They say an army marches on its stomach, and Outwater's is no different. While at major events, we try very hard to cook authentic 18th century recipes, using 18th century methods, using what is in season, like our fore mothers and fathers would have done. For the recipe this month, I decided to share a unit favorite - Olie Bollen. This doughnut type pastry has been part of Dutch cuisine dating back to times well before the 1700's.
In her book, Food, Drink and Celebrations of the Hudson Valley Dutch, food historian and author Peter Rose discusses this deep-fried delicacy in depth, noting that both the name and recipes have changed over the course of the last 300 or so years. There are many recipes available for Olie Bollen, and the one below is my favorite. Note that it does not use yeast, like many other recipes do.
Olie Bollen
Ingredients:
• 3 Cups flour, an • 3/4 cup sugar • 1 tsp baking soda • 1 tsp baking powder • 1/2 tsp salt • 2 eggs • 1 1/2 cups buttermilk • Raisins, or other dried fruit, if desired.
Directions:
• Mix all ingredients together in a large mixing bowl, making sure to stir out all the lumps • Add dried fruit, and mix thoroughly to distribute throughout the batter. • Fry them by the teaspoon full, dropped in hot oil until they're golden brown. • Roll the finished Olie Bollen in either powdered sugar, white sugar, or my favorite, cinnamon and sugar, while they're still hot! • Enjoy!!!
Your humble camp cook,
Andrea