Moms Barbecue Burgers

And I return after a ridiculously long hiatus and just a little late for the 4th of July. This is a recipe that my mother invented for one of my brothers birthdays and has been a stapple summers dish ever since. We bake the hamburgers in the oven because it saves time when you are making a lot of them and it doesn't dry them out as much as frying or grilling can do.

(excuse the blurriness, was using my brothers phone at the time)

500g of minced beef or a even mix of pork and beef
1 egg
2dl ketchup
1dl vinegar
1dl water
1 onion, finely chopped
3tsp brown sugar
3tsp Worcestershire sauce
salt and pepper

Mix together the meat with the egg, some salt and pepper and any other flavorings you want.

Shape the meat into relatively thin patties and place them on an oven pan.

Bake them at 175ºC for about 30min.

Melt some butter in a large pot and fry the chopped onion in it until it goes soft and transparent (you don't want them too brown for this, you want them to almost disappear in the sauce later.)

After the onion goes soft add the remaining ingredients and bring to the boil then let simmer for a little while to reduce the sauce.

Taste the sauce often and add more of an ingredient if you think it needs it until you get the right tanginess you want.

Place the burgers in the simmering sauce, if there isn't enough sauce add more water to it and reduce it again until all the burgers are evenly coated.

Serve with a nice potato salad, some nice buns and something cold to drink.

Enjoy!

Moving time

I wont be posting any recipes for a few days as I move out of my apartment.

White Chocolate And Caramel Sauce

A rich, smooth sauce that is perfect with ice-cream and/or fresh fruits and berries. You can of course easily skip the cognac.


1 1/2dl cream
4tbl unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
3tbl sugar
175g white chocolate, broken into chunks
2tbl cognac


Pour the cream into a heat resistant bowl and place over a pan of barely simmering water.

Add the butter and sugar and stir until smooth.

Remove the bowl from the pan.

Mix in a few pieces of chocolate at a time and wait until they have melted before adding more.

Pour in the cognac once the chocolate is all mixed in stir the sauce smooth.

Let cool off until it's at room temperature.

Serve with ice-cream, fresh fruits and berries or with a sweet pie or crumble.


Enjoy!

Tortellini Salad

A nice hefty salad that makes for a great party dish. Fresh fruit works very well as a dessert afterwards as it complements the salty and savory flavors of the salad.


1 bag of cheese filled tortellini (ca, 250g)
ca, 1dl Italian dressing
2 bell peppers, cut into strips (one red and one yellow looks best)
8-10 cocktail tomatoes, cut in half
ca, 20 olives, mixed and seedless
2-3dl cheese, in small cubes
1/2-1dl fresh basil, finely chopped
ca, 12 salami slices


Cook the tortellini according to its own instructions.

Drain the pasta and mix it with the dressing while still warm in a bowl and set aside a let cool.

Prepare the vegetables and mix them into the cooled off pasta together with the cheese and basil.

Roll the salami slices into cones and push them into the salad so that they stick upwards like tasty flowers.

Serve with some nice bread to soak up the dressing afterwards.


Enjoy!

Russian Mincemeat Pan

While not genuinely Russian this pan uses red beats and is served with sour cream for that faux Russian experience.


400g mince meat
2 yellow onions, finely chopped
1/2 salt
1 pinch of black pepper
2tbl soy
2dl pickled red beat, finely chopped
1dl pickled cucumber, finely chopped


Fry the onion and then add the meat.

Once the meat is done flavor with salt, pepper and soy.

Mix in the red beats and cucumber and let simmer for a few minutes.

If the pan seems a bit dry add a little water to it.

Serve with boiled rice and sour cream.


Enjoy!

Sponge Cake

This simple sponge cake is delicious on its own but can easily be flavored with vanilla or lemon, and just as easily be turned into a Victoria sponge or used as the base for a cake. To make a Victoria sponge simply slice the cake in half, so you have a top and bottom, and fill it with any jam that you like and let stand for a while so that the jam can soak in a bit.


200g butter or margarine, room temperature
2dl flour
2dl sugar
4 eggs
1tsp baking powder


Place all the ingredients in a large bowl.

Beat everything together using an electric whisk until creamy.

Pour into a greased or non-stick cake tin.

Bake in the oven at 180ºC for 15-25min until it is a light golden brown.

Let it cool off on a wire rack.

Serve slices of it plain with tea or coffee or with some fresh berries and whipped cream.


Enjoy!

Prince Bertils Filled Minute Steaks

It took me a while to find a translation for the Swedish "lövbiff" (leaf beef) but I finally found out that it was usually called minute or cube steak.


8-10 slices of minute steak (ca. 500g)
1 red onion, finely chopped
3-4tbl blue cheese, grated
2-3tbl unsweetened mustard
salt
pepper


Fry the onion in a little bit of butter for a few minutes and then let it get cool.

Mix together the onion, cheese and mustard.

Spread the mixture evenly between the steak slices.

Fold the steak slices in half and fasten each one with a toothpick so they don't come apart when you fry them.

Fry the steaks for about 1 1/2 minute on each side. Season with salt and pepper.

Serve with boiled or fried potatoes, green peas and blackcurrant jelly.


Enjoy!

Sesame Salmon With Lemon And Cucumber Sallad

A very easy and uncomplicated recipe for when you have the urge to eat a nice fish dish.


600g salmon fillet (if frozen thaw before using)
1dl sesame seeds
1 cucumber, grated
2dl crème fraîche (sour cream works but you wont want as much because it will make the salad runnier)
juice from 1 lemon
zest from about 1/2 lemon


Roll the salmon in the sesame seeds so that it is as covered by the seeds as you can get it.

Bake the salmon in the oven for about 15min at 175ºC.

Mix the cucumber with the crème fraîche.

Add the lemon juice to the salad and top of with the lemon zest.

Serve together.


Enjoy!

Baked Bell Peppers

These work well as a little heavier starter or as part of a buffet. The filling can be infinitely varied with what you have or like. This a very simple variation of it.


4 bell peppers
600g minced meat (any type)
1 yellow onion, chopped
1 red chili, chopped
2dl grated cheese


Cut the top of the peppers so you get a lid and clean them out so you don't have any seeds left.

Fry the meat together with the onion and chili.

