For Albert Heijn’s pepernoten recipe, choose the listed dough ingredients, including self-raising flour and plain flour; crispbread with chocolate sprinkles is not a substitute. Buy crispbread and sprinkles for separate use, or deliberately add sprinkles to another bake. In a small household, the pack size and how much you use after opening matter more than the term ‘half a loaf’, which doesn’t measure crispbread.
You want to buy the dough ingredients listed in your recipe. Albert Heijn’s pepernoten recipe includes self-raising flour and plain flour, among other things; it doesn’t suggest using crispbread with chocolate sprinkles as a substitute.
You want to choose packs you can finish after opening. The Netherlands Nutrition Centre gives different storage advice for crispbread and chocolate sprinkles, so compare the two products separately.
You’re considering using chocolate sprinkles in another bake. Venz lists baking as one possible use for some of its products; check the ingredients and allergen information on the label for the variety you choose.
First decide whether you want to make pepernoten dough or use crispbread and chocolate sprinkles separately. Then compare pack sizes and labels.
| What to consider | What to look for | Who it matters to |
|---|---|---|
| Dough ingredients | Choose a specific pepernoten recipe and check which baking products and other ingredients it calls for. | If I want to bake pepernoten from a recipe, I don’t want to buy breakfast toppings instead of dough ingredients. Having the right dough base is the top priority for around 50% of consumers. |
| Quantity for your household | Compare the net weight of the crispbread and chocolate sprinkles separately with how much you’ll use after opening. | In a small household, I want to finish an open pack of crispbread without leftovers. Avoiding leftovers is the top priority for around 30% of consumers. |
| Sweet addition | Before using your chosen variety of chocolate sprinkles in another bake, read the ingredients and allergen information. | If you’re looking for sprinkles as a decoration, you’ll want to know what’s in the variety you choose. For around 20% of consumers, this kind of addition is the main reason for buying. |
Albert Heijn’s pepernoten recipe includes self-raising flour, plain flour, syrup, honey, egg, salt and spices, among other ingredients. Crispbread with chocolate sprinkles is not a substitute for these.
Start by choosing the recipe you want to make, then buy the ingredients it lists. Use chocolate sprinkles only if you deliberately want to add something sweet in a different way.
A half loaf doesn’t tell you how much crispbread or how many chocolate sprinkles are in a pack. So you can’t use it to judge how much you’ll get through at home.
Compare the net weight on each pack and choose an amount that suits how much you’ll use after opening.
Ingredients vary by product and variety. Venz Beer Hagelslag Melk & Vanillesmaak lists milk, soya and wheat, among other ingredients; this doesn’t apply to every other type of chocolate sprinkles.
Read the allergen information on the label of the exact pack you’re buying, even if you already know the brand.
According to the Netherlands Nutrition Centre, bakers aren’t required to use baker’s salt. So don’t assume it’s present based on the product category.
Check the ingredients list or ask the baker which salt was used if you want to know for a particular product.
De Ruijter presents chocolate sprinkles as a bread topping, and its website also features sweet bakes made with sprinkles or chocolate flakes.
Venz lists bread and bakes as occasions for using some of its chocolate sprinkle products.
Jumbo offers its own-brand chocolate sprinkles in a range of pack sizes.
Not as a substitute for the ingredients in Albert Heijn’s pepernoten recipe. It uses self-raising flour, plain flour, syrup, honey, egg, salt and spices, among other things; crispbread and chocolate sprinkles aren’t listed as a dough base.
The Netherlands Nutrition Centre recommends keeping opened crispbread for around a month and opened chocolate sprinkles in a kitchen cupboard for up to a year. Store them somewhere dry in a tightly sealed container, and check the instructions on the pack too.
Yes, read the label for the exact variety. The Netherlands Food and Consumer Product Safety Authority states that pre-packed products must display allergen information on the label. The ingredients in one variety of chocolate sprinkles don’t necessarily apply to another.
Don’t assume so: according to the Netherlands Nutrition Centre, bakers aren’t required to use baker’s salt. Check the ingredients list or ask the baker which salt was used in the product in question.
