Belgian cookies

After all this talk about Champagne and wine, a post about food seems a good idea. How about Belgian chocolate biscuits or cookies? Belgium’s oldest and best known brand is probably Delacre. As the text on the box shows this ‘patissier’ has been active since 1891.

It all began in the first half of the 19th century when a pharmacist, Charles Delacre, started selling chocolate as a tonic to people suffering from physical weakness or a state of general fatigue. This business proved to be very successful, and very soon Charles abandoned his pharmacy and concentrated on the production of chocolate.

Between 1870 en 1890 he created several ‘sub-brands’, one of which was called ‘Les chocolates Roi et Reine’ (The King’s and Queen’s chocolates). The lid of the metal box in which the chocolates were sold, was adorned with the portraits Belgium’s second King Leopold II and his wife Queen Marie-Henriette. This earned Charles Delacre the prestigious title of ‘Certified supplier of the Royal Court of Belgium’, a title the current company still holds.

Delacre's special Chocolate Collection.

Between 1891 and 1905 the company also started specializing in biscuits/cookies. Since then new creations have been added to the assortment. The most famous of all the Delacre cookies is undoubtedly the ‘cigarette russe’ (the Russian cigarette). It’s a thin, crispy round biscuit that has been rolled in the shape of a bulky cigarette. It’s a great classic and used as a standard accompaniment to the ‘Dame Blanche’ ice cream. It’s considered as very delicate and sophisticated. I remember my grandmother serving it on New Year’s Day with a glass of Champagne.

The ‘patissier’ has also maintained the tradition of creating special series of commemorative ‘Royal boxes’ whenever a member of royal family is born, marries or dies. As it’s always a limited edition, the boxes are real collector’s items and are very sought after.

I bought the above box last week. Although it’s made of cardboard, it is a limited series that was developed for the Holiday season. All cookies have chocolate as a main ingredient or at least a chocolate coating. My guests were particularly fond of a special ‘cigarette russe’ which looked more like a ‘cigar’ as the dough was clearly made with half flower, half cacao powder.

However, in spite of its solid Belgian roots, Delacre has not escaped the ‘Europeanization’ (if such a word exists?!). To my complete surprise, dare I say horror, I noticed that the bar code on the box started with the figure 3, indicating, that these ‘Belgian Biscuits’ were manufactured in … France. Well, why bother … there are worst places in the world than France, aren’t there?

Can you get Delacre cookies in your country? And do you know where they are made?

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