Daring Bakers' Challenge: Gevulde Speculaas

Six months.  Six months in my new home and I still miss my old one.  For many reasons.  Too many to list here.  One reason, though, is that every time I made a new Daring Baker recipe I could just skip on down to the playground with my creation.  In minutes it would be gone and I'd have feedback galore.

Here, though, I live in a normal American suburban house.  No one else is home when I make my Daring Baker desserts.  There are no mothers sitting on a bench watching their children on the swings.  No dads walking home from work.  No ravenous preteens looking for the next snack.  Here, there is just me.  And my family.

So, it's no surprise, really, that we ate this whole thing.  This whole Gevulde Speculaas.  The surprising thing is how quickly we ate it.  Really, I think my boys each ate three pieces for dessert after dinner.  My husband ate three.  I ate two.  Leaving us with the feeling that we might as well just finish it up.  Which we did.

It was really good.  Really really good.

The spice mix smelled heavenly and tasted divine.  The almond paste gave an almost creamy texture to the middle of the cake-like cookie.  Perfect with coffee or tea.  Perfect for sharing with friends and neighbors.  If they were home.  If not, perfect to eat the whole pan.  Just you and your family.

Thanks to Francijn, from Koken in de Brouwerij, for introducing us to this traditional Dutch pastry.  She taught us how to make the spice mix, almond paste, and dough.  Delicious!  To make it yourself follow this link over to the Daring Kitchen to find the recipes and detailed instructions.