Fill the peppers with the meat mixture and sprinkle the cheese on top.

Bake in the oven at 175ºC for about 20min until the cheese is nice and golden brown.

Serve on their own or with a little bit of rice or pasta.


Enjoy!

Real Chocolate Milk

For when you are feeling more extravagant than usual, this classic drink is sure to warm you on a cold evening.


40g dark chocolate, broken into pieces
3dl milk


Place the chocolate in a large heat resistant jug or pitcher.

Bring the milk to the boil in a thick bottomed pan.

Pour about a fourth of the milk over the chocolate and let the chocolate get soft.

Stir until the milk and chocolate mix is smooth.

Put the rest of the milk back on the heat and bring to the boil again.

Pour it over the chocolate mix and stir continuously until it has all blended together.

Pour into cups and decorate with grated chocolate or a dollop of whipped cream.

Serve immediately.


Enjoy!

Creamy Chicken Soup

A soup with classic flavors that works well for parties and for everyday use.


8tbl butter
1 leek, finely chopped
4 garlic cloves, finely chopped
3 carrots, cut into small pieces
6dl chicken stock
600g chicken fillets, cut into strips
6dl cream
4tsp chives, chopped
8tsp basil, chopped


Heat the butter in a pan and fry the leek, garlic and carrots for a few minutes.

Pour in the chicken stock and chicken strips and let simmer for 15 minutes.

Add cream, chives and basil.

Stir constantly until the soup has gotten on a nice creamy texture.

Serve with some nice bread.


Enjoy!

Bacon And Cheese Muffins

These are not true muffins, they are more like pancakes in muffin form. They are quite filling so you won't eat to many of them at a time but they are perfect picnic food. This recipe uses a lot of eggs but it is basically one egg for each muffin.


200g bacon
200g cheese , of whatever type you prefer
10 eggs
2dl cream
white pepper


Chop the bacon into small pieces and fry until crispy.

Grate the cheese.

Beat together the eggs and cream.

Mix everything together and flavor with ground white pepper.

Pour into large muffin cups or tin.

Bake in the oven at 200ºC for 15-20 minutes.



Enjoy!

Green Omelet

Simple, beautiful and with a lot of flavor.


3 eggs
3tbl water
1tbl parsley, chopped
1tbl dill, chopped
1tsp tarragon, chopped
1tsp oregano, chopped


Mix all the herbs together in a bowl.

Break the eggs into the bowl,  add the water and quickly whisk together into a green batter.

Lightly brown some butter in a frying pan then pour in the batter.

Fry as lightly as you can, you don't want it to gain much color, just to get somewhat stiff.

Serve immediately with some nice bread and tea.


Enjoy!

Italian Double Decker Sandwich

A combination of the sandwich pizza and french toast that becomes so wonderfully gooey with the mozzarella.


8 slices of white bread
4 thick slices of mozzarella
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1dl milk
salt and pepper


Cut the crusts from the bread slices.

Cover 4 bread slices with the mozzarella and add some salt and pepper.

Place the other pieces of bread on top and press together very firmly.

Mix the eggs and milk together and turn the sandwiches in it.

Fry the sandwiches until golden brown.

Serve immediately.


Enjoy!

Salmon Skewers With Saffron Sauce

Easy, simple skewers with a very tasty and simple dipping sauce.


ca. 500g salmon fillets, bone free
ca. 500g shrimps with shells left on
3tbl lemon juice
2tbl oil
1tbl soy
1tsp salt
2 pinches of lemon pepper
3dl sour cream
1 packet of saffron, powdered (ca. 1/2g)
2tbl mango chutney


Cut the salmon into cubes that are about 2cm thick and place in a bowl suitable for marinading in.

Mix together the lemon juice, oil, soy, salt and lemon pepper to make the marinade and pour over the salmon.

Clean and peel the shrimp but leave the heads on, this will ensure that they won't fall apart so easily on the skewers.

Flavor the sour cream with the saffron and mango chutney to make the dip, if the chutney has very large chunks you might want to chop them into smaller pieces for ease of dipping.

Let the salmon drain a bit on some paper towels, saving the marinade left in the bowl, before threading them and the shrimp on to skewers.

Grill for about 5 min brushing on more of the remaining marinade as you go along.

Serve with the saffron sauce and any potato or rice dish along with a green salad.


Enjoy!

Simple Applesauce

Applesauce is sometimes forgotten by a lot of people but when remembered is almost always recalled with fondness. It's quite a versatile condiment, it works well with roast pork or fowl and it is often eaten for dessert, either own its own or warmed up with ice-cream.This version does not have a lot of sugar in it so if you want to preserve it for longer than a week in the fridge you will need to freeze it.


450g apples, peeled and diced
2tbl water
1tbl sugar


Put the apple cubes and water in a microwave safe container and cover with a lid or plastic wrap. (When using plastic wrap in the microwave make sure it doesn't come in direct contact with the food and try to use a type marked microwave safe)

Heat at full effect for 8 minutes.

Mash the apples until you get it as smooth or chunky as you want and stir in the sugar.

Serve with roast pork or turkey, or have it with ice-cream


Enjoy!

Filled Dates

This is an old roman recipe from about 400 AD so it is a little vague about the amount of things.


1 package of dried dates (as non-sticky as you can get)
crushed or chopped walnuts, pine nuts or black pepper
salt
honey


Make a cut lengthwise in each date and remove the seed.

Fill each one with either the walnuts, pine nuts or a little black pepper.

Roll the filled dates in salt.

Fry them in honey in a frying pan. (The honey  flavor can be quite dominant so you only need a small layer)

Let them cool off on baking paper so that they don't stick together.

Skewer them with a toothpick while they are still warm so they are easier to eat.



Enjoy!

Spinach Salad With Bacon And Blue Cheese

People sometimes forget how tasty fresh spinach can be and if you haven't tried it why not grab a bag next time you're out shopping. I'm using pine nuts in this recipe because they contrast nicely with the rest of the flavors but you can exchange them for chopped walnuts or skip them entirely.


4 fistfuls of fresh spinach
1 packet of bacon (ca, 140g)
100g blue cheese (a mild and creamy one works well)
ca. 1tbl roasted pine nuts (optional)
olive oil
balsamic vinegar


Rinse the spinach and place in a salad bowl.

