Making Stroopwafels

Posted on by Stephen Edwards

Holland, Michigan

Stroopwafels are a Dutch staple, and at the Nelis Dutch Village, all kids ages 3-15 received a free ticket on entry to make their own stroopwafel.

First, the boys rolled the dough into a small dough ball. The dough balls were already made, but it does help with the illusion of helping a younger child feel like they are making a stroopwafel. Wyatt stepped in for Simon because he only wanted to eat a stroopwafel, but not make a stroopwafel.

Stroopwafels are made by taking a small dough ball and pressing it on a thin waffle iron.  The waffle iron is pressed down until you have a thin waffle that is golden brown in color on both sides. The waffle is taken off the iron and placed on a cutting board. To get the distinctive circular shape, a circular ring is placed over the waffle. The excess is cut away with a knife to create a round waffle. The waffle is cut in half when caramel is applied to the center of the two circles. The waffle is pressed together and served warm.

Once the waffle is golden brown on both sides, it is removed from the iron and sliced in half. The employee never turned loose of their spatula/sharp knife combo tool.

Stroopwafels are relatively simple to make, but the only steps the children were required to follow were to roll the dough ball, drop it onto the waffle iron, specify how much caramel they would like, and then consume them. As a marketing idea, it worked because the rest of us purchased a Stroopwafel, and we bought a bag to go. Still, the coupons are a great way to introduce children to a treat to which they might not be accustomed.

Henry is applying the circle cut on his waffle. The leftovers are fed to the ducks that reside in the park.

Stroopwafels have been a favorite of mine for several years, but I have not had one as fresh as what we received at the Nelis Dutch Village. I’m looking forward to comparing them to those found on a future trip to the Netherlands.

All of us added extra caramel to our stroopwafels. Extra sugar for the same price, yes please.
Finally, the Stroopwafel is complete. A hot stroopwafel is a delicious treat and if I was in charge of running concessions again, I would strongly recommend these as an option as they make little mess, can be cooked to order, are easy to eat with your hands, and unique enough in the United States that someone would buy them for the novelty. As for stroopwafels in the store, I have found them recently at Aldi, Lidl, and World Market.

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