Celtnet Netherlands (Dutch) Recipes and Cookery, Home Page

The Netherlands, offilicially Koninkrijk der Nederlanden (The Kingdom of the Netherlands) is a Parliamentary democracy and Constitutional monarchy on the North Sea coast of Western Europe. The capital and largest city is Amsterdam and Dutch is the official language. The Netherlands is often called 'Holland' in English-speaking countries, but this is formally incorrect as North and South Holland represent only two of the Netherland's twelve provinces. The original inhabitants of the country seem to have been a mix of Germanic and Celtic tribes but by the fifth century CE the Franks dominated the country and it is from here they established the Merovingian dynasty. But from the eighth to the fifteenth century the low Countries (Modern-day Belgium, the Netherlands, part of Western Germany and Luxembourg) were divided into petty counties, duchies and diocese that were only united by the imposition of Habsburg rule in the 16th Century. The Counter-Reformation following the success of Calvinism in the Netherlands, and the attempts to centralise government and suppress religious diversity led to a revolt against Philip II of Spain. On 26 July 1581, independence was declared, and finally recognised after the Eighty Years' War (1568–1648). The years of the war also marked the beginning of the Dutch Golden Age, a period of great commercial and cultural prosperity roughly spanning the 17th century. This established the Netherlands as one of Europe's great Sea-faring Nations. After the French occupation at the beginning of the 19th century, the Netherlands started out as a monarchy, governed by the House of Orange. However, after a conservative period, strong liberal sentiments could no longer be ignored, and the country became a parliamentary democracy with a constitutional monarch in 1848. It has remained so to this day, with a brief interruption during the occupation by Nazi Germany.

Belgium is a founding member of the European Union, NATO and the OECD. The country is host to five international (ised) courts: the Permanent Court of Arbitration, the International Court of Justice, the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia, the International Criminal Court and the Special Tribunal for Lebanon. The Netherlands has the 16th largest economy in the world, and ranks 10th in GDP (nominal) per capita.

Dutch cuisine is often described as lacking in diversity, but this is because the Netherlands is rich in terms of its regional cuisine but there is little in terms of what could be described as 'National' fare. In comparison with much of the remainder of Europe Dutch cuisine can be characterized by its hight consumption of vegetables (in comparison with meat). The consumption of dairy products is also high and Dutch cheeses are world famous. The Netherlands is also famous for its pastries and baked goods (indeed, the term 'cookie' originates from the Dutch) and Dutch biscuits are often filled with marzipan, almonds and chocolate. In addition the range and breadth of pies and cakes baked in the country is huge.

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