Cut the bacon into strips and fry until crispy. Let it drain in a paper towel and spread it over the spinach.

Crumble over the blue cheese and sprinkle the pine nuts over the top.

Drizzle some nice olive oil and a little balsamic vinegar over the salad.

Serve with some nice bread.


Enjoy!

Crimson Blush

This is a very refreshing fruity drink that children love. You will need a liquidizer for this recipe and it makes four servings, but simply repeat the recipe as many times as is needed.


1/4 watermelon (ca. 600g)
125g raspberries
juice from 1 orange


Scoop out the black seeds from the melon and cut away the rind.

Chop it into smaller pieces and put in the liquidizer together with the raspberries and orange juice.

Whiz until smooth.

Serve nice and cold.


Enjoy!

Pasta Au Gratin

 A dish that is nice to make fresh or to use leftover meat and pasta.


4dl macaroni or other short pasta
1 yellow onion
150-200g smoked ham or sausage
2 eggs
3dl milk
1/2tsp salt
1 pinch of pepper
1dl grated cheese


Boil the pasta according to its own instructions and then drain them and pour them in a greased casserole dish.

Peel the onion and then chop the onion and meat.

Fry the onion and meat together and spread evenly over the pasta.

Whisk together the eggs, milk, salt and pepper and pour into the dish.

Sprinkle the cheese over everything.

Bake in the middle of the oven at 200ºC for 40min or until the gratin has solidified and gained some nice color on top.

Serve with salad and tomato sauce.


Enjoy!

Crabfish Suprise

A nice starter or as hors d'oeuvres. The only thing that can be tricky to get are ready made croustades or similar small savory pastries that are hard shelled and will not absorb anything.


1 package frozen crab sticks/surimi sticks (ca. 250g)
1 small yellow onion
1dl crème fraiche or sour cream
1 1/2tbl chili sauce
1tsp Worcester sauce
1/2tsp soy
1tsp crushed pink pepper (rosépeppar to the swedes)
ca. 6 small hard pastries that are easily filled and easily holdable


Thaw and cut the crab sticks into smaller pieces, a little thinner than cubes works well.

Peel the onion and finely chop it.

Fry the onion in a little butter until it has gone mostly transparent but not brown.

Mix the crab sticks with the rest of the ingredients so that everything is evenly coated.

Fill the pastry shells/croustades and then heat them at full power in the microwave for 1-2min.

Let them rest for a about a min then serve.


Enjoy!

Fruity Meat Filling

A nice mix of savory and natural sweet flavors.


400g minced meat (of whatever type you prefer)
1 large yellow onion
1 large apple
3tbl raisins
1tsp curry powder
1tsp salt
1 pinch of pepper


Peel and chop the onion finely.

Fry the onions together with the meat until the meat is done.

Cut the apple into small cubes.

Mix in the apple, raisins, curry powder, salt and pepper into the meat.

Fry the mixture a little bit more so that everything gets heated through.

Serve warm in pita bread, tortilla or similar. You might want to add some shredded lettuce and a dab of yoghurt to add more texture and flavor.


Enjoy!

Beekeepers Cod

An interesting dish that is quick to prepare and quick to cook, the only part that takes time is letting the fish soak in the marinade. The use of lemon balm ,besides being delicious, is quite symbolic because the Greek name for the plant is Melissa which means 'honey bee'.


400g frozen or fresh cod fillets
1dl honey
1tbl white wine vinegar
1/2tsp salt
1tbl oil
1 pinch of lemon pepper
lemon balm for garnish (citron mellis for the swedes reading)


Cut the cod into smaller pieces and place them in a dish that you can use in the microwave.

Mix together the rest of the ingredients in a bowl, excluding the lemon balm.

Pour the marinade over the fish and cover the dish.

Let sit in a cold place for a couple of hours.

Cook in the microwave at full power for 4-5min.

Garnish with the lemon balm.

Serve with boiled or pressed potatoes and green peas or a salad.



Enjoy!

Hot Dog Salad

A hot dog is always a welcome snack but sometimes you get a few left over and this salad is a good way to use them.


4 grilled/boiled hot dogs
5 boiled potatoes
1/3 cucumber
3-5 pickle slices
4 tomatoes
1 red onion
a small bunch of chives
1 1/2dl mayonnaise
1tbl mustard
1/2dl crème fraiche or sour cream
salt
pepper


Slice the hot dogs thinly.

Cut the potatoes, cucumber and pickle slices into triangles of similar size to the hot dog slices.

Chop the red onion and chives into small pieces.

Flavor the mayonnaise with the mustard, crème fraiche, salt and pepper.

Mix everything, except the tomatoes, together and place in a bowl.

Cut the tomatoes into nice wedges or slices and decorate along the edge of the bowl.


Enjoy!

Salami Chicken

An interesting way to spruce up chicken fillets.


4 chicken fillets
100g salami, thinly sliced
1/2tsp salt
1/2tsp pepper
1tbl soy
1tbl oil
2tsp honey


Make a deep cut along the side of the fillets and fill the cuts with salami slices.

Place the fillets in an oven safe dish and salt and pepper them.

Mix the oil, soy and honey together and brush the fillets with the mixture.

Place the dish in the oven and cook at 200ºC for 15-20min depending on the size of the fillets.

See if the fillets are done by checking if the juices from the chicken are clear without any pink in it or cut one open to make absolutely sure.

Serve with the liquids that have collected at the bottom of the dish and pasta mixed with green beans, red onion and/or black olives.


Enjoy!

Potato And Tomato Casserole

A nice vegetable dish with a nice mix of sweet and savory flavors.

2tbl butter
2 large yellow onions, finely sliced
1 crushed garlic clove
450g potatoes, peeled and thinly sliced
3dl vegetable stock, warm
2 tomatoes, thinly sliced
50g grated cheese
1tsb chives, chopped
salt and pepper


Melt the butter in a pan and fry the onion and garlic lightly.

Make alternating layers of the sliced potatoes and onion mixture in a casserole dish. Salt and pepper thoroughly between each layer.

Pour over the warm stock and place a lid on the dish.

Place in the oven at 160ºC until the potatoes feel soft and the stock is absorbed, should be around 1 hour and 15min.

Lay the sliced tomatoes on top and sprinkle the cheese over them.

