De Zotte Morgen

Enjoy a bite of spicy biscuit at De Zotte Morgen

What should definitely be on your shopping list when you go to artisanal bakery De Zotte Morgen? Croissants! Because they are the tastiest in the province of Antwerp. Bread! Because all their breads are homemade, handmade and organic. And speculoos! Because that’s exactly how Margaret of Austria liked her spicy biscuits.

Ode to World Trade in the Renaissance

Robin Van Vaek: ‘Crunchy on the outside and soft on the inside: that’s a typical Mmm ... Mechelen speculoos. What makes the biscuit special is that we use the zest and juice of lemon and orange. The biscuit is therefore a symbol of trade and the new influences in the Renaissance. Via the ports from distant lands, spices like ginger and nutmeg reached our city as did citrus fruits from Italy and Spain. And that opened up a whole new world. Not only do we use the classic biscuit spices, but we also added a touch of hot black pepper on the advice of The Food Archaeologist, just like the 16th-century biscuit bakers.’

‘With their Mechelen speculoos, De Zotte Morgen takes you back to the Renaissance period in Mechelen. At that time, the port of Antwerp grew into a hub for European traders. The Portuguese traded spices there, especially from the Far East. Spices such as cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg and cardamom also ended up here in Mechelen. Not for the common people, but for the nobility. That’s because those spices travelled a long way, sometimes for a period of months, and were therefore expensive.’

 

Jeroen Van Vaerenbergh, The Food Archaeologist

Sustainable, organic bakery

Robin Van Vaek: ‘De Zotte Morgen stands for good bread: good for the environment and good for your health. We only use Belgian, organic and fantastically good flour. There is less sugar and salt in our products. And we let the bread rise more slowly with natural sourdough. What if we try out new seeds and kernels? Then we first check the origin before we sell it in the shop. So as a customer you can be sure of a good product.’

Mechelen Botanical Gardens

Robin Van Haek: ‘One of my favourite places in Mechelen is the Botanical Gardens. It’s a resting point as well as a meeting place. When I was in college, I hung out there with friends. You also see a lot of parents with their children.’

Did you know that Mechelen’s Botanical Gardens existed back in the Middle Ages? At that time there were no students or children around, but knights of a military spiritual order. Because it was the private botanical garden of the Pitzemburg Commandery. In the park today there is a statue of Rembert Dodoens, probably the most famous historical figure from Mechelen. His father cared for Margaret of Austria on her deathbed and he himself donated the Cruydeboeck to the world, thus becoming a pioneer in botany.