A Family That Hagelslags Together…

Full disclosure: for the past 10 years, I’ve basically been the shitty dad from every kids’ movie who misses the important Little League game.

Not that my kids have ever been in Little League baseball. But you get the picture. I spent almost 10 years on call for my previous job, 24x7x365, on call every morning, night, weekend, even taking calls on the rare occasion when I did take a vacation (about a week every other year).

I recently changed jobs, and even though my current job takes up much more of my attention while I am in the office, I do get to go home and relax and not always have to worry about canceling plans due to a problem at work. I do still spend some time on call, but only 1 week out of every 6. During my downtime, I’m trying to spend more time with my family.I’ve started to realize that my kids are damn near grown up. They’re amazing people, but I don’t know them nearly as well as I should, and it’s well past time.

I’m still too wrapped up in work all the time, and loath to take any time off. Sooner or later, I’ll get it through my head that vacations are necessary and deserved, and that I need to get away from work, not just a few hours or a day here and there as a kind of steam valve, but for meaningful lengths of time spent with the people I love, having new (or any) experiences together.

The kids are at this moment having amazing experiences with their grandparents and cousins on the other side of the country from me. My wife’s parents live in eastern Washington, south of Spokane, on a little farm where they keep various animals; have an orchard with nearly year-round yields of all kinds of plums, berries, apricots, and other fruits; and some of the most beautiful flowers you can imagine.

This farm in Washington state is where I generally spend my week-or-so-every-other-year on vacation, and though I hadn’t been there in a couple of years, since Mindy and I have both recently started new jobs, we only took a short weekend this time around. Of course, being a multitasker (well, more of a serial monotasker, but I digress), I had to work in some sandwiches while I was there. To the appreciation and enjoyment of my kids, my niece, and my nephews, I made Dutch Hagelslag.

What is Hagelslag? Well, you remember Fairy Bread from a few months back? Hagelslag is the Dutch version. I’m not sure what Australian sprinkles (or hundreds-and-thousands) are like, but the Dutch are pretty proud of theirs, and it isn’t uncommon for adults as well as children to enjoy them on buttered bread as a treat. This time around, I figured to really understand what it was all about, I’d have to acquire the real deal instead of using the American equivalent.

Again, as with Fairy Bread, the assembly of these sandwiches is simple. The sprinkles are adhered to plain white bread by a simple smear of softened butter.

I acquired three varieties, at some expense and in greater quantity than my actual needs: milk chocolate, dark chocolate, and fruit.

The milk chocolate looked pretty much like any chocolate sprinkle you might get in the US, uniformly sized brown tubes of sugar.

The dark chocolate really was quite dark, and also uniformly shaped.

The fruit sprinkles came in 3 or 4 pastel colors, and were in appearance more dried-out and broken than the chocolate types, whether due to age/handling or simply a lower fat content than the chocolate ones.

I set them out for lunch on our one full day at the farm, and let the kids have at them. It didn’t take long for the adults to join in.

“I didn’t know sprinkles could actually taste like things,” said Damian, a sentiment echoed by many. The milk chocolate was mild but chocolatey, while the dark chocolate had that rich bitter delicious dark chocolate flavor. The fruit flavor, though, was a favorite–not just colored sugar, but a sort of candied citrus/berry flavor. It’s not an overwhelming flavor, but the fact that it tastes like fruit at all is a revelation. I wish I’d sought out the anise-flavored kind as well, as I bet they’re a kick in the teeth.

Buying Dutch candy like this requires ordering in bulk, and I ended up getting far more than I needed for this post. Doing a plate of Hagelslag only uses maybe 1/3 of a box, and I have 3-4 boxes total of each flavor. However, I don’t think I’ll have much of a problem going through it all. Especially once the kids are back from vacation.

I may have to ship some to their cousins as well. It might be nice to be the favorite uncle for a while.