Place the dish back in the oven without a lid until the cheese has gained some color.

Sprinkle the chives over the top just before serving.

Serve with pork chops, beef steak or hamburgers.



Enjoy!

Warm Chocolate Pudding

Beneath a layer of nuts, caramel and chocolate lies a wonderfully smooth and warm chocolate pudding.
All the ingredients are mixed together and then the pudding separates into layers when you bake it.


50g walnuts
50g butter, room temperature
1dl light/golden syrup
2 eggs
3 1/2dl milk
3/4dl flour
2tbl cocoa powder
2tbl cognac, rum or orange juice for flavor (optional)


Lightly grease a oven safe dish that can hold at least 1 liter.

Chop the walnuts.

Stir together the butter and syrup until smooth.

Mix in the eggs.

Whisk in the milk and then add the walnuts and eventual flavoring.

Sift in the flour and cocoa.

Beat together until you have a thin, even batter.

Pour the batter into the dish.

Bake for 35-40min at 175ºC.

Serve warm.



Enjoy!

Blue Cheese Pasta

A simple recipe with rich flavors.


300-400g long pasta (spaghetti, tagliatelle or fettuccine work well)
50g blue cheese (whatever type you prefer)
2tbl chopped walnuts
2-3tbl olive oil


Cook the pasta according to its own instructions.

Mash the cheese into paste and mix with the chopped nuts and olive oil.

Stir into the freshly cooked pasta.

Serve with steamed broccoli and/or grilled chicken


Enjoy!

Boomerang Cookies

Very delicate and tender cookies full of nutty flavor. The name comes from the shape you give them when you bend them.


3/4dl hazelnuts
3/4dl walnuts
1 1/2dl sugar
200g butter
4dl flour
powdered sugar for decoration


Set the oven to 175ºC.

Roast the nuts in a dry pan and then rub the skin of of them with a towel.

Chop the nuts finely.

Beat the butter and sugar together until fluffy.

Work in the flour and chopped nuts using your fingertips.

Let the dough rest in a cool place for about 30min.

Split the dough into 4 parts and then each part into 12 pieces.

Roll each piece until it's around 8cm long.

Bend them in the middle so they look like boomerangs.

Place them on a baking sheet covered with baking paper.

Bake them for about 15min until they start to gain some color.

Let them cool off on the baking sheet.

Dust them lightly with the powdered sugar before serving.

Serve with a nice cup of coffee or tea.


Enjoy!

Hamburger Pizza

A nice accompaniment to soups and salads for a simple lunch. It also works as a midnight snack to go along with tea or beer. It is a perfect way to make use of the hamburger buns that you always have leftover after grilling.


1 hamburger bun
1tsb butter
2 slices of cheese
1 slice of ham or enough salami to cover a bun
1-2tsp chili sauce
 oregano


Butter the bread.

Spread the chili sauce over them and sprinkle on as much oregano as you like.

Place the meat and cheese in the middle and put the bun together.

Heat at full effect for 1/2 - 1min in a microwave.

Serve with a soup or salad or on its own.


Enjoy!

Fish With Tomato Blanket

A refreshing dish that is surprisingly light.



600g fish fillets, fresh or frozen (cod, haddock, pollock)
2tbl butter
1tsp salt
1/2 pinch white pepper
2tbl Dijon mustard
2tbl dill, finely chopped
2 tomatoes
1/4 leek
2tbl fine breadcrumbs



Set the oven to 225ºC

Use half the butter to grease an oven safe dish.

Cut the fish, half thawed, into 2cm thick pieces and place in the dish. (if fresh, fillets are usually thin enough so they shouldn't need to be sliced)

Salt and pepper the fillets then spread the mustard over them.

Sprinkle over the dill.

Slice the tomatoes and chop the leek and spread over the fish.

Place the rest of the butter in small pieces evenly over it and then sprinkle over the breadcrumbs.

Put the dish in the middle of the oven for 15-20min if the fish was fresh or about 30min if it was frozen.

Test the fish with a fork to see of it's done,it should be white and nontransparent.

Serve with pressed or mashed potatoes or rice.



Enjoy!

Shredded Chicken With Bacon

A dish with nice textures and flavors. Since the chicken is raw it's not actually shredding since that would turn it to mush, but "stripped chicken" doesn't sounds nearly as good.


4 chicken fillets
1 packet of bacon (ca 140g)
1 leek
1tsp salt
1 pinch of pepper
2 1/2dl cream
15 green olives


Cut the chicken and bacon into strips.

Clean and slice the leek.

Fry the bacon without adding extra oil or grease to the pan.

Remove and let the bacon drain any extra grease on a piece paper, leaving as much bacon fat in the pan as you can.

Fry the chicken and leek in the leftover bacon fat.

Flavor with salt and pepper.

Pour in the cream and let simmer without a lid for about 5min.

Slice the olives, then mix in them and the bacon into the pan.

Serve with pasta and some sliced tomatoes.


Enjoy!

Red Bean Salad

All types of beans and lentils are nice to use in salads because they absorb oil and vinegar dressings until they are bursting with flavor.


1 can of red beans
1 red onion
1tbl balsamic vinegar
3tbl olive oil
salt
pepper
a few sprigs if fresh thyme


Mix together the oil and vinegar and flavor with some salt and pepper to make the dressing.

Cut the red onion in half and then into fine slices.

Drain the liquid from the beans, then rinse them with water and then drain them again.

Mix the beans and onions together.

Pour over the dressing let the salad sit for a while, preferably a few hours. Mix the salad a few times while it sits so that the dressing doesn't just settle at the bottom of the bowl.

Garnish with the thyme.

Serve with any grilled meat or chicken.


Enjoy!

Parmesan Leaves

Thin, delicate crackers that go well with a drink or a glass of wine. The only tool you'll need is a food processor.


1dl flour
1dl graham flour
2 pinches of salt
1/2tsp baking powder
1 pinch cayenne pepper
4dl finely grated Parmesan cheese
100g cold butter
2tbl water


Place all the dry ingredients in the processor together with 3dl of the cheese and the butter cut into small pieces.

Mix until the butter is evenly spread and then add the water and blend until it is a dough.

Shape the dough into a roll that's 4-5cm in diameter, then place in the freezer for 30min.

Set the oven to 200ºC.

