|
 Baking
in Holland
Just go to the local bakers. The bread
is great as well as the many desserts.. If you
must bake something, watch out for Dutch flour. It doesn't have the same
consistency as the baking flour you are used to back home. Here are some more hints:
 Here's
a bit of a description on Dutch flour called "Bloem". Most Dutch
flour is called "tarwebloem" and "patentbloem". They
come in 1 liter bags, not the 10 lbs bags you are used to. These flours
are lower in protein than American all-purpose flours, which means they are good
for cakes but not necessarily breads. If you are using Dutch flour with an
American recipe, add about one extra tablespoon per each cup of flour
used.
Check
out the baking section at the grocery store. There are many types of flour
available, just packaged in little boxes. See the following table for a
brief description.
| English |
Dutch |
| All-purpose flour |
Patenbloem |
| Bread flour |
broodmeel |
| Cake/pastry flour |
cakemeel |
| Self-rising, all-purpose |
roggemeel |
| whole-wheat flour |
volorenmeel |
| Wheat flour - white |
tarwebloem |
| Yeast |
Gist |
Craving
a chocolate chip cookie? You can put something together that tastes pretty
good with local supplies. Use patenbloem for your flour. While you
won't find chocolate chips at the grocer's, can buy a chocolate bar (chocolade
puur) in the candy section. Break it up into small pieces and you've got
chips. The best bet for baking soda and powder is to bring your own or
call another North American and borrow some. If you are adventurous, you can ask
for baking soda at the apotheek (pharmacy). Baking powder can be found at
the grocery store. It is called "bakpoeder"
If you
are really desperate for a chocolate cake, head for the international or baking
section at you local grocer's. You make luck out and find an Betty Crocker
cake mix.
Here
are a few Dutch equivalents for measuring options.
Grams to Ounces
| Metric |
Dutch |
American |
| 100
grams |
een ons |
3 ounces |
| 150
grams |
anderhalf
ons |
5
ounces |
| 250
grams |
half
pond |
8
ounces |
| 500
grams |
een pond |
16
ounces |
| 750
grams |
anderhalf
pond |
24
ounces |
| 1,000
grams |
een
kilo |
32
ounces |
| 1,500
grams |
anderhalve
kilo |
40
ounces |
Liquid Measurements
| Metric |
American |
Metric |
American |
| 5 ml |
1 teaspoon |
240 ml |
1 cup |
| 15 ml |
1 tablespoon |
300 ml |
1 1/4 cups |
| 30 ml |
2 tablespoons |
360 ml |
1 1/2 cups |
| 45 ml |
3 tablespoons |
420 ml |
1 3/4 cups |
| 60 ml |
4 tbsp (1/4
cup) |
480 ml |
2 cups |
| 120 ml |
1/2 cup |
720 ml |
3 cups |
| 180 ml |
3/4 cup |
1 liter |
4 1/4 cups |
Cooking
Temperatures (Centigrade to Fahrenheit)
| Degrees
Centigrade |
Degrees
Fahrenheit |
|
Degrees
Centigrade |
Degrees
Fahrenheit |
| 0 |
32 |
|
191 |
375 |
| 100 |
212 |
|
204 |
400 |
| 107 |
225 |
|
218 |
425 |
| 121 |
250 |
|
232 |
450 |
| 135 |
275 |
|
246 |
475 |
| 149 |
300 |
|
260 |
500 |
| 163 |
325 |
|
274 |
525 |
| 177 |
350 |
|
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NAWC Note: When baking you
can also divide your Fahrenheit degrees by two to get the rough centigrade equivalent.
350 Degrees F. divided by two is about 175 centigrade. It has always
worked for us.
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