Fairy bread is a traditional well-loved Australian party food that makes an appearance at most kids birthday parties. No exact recipe is required as there are only a few simple ingredients- bread, a spread, and some cake sprinkles. So simple, quick and easily customisable to dietary and budget restrictions such as gluten-free, vegan, and vegetarian. Australians even have a National Fairy Bread Day [24th November]. We have also included an easy method for preparing the Dutch 'Hagelslag' which is similar to Fairy Bread but features toasted bread with chocolate sprinkles.
Fairy bread and some nice juice or a glass of chilled milk is an easy budget-friendly way to make an occasion extra special for kids. For Halloween it could be called Scary Fairy bread!
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📜 History of Australian fairy bread
Fairy Bread originates in Australia and New Zealand and dates back to at least April 1929 when an article appeared in the Australian newspaper Hobart Mercury that reported on a children's party that was being held at the Consumptive Sanatorium [hospital for TB patients].
The children were being treated to a menu that began with Fairy Bread which was bread and butter that had the cake sprinkles hundreds-and-thousands scattered over.
Another Australian newspaper article from the Otago Daily Times [15th December 1936] outlines what to feed young children on Christmas Day. For teatime it was recommended that:
''slices of Fairy Bread (thin bread and butter sprinkled with non-pariels), with plain sponge cakes and the usual drink of milk, should constitute the full meal''
Non-pariels is a French word that refers to the tiny candy balls, [cake sprinkles] that mainly consist of starch and sugar.
Crust or no-crust for Fairy bread?
Many Australians would argue that Fairy Bread should always retain the crusts but of course these can be removed if preferred. The crusts can always be used as breadcrumbs and stored within the freezer to add to recipes, so nothing needs to be wasted.
Fairy bread day
Fairy Bread Day, 24th November, has been celebrated in Australian since 2014 and is a day to appreciate the Australian culture of Fairy bread, as well as to raise money for the Australian youth mental health charity ReachOut. November is the perfect time to try some Fairy bread.
Fairy bread in children's literature
The Scottish poet Robert Louis Stevenson [1850-1894] wrote about fairy bread in one of his children's poems, although whether the fairy bread mentioned within the poem is the same as the Australian fairy bread is still in question.
Poem extracted from Child's Garden of Verses [1885]:
Come up here, Oh dusty feet! Here is fairy bread to eat. Here in my retiring room, Children you may dine On the golden smell of broom And the shade of pine; And when you have eaten well, Fairy stories hear and tell. By Robert Louis Stevenson
Fairy bread is so easy to customise for special holidays with the classic cake sprinkle hundreds-and-thousands, sparkly festive sprinkles, Halloween sprinkles, green sprinkles for St Patrick's Day, or red, white and blue sprinkles for US Independence day, etc. Another idea is to create a green and red sprinkled Fairy bread, and call it 'Elf'bread' to enjoy along with a North Pole breakfast, on the first of December or Christmas Eve. Or perhaps the Elf on the Shelf can prepare some messy Fairy or 'Elf' bread one morning during December. You can use different cookie cutters to create different figures and shapes.
The Dutch equivalent of fairy bread Hagelslag
Hagelslag is a traditional popular Dutch breakfast. The origins of Hagelslag date back to to the early 1900s when a Dutch sweet/candy company invented aniseed flavoured sprinkles that were intended as a sweet bread topping. The name Hagelslag translates from Dutch to mean 'hailstorm'.
In 1936, another candy company created sprinkles made with chocolate after a young boy wrote a letter to the company asking for a chocolate bread topping. Nowadays, Hagelslag is a very popular breakfast food for Dutch kids and adults. The bread is often toasted before spreading with butter and sprinkling with Hagelslag.
The Hagelslag sprinkles come in a variety of flavours including chocolate, chocolate flakes, aniseed, and several different fruit varieties. The Dutch love Hagelslag so much that they munch through 750,000 thousand slices of Hagelslag per day and 14 million kilos of Hagelslag per year!
What came first the Australian Fairy bread or the Dutch Hagelslag?
