A food guide to the typical Dutch circle birthday party
I love Dutch culture. Sinterklaas, King’s Day, skating on natural ice, eating bitterballen… Love it. But if there’s one thing I’m really not crazy about, it’s the way the Dutch celebrate birthdays. The typical Dutch circle birthday party—can’t we do things differently? Probably not, so it’s a case of: if you can’t beat them, join them: this is your food guide to the typical Dutch circle birthday party.
The kind of birthday party where you literally sit in a circle, like a static game of musical chairs without the music, always sitting just next to that creepy neighbour or awkward uncle. It’s the kind of birthday party where everyone sits around the dining or coffee table with snacks, so everyone can reach them easily. And if you can’t reach something, the bowl is simply passed around the circle. Until it has passed through everyone’s hands and you can happily dig in again.
What are you digging into? I’ve listed it all for you below. If you’re now thinking: I want to organise a Dutch circle birthday party this year too (which I seriously doubt), then this is your food guide. Your shopping list. Otherwise, it’s simply a fun trip down memory lane. Secretly, I hope it’s the latter for you.
Cheerful cheese and sausage skewers
The mood-makers on the table: cubes of cheese and sausage! We keep the cheese nice and simple: cubes of Gouda. For the sausage, we prefer slices of liver sausage or Gelderland sausage. You know the ones, with that slippery red edge around them. If the birthday host is feeling generous, they’ll stick wooden cocktail sticks into them. That keeps your fingers from getting too greasy. Sometimes they get creative and thread a pickled pearl onion onto the skewer too. Honestly: do you ever eat pickled pearl onions anywhere else, except when they’re on a cheese skewer at a circle birthday party?
Pickles with salami
I really wonder who first thought of wrapping a slice of salami around a mini pickle. Because honestly, it actually tastes pretty good. The tanginess of the pickle goes quite well with the spiciness of the salami. See, you can make anything sound culinary with enough enthusiasm.
Cocktail nuts
Of course! Cocktail nuts! And I mean those mixed nuts that come in three colours in the bowl: white, orange and brown. Does anyone actually know what the difference between those colours is? Because to me, they all taste the same. High-class circle birthday party organisers go for Duyvis cocktail nuts, but usually people simply choose the supermarket’s own brand. Just as tasty.
Salted breadsticks
You never eat salted breadsticks, until you show up at the infamous circle birthday party. Because they’re easy, addictive and cost next to nothing. They’re usually served in a brightly coloured IKEA cup. Very convenient, because those breadsticks are actually quite long. For a change, you could serve cheese sticks. But not the ones from the supermarket bakery—those dry, slightly too chewy sticks from the snack aisle.
Devilled eggs
If you feel like doing a little more work than simply filling bowls with cocktail nuts and crisps, you can make devilled eggs. This appetiser dates back to the 1970s and has been a fixture at Dutch circle birthday parties ever since. You make them by mixing the hard-boiled yolk with mayonnaise, curry powder, salt and pepper. Put that mixture in a piping bag, then pipe it back into the hollow of the hard-boiled egg, where the yolk used to be. Did you know devilled eggs are also called mimosa eggs? I really do prefer a different kind of mimosa, sorry.
Plain and paprika crisps
Well, what can you really say about those? Easy and always a hit. Everyone likes plain and paprika crisps. Some people make things exciting by choosing ridged crisps. And every now and then, someone really colours outside the lines by adding a bowl of bolognese-flavoured crisps or wokkels. You just shouldn’t think too hard about everyone rummaging around in those bowls with their saliva-covered fingers (yes, you do it too when you’ve been eating crisps).
Slices of cucumber and tomatoes
The healthy section of the circle birthday party table, especially for the dieting aunt or ultra-healthy distant cousin. Of course, you can’t live on greasy sausage, sweet cake and salty breadsticks all afternoon, so there has to be some compensation. To a certain extent, anyway. Every now and then, a bowl of dipping sauce is added too. You know the kind: powdered dips that you mix with mayonnaise. Disgustingly delicious.
Deep-fried snack platter
Is it 5 p.m.? Then it’s time for fried snacks. Large frikandellen and croquettes are awkward to eat, and making chips takes too much effort. So we go for the middle ground: a mixed snack platter. Small bites with something for everyone. Including a bami snack, which is always sadly left until last. Oh, and if you’re lucky? Bread rolls with croquettes (or mini frankfurters) will be handed out. On those soft white rolls, with a generous dollop of mayo on top. Once again, disgustingly delicious.
HEMA cake
Don’t forget the sweet section of the table! In the Netherlands, there’s a very good chance that at a circle birthday party—or actually any kind of birthday party—you’ll get a slice of HEMA cake. Sometimes a tompouce, but we actually think that’s more of a King’s Day thing. No, we’re going for a delicious cream cake. And if we want to tease the birthday boy or girl, we’ll also have one of those silly photos printed on it. Ha-ha!
Apple crumble tart from Appie
No one, and I mean NO ONE, doesn’t like Appie’s apple crumble tart. Trust me. Ask around and everyone’s mouth will start watering. Your circle birthday party can’t go wrong (you were already going there reluctantly) if you get a slice with those deliciously large crunchy chunks of pastry on top. But you do have to be lucky that the slice hasn’t already been passed to Aunt Annie or Uncle Kees.
Happy birthday!
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