Bite: The province that keeps on giving
One Flemish province is encouraging people to give local products as gifts, and to cook with them as well
Robyn Boyle on Flemish food and drink
A basket of local products makes for the ideal Christmas gift, and many of the goodies from Flemish Brabant can be picked up at a long list of selling points throughout the province. And have you ever thought of putting a meal on the table over the holidays that incorporates some of these fine regional ingredients?
Flemish celebrity chef and Tervuren resident Jeroen De Pauw has, and his recipes are bundled into a new cookbook. As ambassador of the initiative to promote Flemish Brabant’s regional products, De Pauw wrote the cookbook Straffe Streekgerechten (Excellent Regional Dishes) to inspire people to do more with all that witloof and beer.
“People who buy a basket of regional products will get my handy recipe book along with it, so they can get creative in the kitchen with the local produce,” he told Het Nieuwsblad. “There’s a lot of cooking going on in Flanders during the festive season. And food tastes even better when it’s made with local ingredients.”
Along with the gift baskets and cookbook, the region’s also showing off its local products with a new Straffe Streek calendar, featuring surprising photographs of the products laden with artisanal allure. This year’s calendar highlights several products for their authenticity and purity, from jams and waffles to lambic beer and tripe. The photographs come from Studio Wauters, a top culinary photographer from Overijse.
For the most authentic holiday gift baskets, calendars and end-of-year cooking inspiration, head to one of the participating Flemish Brabant retailers – see the website for details.
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Beer & Food Writer
