If one of your guests has coeliac disease, choose speculaas with a clear gluten-free label and check the current packaging for warnings about cereals containing gluten. Pre-packaged biscuits are ready to hand out, with no baking required. Baking your own gives you more freedom over their shape and quantity, but you’ll need to check every ingredient and guard against gluten crumbs. Whichever option you choose, check for any other allergens that may be relevant to a guest.
You’re looking for speculaas with a gluten-free label that you can store and hand out separately from regular biscuits. The Dutch Coeliac Society highlights the importance of checking for warnings about cereals containing gluten and the risk of cross-contamination.
You want to buy pre-packaged speculaas, keep the packaging to hand and have the biscuits ready without any baking. Albert Heijn and Jumbo both describe a ready-to-eat gluten-free speculaas option in a 125 g pack.
You want to choose the shape and quantity yourself, and have time to check the ingredients, work surface and kitchen utensils carefully. Jumbo’s gluten-free speculaas recipe is one way to make them; remember to check every individual ingredient in the recipe too.
First, check the gluten-free label and any warnings on the packaging. Then decide whether you want ready-made biscuits or have time to bake your own.
| What to consider | What to look for | Who it matters to |
|---|---|---|
| Gluten-free labelling and crumbs | Read the gluten-free label and any warnings about cereals containing gluten; keep the biscuits separate from regular treats. | If someone with coeliac disease is taking part, I want to know which biscuits I can store and hand out separately. This reassurance is the top priority for around 36% of consumers. |
| Ready to hand out | Check the packaging and choose a way of portioning the biscuits that suits the group. | When there’s little time to prepare, I want to be able to set out biscuits without having to bake them first. For around 29% of consumers, convenience when handing them out is the deciding factor. |
| Other allergens | Check the current packaging for both ‘contains’ and ‘may contain’ statements for any allergens relevant to your guests. | If a guest has another food allergy too, I want to take it into account when choosing. For around 21% of consumers, this extra check matters most. |
| Baking your own | Check every ingredient, allow time for preparation, and use a clean work surface and clean kitchen utensils. | If I want biscuits in my own Easter shapes, I want to decide how many to bake, even if it takes some preparation. Around 14% of consumers value having this freedom above all else. |
According to their product information, both AH Glutenvrij Speculaas and Jumbo Lekker Vrij van Gluten Speculaas contain egg and list other possible allergens. A gluten-free label doesn’t tell you anything about those.
Ask which other allergens are relevant to your guests, and check the ‘contains’ and ‘may contain’ statements on the packaging of the biscuits you’re handing out.
On its product pages for Schär Gluten Free Speculoos and Consenza Glutenvrije Speculaasjes, Jumbo stated that these products were no longer part of its online range. An earlier product description doesn’t tell you whether you can buy the biscuits now.
Check current availability and read the packaging of the product you actually choose.
Gluten crumbs can get onto home-baked biscuits from the work surface, kitchen utensils or storage. The Dutch Coeliac Society describes this as cross-contamination.
Use ingredients confirmed to be gluten-free, a clean work surface, clean kitchen utensils, fresh baking paper and a separate storage container. Check decorations separately too.
Albert Heijn describes AH Glutenvrij Speculaas as ready-to-eat biscuits in a 125 g pack.
Jumbo describes Lekker Vrij van Gluten Speculaas as a ready-to-eat option in a 125 g pack.
Jumbo described Schär Gluten Free Speculoos 100 g as gluten-free speculaas.
Jumbo described Consenza Glutenvrije Speculaasjes as a 100 g pack.
According to the Dutch Coeliac Society, a product labelled ‘gluten-free’ contains less than 20 mg of gluten per kg of product. If a guest has coeliac disease, don’t choose a product based only on its ingredients list if it doesn’t carry that label.
Not necessarily: gluten can also get into a product through cross-contamination. According to the Dutch Coeliac Society, a warning such as ‘may contain cereals containing gluten’ indicates a real risk that the product contains more than 20 mg of gluten per kg. If so, choose another option for the guest with coeliac disease.
Keep the biscuits sealed and separate from regular biscuits, and hand them out with clean hands or separate utensils. Don’t put them in the same bowl or bag as other biscuits, to prevent gluten crumbs getting onto them.
No. Always check the specific product and current packaging for a gluten-free label, relevant warnings and other allergens. The ALDI option described is filled speculaas; in October 2026, Lidl reported that its additional gluten-free products were not available at the time. So check that the product you want to hand out is actually available too.
