Easter eggs
There are many traditions associated with Easter, such as eating Easter eggs. But why do we eat eggs and not meatballs, for example? Ineke Strouken, former director of the Knowledge Center for Intangible Heritage Netherlands, adds One today about Easter traditions.
According to Ineke, the egg has been part of Easter since the fourth century. “An egg is a symbol of fertility in Christianity. In addition, eating eggs was important at Easter because it was known to strengthen you. That was necessary after harsh winters with little food. The chickens didn’t lay as many eggs in the winter, but by the time Easter came, there was a surplus of eggs. The farmers therefore painted the eggs and distributed them as gifts to the poor.”
Chocolate easter eggs
Of course, the chocolate Easter eggs should not be missing in this chapter. These delicacies were only invented in Paris in the eighteenth century, according to the website chocolate-paradijs.nl. The confectioners in Paris came up with a luxurious variant of the age-old egg tradition: a chocolate egg. The confectioners held competitions with each other for the most beautiful chocolate egg. The competitions made the candy more and more popular among the general population. The tradition of chocolate eggs during Easter was born.
In Zoetermeer you can get chocolate eggs in many places. Such as at Maison Kelder, or at Choko Toko or in the supermarket. Read here where you can buy special Easter eggs in Zoetermeer.
The Easter Bunny
Another well-known tradition is the Easter bunny. But how does this cheerful figure fit into the Christian celebration? Well, not actually… The Easter bunny as we know it has only been known in the Netherlands since 1825. According to Ineke, the Dutch didn’t like the Easter bunny at first, because he came from the unknown German culture. At a certain point he made his entry into our country through a children’s book translated from German.
Now we can especially enjoy a delicious chocolate Easter bunny that you can buy at bakery Ammerlaan or Leonidas, for example can get.
But what do Easter and hares have in common? Ineke: “A hare is busy with reproduction early in the spring, which is very fertile. From a non-Christian point of view, Easter represents fertility and reproduction.”
Easter breakfast
Whether you are religious or not, Easter breakfast should not be missed during Easter! Whether you eat painted eggs, freshly squeezed orange juice or Easter stollen: you can unpack for Easter breakfast! Was that also the case before?
According to Ineke, this was certainly the case in the past: “Many people fasted before Easter. In addition, a major cleaning of the house and the land took place. The winter clothes went in the closet and the summer clothes went out. After all this work, of course, you were hungry. A lot of eating and partying go very well together. We eat maybe one or two eggs, you used to eat ten or fifteen.”
Don’t feel like making your own Easter breakfast or brunch? Perhaps there is still room in one of the Zoetermeer catering establishments:
