Many oliebollen are baked with dough prepared with milk. Unfortunately, a large part of the Dutch are allergic to milk or have a lactose intolerance. Baking oliebollen yourself can then be a good solution. You can make great tasty oliebollen with a recipe that uses soy milk. This makes the oliebollen also suitable for people with a cow’s milk allergy or lactose intolerance.
The history of the oliebol
The oliebol really is such a typical Dutch delicacy. The oliebol has been the biggest and tastiest treat around New Year’s Eve. The apple fritters come a close second. Recipes for making oliebollen have been in cookbooks for 350 years. The word oliebol can be found in the thick Van Dale since 1868. The history of apple fritters is much older. In classical times, the Franks ate ring-shaped baked goods at the end of a calendar year. The ring shape was chosen because it was thought that eating these ring-shaped baked goods would bring good luck. No one knows for sure when the first oliebollen were baked. Although there are good indications that the first oliebollen date from the time of the Batavians and the Frisians. These two peoples offered food in fried dough to the Germanic goddess Perchta every year between Boxing Day and three kings. Chances are that the oliebol were created, so decomposed accordingly. However, other options are also conceivable. However, it is not known for sure how the current oliebol first came into existence.
Oilcake
So there is no clear story to tell about the origin of the oliebol. Probably the very first oliebollen recipe was mentioned in a cookbook from the 15th century. Although this oliebol resembles our current oliebol in terms of ingredients, it was quite different in shape. The oliebol mentioned in the cookbook from the 15th century was flat instead of round and was called oil cake at the time.
Smoutebol
The oliebol is also available in Belgium under the name smoutebol. This oliebol is somewhat smaller in size. Smoutebollen are often sold in a bag, just like fries, with the addition of powdered sugar and a wooden fork. In countries such as Germany and Spain they also have delicacies that resemble our oliebol, but are different in size and have country-specific names.
Oliebollen with currants
An oliebol as we know it is a deep-fried ball of dough that is inextricably linked to New Year’s Eve in the Netherlands, although the oliebol is available at fairs and fair activities almost all year round. In some cases one or more other spices are added to the dough. Oliebollen with currants are the best known, but oliebollen with apple or pineapple are also a popular delicacy in the Netherlands. This is in contrast to Belgium, where the oliebollen are often eaten plain, so without additives.
Oliebollen recipe without milk
Ingredients: (For about 50 oliebollen)
- 800 grams of wheat flour
- 45 grams of yeast
- 8 grams of salt
- 1 liter Soy milk (natural at room temperature)
- 150 grams of currants
- 150 grams of raisins
- rum
- 1 thick golden rennet
- 1 teaspoon of cinnamon
- Vanilla sugar
Preparation method
Wash the raisins and put them in a bowl. Add the rum and let the rum soak completely in the raisins for about 2 hours. Wash the currants and let them soak with water in the same time. Peel the golden rennet and cut it into small cubes, then sprinkle the cubes of apple with cinnamon. Grab a large pan and add the yeast and 500ml soy milk. Stir until smooth and add the rest of the soy milk. Make sure the soy milk is at room temperature so as not to aggravate the fermentation process. Add the flour, salt and vanilla sugar and mix with the mixer until smooth. Add the raisins, apple and currants and mix well again. Put the pan aside and place a wet tea towel over it. The dough will now rise. With a good rising process, the volume can increase 2 times. Make sure the dough is in a warm place and definitely not in a draft.
After about an hour you can start baking. Make sure the oil has a temperature of 180 degrees Celsius.
Fry the oliebollen in portions of about 5 oliebollen. Bake these nicely brown and done for about 5 minutes.