Spekulatius
Spekulatius is a flat shaped pastry made from seasoned shortcrust pastry in the form of figurative representations. The origin of the pastry is believed to be in Belgium and the Netherlands ; but other regions such as the Lower Rhine or Westphalia also make some claims. In Dutch it is known as speculaas , in French as spéculoos . While the Spekulatius is a typical and popular Christmas biscuit in German-speaking countries - available in early autumn - it is traditionally served on St. Nicholas Day in the Netherlands and Belgiumconsumed, but also offered all year round, for example in Indonesia - formerly the Dutch East Indies .
etymology
The origin of the name Spekulatius is not clear. From Low German, especially the East Frisian language , Spikelātsje , Spekelātsje has been handed down, as well as in Rhenish Speculaties in the 19th century. These probably go back to a Dutch speculatie from the 18th century that was taken over in the border areas to the Netherlands and was there initially a name for a plastic candy work, later for figurative pastries. It was latinized to Spekulatius and later interpreted as a derivation of the Latin speculum 'mirror, image'.
The folklorist Dietmar Sauermann quoted in his book From Advent to Dreikönig - Christmas in Westphalia : "Of the shortcrust pastries it is the most common, but the name Spekulatius in the dialects is either unknown or has only recently been adopted from the standard language"; For example, the pastry was called 'Sünte-Klaos-Gut' in Grafschaft Bentheim , ' Tedelikkten' in Märkisches and 'Konfekt' in Siegerland . In particular, due to the temporary rule of the Orange there, the designation prevailed early in Westphalia .
According to Wahrig , Spekulatius owes its name to St. Nicholas , whose Latin nickname is speculator and means something like "the one looking around, the guardian". It was originally given to the children on December 6th. Another derivation recognizes the Latin word speculum "mirror image" in the name and relates this to the models , which are traditionally often designed in such a way that small figures are depicted. The folklorist Gabi Grimm-Piecha said: "The term is probably derived from speculator , translated overseer - which corresponds to the Latin name for bishop " and is an epithet of St. Nicholas in the Netherlands . "The pastries used to be given to children on St. Nicholas' Day because they were very special because of the expensive spices contained in the speculoos".
Molds, ingredients and manufacture
The most common speculoos is the spiced speculoos, which gets its typical taste from the spices cardamom , clove and cinnamon . In addition to it, there is also the almond speculoos, which is slightly more subtle and, in addition to a large amount of almond flour, is coated with almond slivers on the bottom before baking . Butter speculoos, which contain a significant amount of butter, are also popular. Dutch and Belgian speculoos have a characteristic caramel aroma, which is achieved by adding sugar with a high molasses content ( "Basterdsuiker" ).
Before baking, the dough is provided with a motif using a mold ( model ) made of wood or metal. The images on the biscuits traditionally represent the story of St. Nicholas , which could be told by sorting the pieces using the images and which contained motifs such as ships or horses. However, today there are also contemporary Belgian, Dutch or German motifs such as farmhouses, windmills or elephants.
Due to the high spice prices, production was quite expensive until after the Second World War and the pastry was not always affordable for the general public. It had a reputation as an exotic and valuable specialty. Today it is produced industrially in various quality levels. The thickness of the pastry varies depending on the quality and manufacturer; finer products are often thinner. The pastries are typically plate-shaped, rectangular and stackable to save space. In the past it was often sold individually from metal cans, but is now mostly industrially produced and packaged. There are also handcrafted products in the bakery trade.
Like other Christmas biscuits, Spekulatius is also marketed as Advent or "autumn biscuits", offered and consumed in stores in early autumn, which not infrequently led to criticism from churches and some consumers. For example, EKD Vice President Thies Gundlach said: “We don't like the consistent commercialization of Christian festivals” and criticized both the time of the sale and the name “autumn pastries”. The Advent , for the pastries as Spekulatius was actually baked was, I even fasted in it a penance. Without this awareness, the meaning of the delicacies is lost.
Others
A project to search for exoplanets around red dwarfs led by astronomers from the University of Liege (Belgium) identifies with the Apronym SPECULOOS ( Flemish for cookies).
gallery
Speculoos shape (approx. 1930)
Spekulatius roll (around 1900)
Web links
Individual evidence
- ↑ Eats: Where do the speculoos come from? In: donaukurier.de . ( donaukurier.de [accessed on August 30, 2018]).
- ↑ Lars Fischer: Spekulatius is available all year round in other countries . ( weser-kurier.de [accessed on August 30, 2018]).
- ↑ Spekulatius in DWDS ; Dictionary according to Wolfgang Pfeiffer; accessed on November 14, 2018
- ^ Dietmar Sauermann: From Advent to Epiphany: Christmas in Westphalia ; Waxmann 1996; P. 69; online in google books
- ↑ Spekulatius in Wissen.de , accessed on November 19, 2018
- ↑ A pastry in honor of the holy bishop ; nrz.de from December 6, 2013, accessed on November 22, 2018
- ^ NDR: Spices for Christmas baking . ( ndr.de [accessed on August 30, 2018]).
- ^ Süddeutsche de GmbH, Munich Germany: The story behind ... the Advent delicacies. Süddeutsche Zeitung , December 17, 2014, accessed on August 14, 2020 .
- ↑ What is ... Speculoos? | blog.speisekarte.de. Retrieved August 30, 2018 .
- ↑ De gustibus non est disputandum - the history of Speculatius. | cake stuff. Retrieved August 30, 2018 .
- ↑ Spekulatius at Freibad-Wetter , handelsblatt.com from September 5, 2016, accessed on November 22, 2018