Cut the cold roll into very thin slices and place them on a baking paper covered baking sheet.

Sprinkle over the rest of the Parmesan.

Bake in the middle of the oven for about 10min.



Enjoy!

Chocolate Mousse

A simple mousse recipe with a bit of coffee to enhance the chocolate flavor. You can of course skip the coffee if you wish.


100g dark chocolate
1tbl freshly brewed strong coffee
2 egg yolks
3dl whipping cream


Melt the chocolate.

Stir in the coffee and egg yolks into the chocolate and then let the mix cool.

Beat the cream thick and creamy but not too stiff because that can make the mousse grainy.

Fold half of the cream in to the chocolate and stir together well.

Fold in the rest of the cream this time much more carefully so as to keep as much air in the mousse as you possibly can.

Pour the mousse into a bowl or in single portion dishes like tea cups or wine glasses.

Let harden in the fridge for about 3 hours, it can sit over night if you want to prepare it nice and early.



Enjoy!

Calabrian Mushroom Soup

A delicious soup with nice big pieces of mushrooms from the southern part of mainland Italy. Use a variety of mushrooms to get a mix of flavors and colors. The use of bread might seem odd but it's an old Italian tradition to use up stale bread and make soups more filling at the same time.


2tbl olive oil
1 yellow onion, chopped
500g mixed mushrooms (porcini, oyster and ordinary white mushrooms all work very well)
3dl milk
9dl hot vegetable stock
8 baguette slices, toasted
3tbl melted butter
2 garlic cloves, pressed
ca. 2dl grated cheese (Gruyère and Cheddar both work)


Heat up the oil and fry the onion for 3-4min or until it's soft and golden.

Clean the mushrooms and cut any too large ones into nice morsels.

Put the mushrooms in the frying pan and turn them over quickly in the oil.

Pour in the milk and bring to the boil, then lower the heat and let simmer under cover for 5 minutes.

Stir in the warm stock a little at a time and add salt and pepper to taste.

Mix together the melted butter and garlic and spread it thick over the toasted bread.

Place the bread at the bottom of a large soup terrine or spread evenly in 4 deep dishes/bowls.

Pour the hot soup over the bread, sprinkle over the grated cheese and serve immediately.


Enjoy!

Herb Garden Sauce

A french sauce that is loaded with flavor.


1dl mayonnaise
1dl cream
2tbl chives, finely chopped
2tbl dill, finely chopped
2tsb tarragon, dried
2tsb chervil, dried
salt and pepper to taste


Mix the mayonnaise with the fresh and dried herbs.

Whip the cream nice and thick.

Fold the cream into the mayonnaise.

Flavor with the salt and pepper.

Let the sauce sit in the fridge for 1-2 hours so that the sauce can absorb all the flavor of the herbs.

Serve with boiled or smoked salmon, any white fish or shellfish.


Enjoy!

Iced Tea

A refreshing summer drink that I tend to enjoy all year round. This recipe makes about four glasses worth of iced tea.


1 liter cold strong tea
6-8tbl sugar (depending on how sweet you want it)
juice from 1 lemon
ice cubes
thin lemon slices

Mix together the tea, sugar and lemon juice.

Pour into 4 tall glasses.

Put in ice cubes and lemon slices.


Enjoy!

Almond Eggs

A nice little side dish that is made in the microwave to make it easier and keep the nice pale colors. You will need a cup or portion dish for each one.


1 small shallot
1 egg
1tbl grated Parmesan cheese
1tbl cream
1tbl almond flakes


Peel and chop the shallot.

Place in the bottom of the dish/cup, cover and heat at full power in the microwave for 1-2min.

Mix in the Parmesan with the onion.

Break the egg into the cup/dish.

Carefully poke a hole in the yolk with a toothpick. (you want the yolk as whole as possible but you don't want it to explode)

Pour over the cream and the almond flakes.

Cover and cook at half effect for 4-5min.

Let sit for a few minutes to let the heat even out.

Serve with spinach or smoked salmon.


Enjoy!

Oven Baked Bananas

A flavorful dessert that reminds you of summer when it's wet or cold outside.


4-6 bananas
1/2tbl ginger, freshly grated
2tbl brown sugar
1/2dl chopped nuts (whatever type you like)
25g butter
juice from half a lemon


Peel the bananas and place them in a slightly greased oven safe dish.

Mix the ginger, sugar and nuts and sprinkle over the bananas.

Put small dollops of the butter evenly on the bananas and drip the lemon juice over them.

Set in an oven at 250ºC until they have gained some color.

Ladle some of the liquids over the bananas once or twice.

Serve with ice-cream or whipped cream.


Enjoy!

Lemon Pasta

An extremely simple recipe that works well with fish and shellfish dishes.


300-400g pasta (whatever type you want/have)
juice and zest from 1 lemon
1/2dl chopped parsley
2-3tbl olive oil

Cook the pasta according to its own instructions.

Mix together the lemon juice, zest, parsley and olive oil.

Stir the lemon sauce into the pasta.

Serve with any fish dish.



Enjoy!

French Mushrooms

This recipe is a simplified version of mushrooms à la grecque. You do not cook the mushrooms in this version and you use vinegar instead of white whine.


200g mushrooms
1tbl vinegar
1/2tsb salt
1 pinch of ground pepper
3-4tbl oil
1 clove of garlic, pressed
finely chopped parsley


Mix the vinegar, salt and pepper.

Then add the oil and pressed garlic and let the dressing sit for a while.

Clean the mushrooms and rinse them if need be.

Cut them into slices.

Place them in a bowl or deep dish and pour the dressing over them.

Let the mushrooms sit in the fridge for about an hour.

Decorate by sprinkling some parsley over the top.

Serve as a side dish with meat or fish.


Enjoy!

Chocolate Sauce

The perfect accompaniment to vanilla ice-cream and way to get nuts and sprinkles to stick to said ice-cream.



3 1/2tbl cocoa powder
1 1/2dl sugar
2 1/2dl water
1 1/2tbl butter or margarine (optional)

Mix water, cocoa and sugar in a saucepan.

Cook at an even medium heat until the texture is almost creamy.

Add the margarine or butter if you want to use it, it makes the sauce richer and glossier.

Serve with ice-cream or any type of fruit

Enjoy!

Sausage And Bean Stew

A simple dish that works well when you are stressed and it's cold out.


400g sausage (whatever type you like or have)
2 bell peppers (any colors)
4dl crushed tomatoes
1-2tsp sambal oelek
2 pinches of salt
1 can white beans in tomato sauce (add more if you feel like it)
3-4tbl of any green herb (cilantro, oregano, parsley anything you like)


Rinse, deseed and dice the peppers.

Cut the sausages into pieces of whatever size you like.

Boil the crushed tomatoes together with the sambal oelek and salt.

Add the pepper and sausages and simmer under a lid for about 5 min.

Pour in the beans and let them get warm.

Sprinkle over your chosen herb.

Serve with nice white bread.


Enjoy!

Curry Pork Taco

This strange mix makes a quite tasty variation to the normal taco flavors and is quite refreshing.


300-400g fillet of pork
1 yellow onion, finely chopped
1-2tsb curry powder (depending on strength and flavor)
1 red pepper, diced
1 banana, sliced
1-2dl crème fraîche
cayenne pepper


Slice the pork into small strips.

Fry the pork and onion together until the pork has gained some color.

Sprinkle over the curry powder.

Stir in the red pepper, banana and crème fraîche.

Cook together at medium heat for about 10-15min or until it's nice and thick.

Flavor with a little cayenne pepper and salt and black pepper.

Serve in hard taco shells or tortillas and maybe some mango chutney and a salad.

Italian Lamb Shanks

This is a recipe that I found in an old Betty Crocker cook book that my mom had and it's been a favorite of my dads ever since. The recipe uses lamb shanks but I used pieces of lamb cut to the size of pork chops the first time I cooked this with great success.


2 1/2dl Italian dressing
4 lamb shanks (1kg - 1 1/2kg)
1 1/2dl grated Parmesan cheese
4tbl flour
1tbl dried parsley flakes
1/2tsb salt
1/2tsb onion powder
5tbl shortening (margarine or similar)


Marinade the meat in the dressing for at least 5 hours.

Remove the meat and save any excess marinade.

Mix the Parmesan cheese, flour, parsley, salt and onion.

Coat the meat with the mixture and save any mix leftover.

Melt the shortening in a pan with a lid and cook the meat until it's nice and brown on all sides.

Reduce the heat and pour in the extra marinade and sprinkle over the leftover mixture.

Cover and let simmer for about 2 1/2 hours or until tender. Reduce the time if using smaller pieces of meat.

Serve with boiled or mashed potatoes, pasta or rice and a nice green salad.



Enjoy!

Honey And Mustard Sauce

A quick sauce that goes well with sausages or grilled meat. Keeps for about 2 weeks in the fridge.

3tbl Dijon mustard
4tbl clear honey
2tsp soy
4tbl balsamic vinegar
1dl water


Pour all the ingredients in a sauce pan.

Cook at a low temperature for about 5min, stirring it a few times.

Pour into a bowl and serve.


Enjoy!

Shopka Salad

A Bulgarian national dish at its simplest. Simple cut the vegetables into pieces of whatever size you prefer.


4 tomatoes, cut into pieces
1/3-1/2 cucumber, cut into pieces
1 bell pepper of any color, cut into strips
1 yellow onion, chopped
200g white sheep's milk cheese

Distribute the vegetables on to four bowls or small plates.

Grate the cheese and pile it on top of the vegetables so that it looks vaguely like a snow drift.

Serve as a started to almost any dish.


Enjoy!

Savoys Dijon Sandwich

This sandwich was invented at the hotel Savoy in Malmö in southern Sweden where it was called the Dijon sandwich because of the mustard it contains. The placement of the egg depends on whether you want to eat it with your hands or use a fork and knife.


8 thin slices of bread, toasted
100g ham, sliced into thin strips
100g fried bacon, sliced into thin strips
2tbs Dijon mustard
4 eggs


Mix together the ham, bacon and mustard.

Spread the mixture between two pieces of bread.

Fry the eggs and place either in the sandwich or on the sandwich.


Enjoy!

Deviled Eggs

A side dish that's perfect for dinner parties and very easy to make. I chose not to write any specific amount of mayonnaise since it will depend on how big your eggs are and how thick you want the deviled mixture to be.


6 eggs, hard boiled and cold
mayonnaise
1tbl mustard
paprika powder


Cut the eggs in half lengthwise and remove the yolks.

Mash the yolks together with mayonnaise until you get the texture you want. (I prefer it quite thick so I don't use a lot of mayonnaise)

Flavor the mixture with the mustard and a little bit of paprika.

Dollop the mixture back into the holes in the egg halves.

Sprinkle a little paprika powder over each deviled egg for decoration.


Enjoy!

Chicken And Rice Casserole

This recipe is something my mother received from a friend of hers. It is quite vague but make enough rice for the amount of people you are cooking for and enough chicken/ham, mushrooms and leek to be evenly spread over the top of it. The reason I wrote chicken/ham is that we often substitute the grilled chicken with smoked ham. Depending on how much you make you may have to increase the amount of sauce.



rice (cooked)
leek (sliced and fried, 1 leek is usually enough)
mushrooms (sliced and fried)
grilled chicken/smoked ham (diced into 1cm cubes)
3dl cream
2dl crème fraîche
1tbl mustard
cheese (sliced or grated)

Fill the bottom casserole dish with the rice.

Spread the fried leek and mushrooms evenly over the rice.

Next evenly distribute the cubes of chicken/ham over the top.

Mix the cream, crème fraîche and mustard together to make the sauce.

Pour the sauce over everything making sure nothing is too dry.

Grate or slice cheese over everything.

Bake in the oven at 225ºC for 20min.

Serve with Thai sweet chili sauce and a salad.


Enjoy!

Lamb In Cabbage

Another Swedish classic of the best kind, just a few ingredients and hardly any preparations.



1-1 1/2kg lamb (cut into pieces suitable for a stew)
1 small head of cabbage
6 yellow onions, peeled and chopped
1 carrot, peeled and chopped
10 white peppercorns
1tbl salt
3 sprigs of thyme
1 bay leaf



Put the meat in a large pot and pour in enough water to cover it.

Then bring to the boil and skim off the fat thoroughly.

Chop up the cabbage and fry it lightly.

Put the cabbage in the pot together with the onions, carrot, herbs and spices.

Cover with a lid and boil slowly for 1 - 1 1/2 hours.

Taste and check if the meat is tender, add more herbs and spices if needed.

Serve with boiled potatoes.


Enjoy!

Eggs In Caves

A simple but slightly odd breakfast dish. This recipe makes one, so simply make one for each person.


1 bread roll
1 egg
1 slice of ham
1-2 slices of cheese


Cut off the top of the roll and remove some of the insides of the roll to make a hole large enough for an egg to fit.

Crack the egg into the hole, then puncture the yolk without breaking it. (This is so it doesn't explode when you cook it in the microwave)

Cover the hole with the slice of ham and then the cheese.

Place on a plate and cook in the microwave at full effect for 1-2min. (The cheese should just be beginning to melt)

Serve with any breakfast accessories you prefer.



Enjoy!

Simple Norwegian Fish Paste

This might be slight different way to eat fish than what you are used to but kids tend to like the creamy texture. It's made quite simple by baking it in the microwave oven. Remember to use a dish that can handle being in the microwave.


400g fillet of cod (or similar white fish)
1tsp salt
1/2 pinch ground white pepper
1/2 pinch cayenne pepper
1tbl potato flour
2dl cream


Thaw the fish if it was frozen, then chop it into cubes.

Put the fish cubes and the rest of the ingredients in a food processor and then blend until it is a creamy batter.

Pour the batter in a oblong or rectangular dish and cover it.

Bake it at half power for 10-11min.

Let sit for about 10min to let the temperature even out.

Overturn it on to a dish and cut it into slices.

Serve with sour cream mixed with dill and shrimp or anything that goes with fish.



Enjoy!

Almond Peaches

A quick and easy dessert made all the easier by using canned peaches and store bought almond paste.


1 can of peaches in syrup (ca. 825g usually)
200g almond paste
1/2dl syrup from the canned peaches
30g almond flakes


Set the oven to 250ºC.

Grease an oven safe dish and place the peaches in it cup side down.

Grate the almond paste finely. (Easier to do when the paste is cold)

Beat the syrup together with the almond paste using an electric whisk.

Spread the mixture evenly between the holes in the peaches and sprinkle the almond flakes over the top of them.

Bake in the middle of the oven for 10-15min.

Serve slightly warm with vanilla ice-cream.


Enjoy!

Salad With Chicken Liver

A friend asked me to put a recipe for chicken salad as return for a favor, but I can never do exactly as I'm told. Chicken liver is something that a lot of people have little to no experience with but can easily be used to make something special that isn't too expensive.


300g chicken liver
lettuce (amount and type up to you but enough to cover each persons plate)
150g mushrooms
2 shallots, sliced
1 apple
1dl beef or veal stock
apple cider vinegar



Clean and rinse the lettuce and place nicely on each plate.

Slice the mushrooms and fry them in butter for about 5 min then remove them from the pan.

Fry the chicken liver and shallots in the pan for 6-8 min. The liver should be juicy and slightly pink inside and the onion transparent.

Add salt and pepper to taste.

Put the mushrooms back to the pan.

Splash some vinegar over the liver, onion and mushroom then pour the stock on and let the liquid evaporate a bit.

Peel and core the apple and cut it into strips and splash some lemon juice over them so they don't turn brown.

Place the liver mix on the beds of lettuce and sprinkle the apple strips over.

Red Pesto

A nice variation of the ordinary green pesto that gets it's red color from the sun dried tomatoes in it. The pine nuts have been replaced with walnuts or hazelnuts.


10 sun dried tomatoes in oil
25g Parmesan cheese in pieces
1 garlic clove
25g walnuts or hazelnuts
1dl basil, roughly chopped
2 pinches of salt
1dl olive oil


Place the tomatoes and pieces of cheese evenly in a food processor.

Add the garlic, nuts, basil and salt and blend until you have an even mixture.

Whilst you are blending add the oil a little bit at a time so that the mixture has time to absorb the oil before you add more.

Serve with grilled or fried beef, with lamb or game, or mix it with spaghetti for a quick pasta dish.

Boiled Iceberg Lettuce With Bacon

This recipe might seem a bit odd but when you boil iceberg lettuce lightly it tastes a little bit like asparagus. With the bacon this makes a nice and fresh dish for when you aren't terribly hungry. This recipe works for 4 people but that's easily adjustable.


2 heads of iceberg lettuce
200g bacon
100g butter/margarine
1 1/2 liter water
2tsp salt


Clean the lettuce and quarter it so you have eight pieces.

Cut the bacon into strips and fry them crispy without any butter.

Melt the butter.

Boil the water and salt and add a little of the melted butter.

Put the lettuce in the boiling water and cook it for about 3 minutes.

Remove the lettuce from the water and drain them thoroughly.

Place two pieces of lettuce on each plate and sprinkle the crispy bacon over the top.

Serve with the warm melted butter.



Enjoy!

Moms Marinade

This marinade is something that my mother has used through my whole life and for almost every type of meat, be it pork, beef or chicken. And after you've marinade the meat you can make delicious sauce with it by heating it up to kill any bacteria left by the meat and add crème fraîche. Because the original recipe uses the American measuring system the amount of soy it is written in in cups and tbl. This amount is good for about 1-1 1/2kg of meat.


4tbl sugar
2tbl oil (a neutral vegetable oil, like corn oil, works best)
1/3 cup of (mushroom) soy (1/3 cup is 78ml so about 5tbl of soy works if you want to be somewhat exact but a little less than a dl works just fine)
1 pressed garlic clove


Use a container large enough for your meat and that won't get stained from the soy.

Mix everything together until the sugar is completely absorbed.

Then place the meat in the container and roll it around so it get's coated and poke hole in it with a fork so that the flavor can really penetrate the meat.

Let it marinate in the fridge for 3-4 hours but the longer you leave it the better. (My mother once forgot about it for 2 whole days and it turned out delicious)

Then you can grill, fry or cook the meat in the oven.

Serve the meat with anything you like.



Enjoy!

Simple Noodle Soup

This base recipe can varied with anything that you happen to have at home. Strips of grilled chicken, sliced or quartered mushrooms or even chopped sugar snap peas work very well.


