Speculaas
Speculaas (Dutch: speculaas, pronounced [speːkyˈlaːs], French: spéculoos, [spekylos], German: Spekulatius) is a type of spiced shortcrust biscuit[1] baked with speculaas spices.
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Alternative names | Windmill cookies |
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Type | Shortbread cookie, Biscuit |
Place of origin | Netherlands/Belgium/Rhineland |
Main ingredients | Flour, sugar, butter, pepper, cinnamon, ginger, cloves, cardamom, nutmeg |


Speculaas biscuits are usually flat and are often moulded to carry certain traditional images (see image on the right). They are particularly popular around the feast of St. Nicholas (Dutch: Sinterklaas). The oldest sources on speculaas also mention weddings and fairs. In recent decades, however, it has become normal to eat speculaas all year round, especially with coffee or tea, or with ice cream.
Speculaas is mainly made and eaten in Belgium and the Netherlands, as well as in the German Westphalia and Rhineland, Luxembourg and northern France. It is also highly popular in the former Yugoslav countries, as it is manufactured by the Croatian food company Koestlin. It can also be found in Indonesia where it is known as spekulaas or spekulaaskoekjes, and usually served at Christmas or on other special occasions.[2]
See also
- Cookie butter
- Ginger biscuit
- Kruidnoten, a thicker, harder biscuit made without molds with the same ingredients
- Springerle, a thicker, anise-flavoured, moulded Christmas biscuit from Germany
References
- Beelen, H.; Sijs, N. van der. "Speculaas - (gekruide koek)". Onze Taal (in Dutch): 2013–2021 – via etymologiebank.nl.
- "Resep Kue Zaman Penjajahan Belanda". i idntimes. Retrieved 26 May 2020.