Beschuit

Name Varitaions

 * Dutch rusk

About beschuit
Beschuit, also known as Dutch crispbakes, are light, round, rather crumbly, rusks as eaten in the Netherlands. It is customary to serve beschuit met muisjes (sprinkled with "little mice" which are anise seeds covered in white, pink or blue sugar) at the birth of a baby. Beschuit are also eaten as a breakfast food with a variety of toppings, most commonly butter and sprinkles in flavors like chocolate (chocoladehagel) or fruit(vruchtenhagel), or cheese. A longtime Dutch tradition is to serve strawberries on 'beschuit' usually topped with some sugar or whipped cream.

Beschuit is almost always sold in rolls; a roll typically has thirteen rusks (a baker's dozen). They are made by first baking a flat round bread (beschuitbol), slicing it, and then baking each half again, possibly at a lower heat, as in the oven after the main baking is over. Etymologically, biscotto (16c. Italian), biscuit (19th c., from 16th c. bisket) and beschuitje come from L. (panis) bis+coctus, (bread) twice cooked. The South African beskuit (Afrikaans) tradition derives from beschuit.