Schuimpjes are small, soft, airy sweets made mainly from sugar and gelatine. The mixture is whipped, coloured and flavoured, then poured into moulds where it sets into light foam shapes. They come in many colours and themed shapes and are sold loose, in bags, and as part of old-Dutch candy mixes. The Dutch confectioner Schuttelaar, in Waddinxveen, has made them since 1918.
Two kinds of schuimpje
The word has two meanings in Dutch, which causes some confusion. In the sweet shop a schuimpje is the soft gelatine foam sweet described here. In the kitchen, a schuimpje is a meringue: egg white whisked with sugar, piped into small shapes and dried in a low oven until crisp. Bakeries sell both, and home recipes for schuimpjes are almost always meringue recipes.
Shapes and occasions
Schuimpjes are made in seasonal and themed shapes and are especially associated with Christmas, Easter and Sinterklaas, when they are used as strooigoed — sweets scattered for children. In Flanders similar sweets are often called guimauves, and Mary-shaped versions are known as Onze-Lieve-Vrouwtjes or Mariaatjes. Larger rectangular foam pieces are sold as schuimblokken.
Relatives
Schuimpjes are close cousins of spekkies, the Dutch marshmallow, which uses a similar sugar-and-gelatine foam but is extruded and cut rather than moulded. Because most schuimpjes contain gelatine they are not vegetarian; gelatine-free versions exist, so check the label.