This insanely common breakfast dish in the Netherlands made of bread and sprinkles is always a culture shock to non-Dutch visitors.
Equipment | No Equipment Needed |
Difficulty | Very Easy |
Here is a breakfast meal idea straight from the Netherlands.
It's hard to emphasize exactly how popular this dish is. There is an entire section at my very tiny grocery store dedicated solely to hagelslag. You can find sprinkles and chocolate shavings of all colors and flavors. White chocolate, milk chocolate, dark chocolate, mixed fruit, caramel, candy-coated anise seeds, ginger cookie crumbles, etc...all for topping on your breakfast bread! Even the cafeteria at my husband's work offers hagelslag as a popular breakfast meal option!
As long as you check your ingredients list, this can easily be a breakfast for vegans too!
Lovingly called "toast sprinkles" by my sisters, who adore this breakfast dish, hagelslag is pretty versatile. The most traditional way to eat it is just butter on bread with the sprinkles, but my Dutch friends have also recommended using peanut butter or chocolate paste instead of regular butter.
How do you pronounce the name of this breakfast recipe?
The Dutch use a guttural "G" that is pronounced in the back of the throat, which adds difficulty to the pronunciation. Otherwise it is pronounced "hah-ghull-slah-gh". Someone once described the "G" sound as "it should be pronounced as if you're about to spit on someone". Someone else described it as "the sound of choking on a cactus". The severity of the "G" also depends on whether you are from the North or the South of the country.
Breakfast recipe, quick snack, or easy dessert.
This recipe is more than just a breakfast recipe. Its very fast assembly and short ingredient list make it a great choice also as a snack or dessert. Especially when you just want a little tasty treat!
Behold! A photo of the toast sprinkles section at the petite neighborhood grocery store!
The most popular brand.
The sprinkles here in the Netherlands tend to be a better quality than the options in America, and De Ruijter is the most popular brand of sprinkles for hagelslag. My sisters have looked around in American grocery stores trying to find this specific product, and my older sister successfully found it in 99 Ranch, a chain of Asian grocery stores, strangely enough! Though it was much marked up in price.
Gather your ingredients. You can choose to toast your bread, or not, it is entirely a personal choice. Spread a thin layer on your bread of your choice between butter, peanut butter, or chocolate paste. Evenly distribute a layer of chocolate sprinkles or chocolate flakes on top of the bread.
Enjoy!
What do I serve with this breakfast recipe?
I personally find hagelslag to be really sweet, so I like to pair it with coffee or tea because the bitterness can help balance the sweetness. I think it is almost better to eat this as a quick snack or easy dessert than as a breakfast, but I am also not Dutch!
Here are some ideas for things to go with this simple dish:
Coffee
Tea
Orange Juice
Breakfast Casseroles
Fruit Salad
Yogurt
Overnight Oats
Bananas
Etc.
Storage.
This recipe doesn't store well, so it should be eaten shortly after being made.
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