breakfast I feel hungry. A delicious post Swathi...
I think I should be eating something now. You are going to spoil the kids like me with these recipes 😉
Peggy G. says
These look like such a tasty treat!
Shweta says
This looks yummy. Come and participate in my event -Month of love- 2giveaways
http://www.merrytummy.blogspot.co.uk/2013/01/event-hosting-and-2-giveways-walk.html
MERRYTUMMY
Shobha Kamath says
Superb! Absolutely delicious looking pastry! Loved it.
Jeane M. says
This comment has been removed by the author.
G.Pavani says
grt work dear,cake is really tempting..
Nivedhanams Sowmya says
wow that is so delicious!!!! looks absolutely tempting!!! picture perfect!!!
Sowmya
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Judy@SavoringToday says
Spices are not only delicious, but also healing and good for you, so it is good you use them throughout the day and you grind them for the freshest taste possible. Your pastry dessert is so pretty with the almonds on top like that -- I would enjoy some with my coffee right now if I could. 🙂
Rita Bose says
Wow! Lovely pastry! They look divine,Swathi!
Walking on Sunshine says
So beautiful! Great step by step photos and a nice history of the spices! Thanks for sharing!
Divya Pramil says
Beautifully done Swathi 🙂 Looks super perfect.. Nice clicks too.. btw do you use artificial lights for your clicks?
Swathi Iyer says
Yes Divya it is artificial light.
Shylaja Praveen says
You have lots of patience Swathi. Cake looks absolutely delicious and neatly presented too.Its tempting me to try.
pragathi says
Excellent baking.. Lovely presentation..
Balvinder Ubi says
This pastry caught my attention on someone else's blog yesterday. It looks beautiful and you have done it very neatly.
Reeni Pisano says
These are gorgeous Swathi! So special! All those warm spices are lovely and almond paste is one of the best things ever.
Chef Mireille says
Much of my Mom's family lives in Holland and speculaas is a common after dinner treat whenever I visit (although they usually buy from a local bakery)
Lizzy Do says
BEautifully done, my friend!!! I love the almond design you made...so lovely. It's dishes like this that make me want to rejoin the Daring Bakers...there's just not enough time to do it all, though...
Harini says
Yummy dish and it is new to me! Looks delicious.
Candace says
Being from Louisiana, my food has to have spice. I have discovered the amazing flavors of the spices of India and have fallen in love. This cake is beautiful and I know it must taste amazing.
Reshmi Mahesh says
New to me...Looks awesome...Loved the presentation...Tempts me to try it..
Arthy shama says
Very tempting pastry, and nice step-by-step presentation
Suja Manoj says
New to me,impressive pastry,looks so yummy and beautiful pics,can't wait to try this.
El Oteador de los Mercados says
I also like spices. Combine them and play with their different flavors. Here we don't use so many in the food. That cake looks delicious.
PT says
well demonstrated dear.. looks too good..
Priya says
Omg, wat a beautiful pastry,beautiful presentation,seriously loved the way you arranged those almonds,elegant and very neat.
Sangeetha Priya says
Wow what a clear explanation n presentation Swathi, wonderful spice pastry, love to try it soon!!!
Namak Shamak says
Looks tempting....gonna try it.
Lovely presentation.
Priya Sahasranaman says
Love the presentation and absolutely love the write up! And yes - I love spices too - after all the name says it all! Am definitely going to try this one, though will have to think of something to replace the almond paste layer as my little one has nut allergy...
http://thegoddessofspice.blogspot.com/
Julie says
Swathi,Thanx for dropping by dear and I will be happy if u let me know the month too dear,Is may okay to you? Thai cuisine is good dear:)
Zoe says
I like the way how you arrange the almond on the pastry... They look so pretty like flowers. Is this the way that the pastry is traditionally decorated?
Swathi Iyer says
You can make design in the traditional pastry.
divya says
looks irresistibly hearty n inviting
Saraswathi Tharagaram says
Wow great presentation Swathi. Perfectly done.
Julie says
very cute presentation,Swathi & yummy pastry tooo,loved reading too:)
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Shailaja Reddy says
Different and spicy pastry. Lovely clicks.
Maha Gadde says
Swathi...I like ur way of presentation n love ur step by step clicks...they were very useful who like 2 try...nice 1
Vineetha says
U rock swathi...I admire the way u take baking challenges..that's one quality I don't have..I will attempt things only if I am really confident about the outcomes ! Loved ur history write up..I never liked history so don't remember all those things but ur write up made me realise that I hated history because we were not connecting with what they tought ..now that I love spices too the history behind it is interesting too 🙂
Sandhya Ramakrishnan says
This is so cool...Love it! I am definitely trying this out 🙂
Achu says
wow amazing dear
The 21st Century Housewife© says
These look beautiful, Swathi, and they sound so delicious. I've pinned them to try one day. I've only ever had store-bought Speculaas and yours looks SO much nicer! Your tutorial is wonderful too.
pepper bowl says
Swathi...love your step by step clicks...they were very informative...love it
Hema says
Wow, looks awesome Swathi, very different, bookmarked this..
Swati Sapna says
Beautiful! I love the way you have decorated each slice with an almond flower 🙂 I love using spices in everything I cook too... and cinnamon is my favorite! So Im sure this tastes fantastic...
Kitchen Queen says
looks so tempting, taste must be awesome.
WeR SAHM says
omg lovely write up and cute looking pastry....
Divya Shivaraman says
Wow...What a explanation. Yum Yum...
Rebecca Subbiah says
these look lovely and great history I wondered when we went to Iceland they used a lot of spices and it was formally ruled by the Dutch now I know 🙂
Veena Theagarajan says
wow! wow! perfectly done.. Bookmarked
http://great-secret-of-life.blogspot.com
Jay says
looks irresistably hearty n inviting
Tasty Appetite
Sanoli Ghosh says
Excellent dutch spiced pastry......delicious and very perfect dear.
today's recipe:
http://sanolisrecipies.blogspot.in/2013/01/pot-roasted-ayer-fish.html
Navaneetham Krishnan says
I did transits in Amsterdam and thats about it. Hoping I can stop by soon here. I too have plenty of spices but will stick to using them for my savoury dishes. You are great with baking and the spices were great, added into this pastry.
radha says
Such clear instructions and such a lovely product. And a nice write up too. Great job !
Guru Uru says
Superb baking my friend 🙂
Cheers
Choc Chip Uru
Amrita Vishal says
I had a great time making them as well. I tried an eggless version which worked great. Your Speculaas look very tempting.
Vimitha Anand says
Wow looks so beautifully done and yum.. Bookmarking dear
Ramya Krishnamurthy says
bookmarked and definitely am going to try this
Chandrani says
Pasty looks inviting and yummy.
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Helen Prabha says
Looks beautiful & delicious... 🙂
Helen
http://myworldmyhome2012.blogspot.in
Rasi says
looks super appetizing
Sona S says
Delicious. Nice clicks and explanation.
Spill the Spices
Arthy Suman says
Wow this pastry looks so unique...
Poornima Porchelvan says
perfectly made pastry and bookmarked.
Neha says
Looks yummy....
Eric Pepple says
These look and sound spectacular! Thanks for sharing, I will definitely have to try 🙂
Sincerely,
Happy Valley Chow