Who actually invented Fairy bread the Australians or the Dutch is an an-going debate! Although both versions appeared around the same time in the 1930s so perhaps it was a coincidence. Also, Robert Louis Stevenson, the Scottish poet, throws a spanner-in-the-works with his mention of Fairy bread within his 1885 poem.
🔪 How to prepare
A recipe is not really needed for Fairy Bread as its so simple to prepare.
White bread is traditionally used, but I initially tried my first batch of Fairy bread with half-n-half which is half white and half wholemeal bread, as that's what I had to hand.
Although, I did try the Fairy bread with thick white bread and it was so much better as it actually resembled a doughnuts texture and flavour. Though, with much less fat and sugar compared with an ordinary doughnut. Fairy bread is perfect for when you have a doughnut craving.
Step 1: First choose your bread, spread, and cake sprinkles.
Step 2: Spread margarine or butter over each slice making sure you butter all the way to the edges, unless you're removing the crusts.
Step 3: Cover the bread with sprinkles by either using a small spoon and scattering them over or by dipping the bread into a bowl of sprinkles. Press the sprinkles firmly onto the spread.
Step 4: The bread crusts can be removed or kept on. Slice the bread into triangles or squares.
🔪 How to prepare Hagelslag
To prepare a slice of Dutch Hagelslag the method is the same as the Australian Fairy bread, except, chocolate sprinkles replace the hundreds-and-thousands, and the bread can be toasted or left plain.
White bread gives the best doughnut-like texture and flavour to the Hagelslag and it is quite surprising how much the Hagelslag actually tastes like chocolate covered doughnuts!
Step 1: The bread slices can be toasted or left un-toasted. We choose to toast our bread.
Step 2: Spread the bread with margarine, butter, or perhaps chocolate spread or peanut butter.
Step 3: Cover the buttered bread with chocolate sprinkles.
Hagelslag is traditionally enjoyed for breakfast. A glass of milk is the perfect accompaniment to Hagelslag, and would make a nice special occasion breakfast such as for a birthday. My family like chilled oat milk with their Hagelslag.
📋 Recipe notes
⏲️ Storage
Australian Fairy Bread or Dutch Hagelslag is at its best eaten soon after it is prepared, but it will keep for a few hours at room temperature if required for a buffet or party.
Yes, you can prepare both Fairy Bread and Hagelslag by using gluten-free bread and gluten-free cake sprinkles or chocolate sprinkles.
The traditional type of bread for Fairy Bread and Hagelslag is a white one. White bread gives the best flavour and texture when spread with butter and sprinkles, as the bread is similar to a doughnut texture. However, feel free to use whatever bread you prefer either shop-bought or home-baked.
There are vegan and gluten-free cake sprinkles available but you may have to look online for special colours and shapes as supermarkets and stores will likely only have a few available, if any.
Although, it is worth checking the ingredients of the cake sprinkles that are available locally, as some may be accidentally vegan even if they are labelled as vegetarian.
Many cake sprinkles are free from gluten but whether or not they are also vegan is a different matter. Check out this post for more useful information about what sprinkles are free from gluten.
When looking for vegan sprinkles do look out for these ingredients which indicate that the cake sprinkles are not vegan:
* beeswax
* confectioners glaze [this may be made with shellac which is derived from the female lac bug secretions]
* carmine [red colour made with ground insects] [Most of the other natural food colourings found in food products are prepared with plants but do research each ingredient just to be sure]
* gelatin
* eggs
*milk or other dairy products such as whey powder and lactose
Traditional fairy bread is spread with butter or an equivalent such as margarine and vegan butter is readily available in most supermarkets and stores. However, if preferred a different spread can be used instead.
A few ideas include - vegan chocolate spread, melted chocolate, biscoff spread, peanut butter, almond butter, cashew nut butter, sunflower seed butter, fruit jam, grape jelly, marmalade, soft cream cheese, mashed banana or avocado.
If you prefer not to use cake sprinkles but would still like to try out the concept of Fairy bread or Hagelslag then try one of these ideas:
* desiccated coconut [especially tasty on bread that has been spread with a nut or seed butter, or chocolate spread]
* raisins, sultanas or currants [if you have the patience slice these up so that they are smaller in size!]
