Speculoos Part 1

The first time I tried a speculoos biscuit I was unprepared, and unaware of the magnitude of the event that was taking place.  Yes I may be being a little dramatic, but I consider this to be a key moment of my culinary journey in France.

It was in the Parc du Château de Saint-Germain en-Laye, and I was with the four little boys I used to look after when I worked as a nanny.  The boys had enjoyed a magnificent afternoon, feeding the resident chevres, riding the merry-go-round and now it was time for a well-earnt goûter.

Whilst the children chose ice-creams and various other treats, I opted for an espresso (it had been a long day).  For a paltry one euro, I received not only a decent-tasting coffee, but a generous two pack of speculoos biscuits.  I think I was on some diet or another at the time, and so and automatically pushed the biscuits aside as unnecessary calories, thinking they were in the equivalent of the ubiquitous ‘Arnott’s Family Assorted’ in Australia.

Luckily, my resolve is not as strong as I may wish, and two sips into my coffee I gave in to temptation.   And what a good move that was.  The biscuit was deliciously crumbly, with a sweet yet complex gingerbread-esque flavour.

That evening, thrilled with my discovery I rushed to tell Max about these delicious biscuits over dinner.  Had he known they existed?  If so, why had he been keeping such a thing from me?  He laughed, and told me that he’d been eating them since he was little.  Coming from the north of France, near the Belgium border, speculoos was very much a part of his childhood.  He and his brothers used to go one step further and eat the biscuits with a piece of Côte d’Or chocolate.

Sound delicious?  Stay tuned for many other tempting ways you can enjoy speculoos.

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Biscuit packet image courtesy of wisdomlight on Flickr.