I am back from my European vacation and have much to tell.
My journey began in Amsterdam. The city itself is a wonderful blend of old and
new. Traditional rows of houses stand a single street away from a shopping
district. The Dam Square is the center of town with the enormous amount of bike
traffic filtering through it. Man made canals curve throughout the city, and if
my tour guide’s numbers were right, around 70 bikes fall into them every day.
Amsterdam is a tourism-driven city, so authentic Netherland
food is not easy to find. Gouda cheese, on the other hand, is very easy to
find. Next to every souvenir shop there is a cheese shop selling the exact same
array of both young and old gouda cheeses. The young ones, even flavored with
nettles, wasabi, paprika, etc, are bland and gummy. The aged goudas, made from
cow, sheep, and goat milk, are firmer, saltier, and have a nutty bite. However,
these are nothing you cant get in your local Whole Foods. Reypenaer is a
different story.
Located on the West side of the city on a corner overlooking
one of the many canals, Reypenaer cheese makes their own propriety blends of
gouda. For 15€, you can take a cheese tasting class, sampling six different
cheeses and analyzing them as though they were fine wines, which are also
poured during the tasting. My personal favorite was a three year gouda, crumbly
with salt crystals, and smelled of walnuts and smoke. The cheese was rich and
filled your senses.
Equally as abundant as the cheese was stroopwaffles. These
thin, crunchy wafer/waffles sandwich a layer of honey or maple syrup, making
the whole delicacy gooey, very sweet, and perfect for a cup of coffee.
Walking the streets of Amsterdam, one could not help but
notice the persistent perfume of French fries. It seems to be the snack of choice,
drenched as they are in mayonnaise. I tried this “delicacy,” and was
nonplussed. I understand the crunchy, salty, creamy, slightly sour combination,
but it just didn’t do it for me.
As always, I found myself wandering through local grocery
stores. The selection of fruits, vegetables, breads, canned and dry goods was
not significantly different from what you might find in an American grocery,
but there were a few exceptions. Even smaller local stores had cut-to-order
cheese counters. Most bread was sold in individual servings rather than cut
loaves, but that’s a European thing anyway. One thing that was not unfamiliar, but
traditional, was stamppot. In this dish, potatoes are mashed with vegetables
like kale and carrots, and usually, a small divet is made for gravy. This is
eaten with smoked sausage. Like any home cooked food, variations abound and everyone
likes their mother’s best.
Also popular was a mashed, seasoned steak spread,
not unlike tartar. It was sandwiched in bread, dolloped on crackers, or served
aside cheese. Again, garlic, onion, and other spice variations were available,
but any way you had it, the beefy spread was always welcome on my plate.
Next stop: Belgium
No comments:
Post a Comment