* other sliced dried fruits sliced small such as pineapple, mango, papaya, dates, apricots, strawberries. goji berries, cranberries, blueberries, cherries
* diced glace or candied cherries
* candied diced mixed fruit peel
* lemon, orange, or lime zest for a zesty kick
* crushed up breakfast cereal
* chopped up sweets/candy/chocolates
* chocolate, grated
* chopped or flaked mixed nuts
* crumbled cookies/biscuits
* crumbled leftover cake
* crumbled candy canes
* chopped marshmallows
Mix and match ingredients to create fun, creative Fairy bread combinations.
🎉 More party treat recipes - made vegan
We love party treats and nibbles and as we are a plant-based family we have a few more dairy and egg-free recipes to share. These traditional Top Hat Treats are so easy and are a favourite in Ireland and Scotland, and every British kids party usually has a batch of Fairy Cakes on the go. These Chocolate Cornflake Cakes are a classic for a British Easter but my family enjoy these regularly throughout the year, and these Ting-A-Lings are an American classic for Christmas snacks and other festive occasions.
***please note: for US measurements click the 'US customary button' within the recipe and the measurements will switch to tablespoons, cups, and ounces.***
📖 Recipe
Traditional Australian Fairy Bread & Dutch Hagelslag
Equipment
- butter knife
- cutting board
- bowl
Ingredients
Fairy bread:
- 4 slices bread [your choice, we like thick bakery white bread for this recipe]
- 2 tablespoons margarine or butter [we like to use Flora plant-based butter]
- 6 tablespoons cake sprinkles [use more or less as required]
Dutch Hagelslag:
- 4 slices bread [your choice, we like thick bakery white bread and wholemeal bread for this recipe]
- 2 tablespoons maragrine or butter [we like to use Flora plant-based butter]
- 6 tablespoons chocolate cake sprinkles [use more or less as required]
Instructions
- Spread each bread slice with your choice of spread.4 slices bread, 2 tablespoons margarine or butter
- There are two ways the cake sprinkles can be added. Either place the sprinkles into a bowl and then press the buttered bread into the sprinkles. Or simply use a small spoon or just pick up the sprinkles and scatter over the bread until covered. Press the cake sprinkles into the bread.[I prefer to use a spoon as a bowl requires many more sprinkles to be added and those not used may have butter on and so may get wasted if not used.]6 tablespoons cake sprinkles
- The bread crusts can be removed if preferred or just left on.Gently shake the bread to remove any loose sprinkles.
- Slice the fairy bread into triangles or squares.
- Optional: Stamp out shapes from the bread using cookie cutters before adding the butter and sprinkles.
Prepare Dutch Hagelslag:
- The bread can be toasted or left un-toasted, before spreading with your choice of spread and covering with chocolate cake sprinkles.4 slices bread, 2 tablespoons maragrine or butter
- Press the sprinkles into the bread, and if preferred lift the bread up and shake a little to remove the loose sprinkles.6 tablespoons chocolate cake sprinkles
Notes
- Nutritional information is for guidance only and is not a strict calculation as ingredients will vary.
- Fairy bread or Hagelslag is best enjoyed soon after eating, or on the day of preparing as it will be at its freshest.
- For gluten-free Fairy bread use a gluten-free bread and gluten-free cake sprinkles.
- Instead of butter or margarine use a chocolate spread, peanut butter, almond butter, sunflower seed butter, Biscoff spread, fruit jam or fruit preserve, grape jelly, marmalade, mashed banana, etc.
- Don't want to use shop-bought cake sprinkles? Try a natural alternative such as desiccated coconut, grated/shaved chocolate, dried fruits such as raisins, sultanas, currants or larger dried fruit sliced into small pieces such as apricots, dates,mango, pineapple, papaya, etc, crushed breakfast cereal, crushed cookies, crumbled cake, chopped vegan sweets/candy or little chocolates, chopped nuts, chopped vegan marshmallows, etc...the list is endless and kids will have great fun creating inventive combos!
Nutrition
💬 Comments
Prepared Traditional Fairy Bread or Hagelslag? Do drop us a comment below and click the star rating and let us know how you got on. It's very much appreciated. Thanks so much, Jacq x
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