When I was in Amsterdam over Easter I came across these amazing ‘speltbolletje’ which I have been trying to get a recipe for. They were little, round balls of bread filled with apricots an figs and covered in pumpkin seeds. Sadly I haven’t been able to find a recipe (despite lots of help from Twitter and the lovely Regula from Foodwise in particular).
Speltbolletje at Jordaan markt in amsterdam
So I just had a go at my own version. I haven’t used spelt flour before so I did a little background research. I discovered than in it’s seed form, it looks a bit like wheat but the husk is tougher. Madly it was mainly used as animal feed until recently. It’s quite an old grain too. Records date it back to 5000 BC around the region which is now Iran. It’s been grown in the UK for the last 300 years though in view of its nutritious qualities.
Some material I read advise that there is no gluten in spelt. There is. A small amount which is why many people who have wheat sensitivities are OK eating it.
I bought Doves Farm Wholegrain Spelt Flour and it was lovely. A nutty smell as soon as I opened the packet. I felt healthy just sniffing it.
My ‘Speltbolletje‘ turned out lovely though rather unlike those I had eaten in Amsterdam. The texture was too bread like so I am now wondering if these little wonders I found in Jordaan Markt were actually cake and not bread? I’m going to have to try again get closer to those – maybe once figs come into season – but I’m glad to have discovered these bread rolls none the less!
My healthy pumpkin seed and apricot rolls
Do you have any discoveries from your travels that you’ve recreated at home?
It looks so good!
Thanks 🙂
Now that I’ve seen it on a picture I will try and find out more for you.
I think indeed it’s not a bread but a kind of cookie we have here.
I bake with spelt all the time, cakes, cookies, bread. It’s much more nutricious. I use a mix of wholemeal spelt and regular spelt.
It has a lovely taste doesn’t it.
If you like spelt, ever heard of Kamut? It’s a bit similar.
Lovely post!
Of course! I didn’t even think to try a cookie dough. Hmmm tonight’s project I think!
Thank you lovely. I’ll look up Kamut. Never heard of it x
I will email my dutch friend and see if she has any ideas for you….
no promises though!
That’s really kind. Thank you 🙂
I love that you’ve tried to recreate the gorgeous cookies you found – it’s so annoying when you don’t have a recipe to work from. Hopefully some fellow foodies will help you in your hunt!
ps I’ve seen Kamut in Waitrose before x
I’ve been overwhelmed by how far the feedback got. A friend of a friend of a friend has suggested adding eggs and butter to the recipe and I think trying a biscuit dough will also work so I’ll be blogging it as soon as I crack it!
They look delicious! I have a bag of spelt flour waiting to be baked with in the cupboard too… I hope you discover your perfect recipe too. It’s exciting to be creating your own recipe from taste too. I’m not always sure where to start and one thing I really would love to create at home from my travels is Maple Leaf cakes from Hiroshima that are filled with bean paste or custard. I need to find a recipe and a method for this one 🙂 xx
Thanks Lauren. I’ll ask around about the Maple leaf cakes. Have lots of Japanese friends
THank you! That would be brilliant if you could ask your friends 🙂
Your spelt rolls look delicious. It’s an interesting experiment to recreate the speltbolletje, good luck. GG
Thank you x
this is the third time in a row just in one day today that i’ve seen a recipe using doves wholegrain spelt flour! I’ve used it before and really liked it, but then stopped after I finished the pack and then I forgot all about it! really think I should get a pack again soon as I can, I love that nutty wholesomeness of spelt.
Yes it’s very new to me to be honest as we use millet floor for the healthy kick. I’m loving it though
The food blogging world is wonderful at spreading food information and ingredients. I hope you manage to find a recipe, but I’m impressed with ou for having a go – they sound delicious. I’m loving seeing people starting to bake with spelt now. I’ve been using it for years and kamut too sometimes and have always been impressed with how well it performs in cakes. If you get the chance, try a stone milled spelt, it’s nutrient quota should be higher and of better quality.
I’ve tried many a time to recreate basbousa, but it just doesn’t ever turn out how I remembered it from Egypt.
I think food you recreate at home is never the same because the ambience is missing. I went to Sri Lanka and spent some time with the chefs in our hotel and bought the book they used in their training. It’s brilliant but difficult to follow without their guidance so I’ve rarely used it. I find baking easier to recreate but this one has really stumped me!