400g egg noodles + water for their boiling
1 liter of water
2 cubes of chicken stock
3tbl soy
1-2tbl rice wine vinegar or sherry
1tsp brown sugar


Boil the noodles in water for 4-5min. Rinse them in cold water to halt their cooking and then drain them.

Pour the 1 liter of water in a pot and add the stock cubes, soy, rice wine vinegar, and sugar and bring to the boil.

After a few minutes, when the cubes have dissolved, add the noodles and let simmer for 2 minutes.

Add any grilled chicken, mushrooms or peas.

Serve the soup with a green herb of your choice chopped and sprinkled over it.



Enjoy!

Ovenpancake

This is a Swedish classic that my sister loves. I use the name of the plain one but the more common one has fried salted pork in it, but pork pancake doesn't sound as good.


3 eggs
8dl milk
4dl flour
1/2tsp salt
300g salted or smoked pork belly or bacon cut into small pieces (optional)


Set the oven to 225ºC.

Grease an oven pan with medium high sides.

Fry the pork or bacon as crispy as you want it and place it evenly spread in the pan (if you're using it).

Beat the eggs just so they mix together.

Add half the milk and all the flour and salt.

Stir this into a smooth batter and then mix in the rest of the milk.

Pour it in the pan (over the pork) and place in the middle of the oven.

Bake for 30 min or until it's a wonderful golden color.

Cut into large squares and serve with lingonberry jam or any jam that isn't to sweet.


Enjoy!

Fried Rice With Beans

This dish is the perfect accompaniment to roasted or fried chicken. Use a wok if you have one but a large frying pan works just as well. For extra tasty fried rice put it in a bowl and cover with water for a little while before using it, to get rid of a lot of the starch.


3tbl vegetable oil
1 yellow onion, finely chopped
ca. 2 1/2dl long grain rice
1 green bell pepper, diced
1tsb chili powder
6dl boiling water
100g canned corn, drained
225g canned kidney beans, rinsed and drained
2tbl chopped fresh coriander/cilantro (different name, same thing)


Put the pan on medium heat and let the oil get really hot.

Fry the onion for 2 min or until it get soft.

Lower the heat and add the rice, pepper and chili powder and cook for 1 min.

Pour over the boiling water and bring it to the boil again, then lower the temperature again and let simmer for 15 min.

Mix in the corn, beans and coriander and let everything heat through, stirring from time to time.

Place in a serving bowl and serve immediately, garnished with extra coriander on top if you wish.



Enjoy!

Rhubarb Melt

This is, in my mind, the simplest and most delicious way of preparing rhubarb. Preferably use relatively young rhubarb stalks because as they grow larger the outer layers become thicker and you will have to peel them. The original recipe says to serve it cold, which is tasty, but I prefer it serve warm on vanilla ice-cream  and let them melt together into a delicious mush.


6 rhubarb stalks (ca. 700g)
1 - 1 1/2dl sugar (you can exchange the ordinary sugar for brown sugar if you wish)


Wash the rhubarb and cut it into 5cm long pieces.

Put them in a lightly greased oven safe dish and sprinkle the sugar over them.

Cover the dish with tin foil.

Place the dish in the oven and cook them at 225ºC for 15-20min or until they are soft.


Serve with vanilla ice-cream.



Enjoy!

Cabbage Pudding

Another Swedish classic that is getting more and more uncommon these days. Seems a bit strange to me since a lot of people seem to lapse into nostalgia when I speak about it. The perfect accompaniment to this dish is lingonberry jam but since it is very difficult to find outside of Scandinavia you can serve it with any kind of cranberry or red/blackcurrant sauce or jelly. It uses a 50/50 mix of ground beef and pork but you can use pure pork if you prefer, pure beef can work as well but it can become quite dry.

1 large head of cabbage (ca. 2kg)
700g mixed ground meat (50% beef and 50% pork)
2 1/2 - 3dl water
1tsb salt
1 pinch ground white pepper


Clean the cabbage, quarter it and cut away the hard stem.

Slice it into thin strips.

Fry them slightly until they have gained a light brown color and are a bit soft but stir from time to time so that they don't turn black and get burnt. (There tends to be so much cabbage that you'll have to fry it in batches)

Mix the meat, water, salt and pepper into a loose mass.

Put half of the fried cabbage in the bottom of an oven dish with high sides.

Spread the meat over it and cover with the rest of the cabbage.

Bake in the middle of the oven for 45min at 175ºC.

Eat it on its own with any jelly or jam described above or have it with boiled potatoes and brown sauce in addition to the jam/jelly.



Enjoy!

Parisienne Salad

You can most often find this salad in taverns and pubs in and around Paris where they usually serve it  as a starter but it works very well as a light lunch. The clove of garlic is used in what may seem like an odd way, you cut it in half and rub the inside of the salad bowl with it for just a slight hint of garlic.


200-300g mushrooms
200g boiled or smoked ham
200g Swiss cheese
4 tomatoes
1 head of iceberg lettuce
1tbl red wine vinegar
4tbl olive oil
1tsb french mustard
1/2tsb dried tarragon
1 clove of garlic (optional)
chopped parsley


Stir the mustard into the vinegar and add the oil. Then flavor it with the tarragon and some salt and pepper.

Cut the clove of garlic in half and rub the inside of the salad bowl with it.

Clean and cut the mushrooms into rough slices. Put them in the bowl and pour the dressing over them and mix carefully so you don't break the mushrooms to much. Let soak for about 20 minutes.

Slice the ham into strips that aren't too thin.

Cut the cheese into small cubes or into strips similar to the ham.

Quarter the lettuce and cut off the stem, then slice it into thin strips about 1cm thick.

Cut the tomatoes into wedges.

Mix everything except the tomatoes and parsley together in the bowl.

Decorate the finished salad with the tomato wedges and sprinkle the parsley over the top.


Enjoy!

Pyttipanna

Pyttipanna is a Swedish dish that means "small pieces in a pan". It's traditionally made purely of leftovers but it's much more common now to use prime ingredients if your making it yourself (most people buy frozen ready made pyttipanna). This version is a mix of the two because it uses raw potatoes but leftover meat. This recipe uses the three base ingredients potato, onion and meat but you can add fried mushrooms, sausage or ham, or almost any type of root vegetable to vary it. The key characteristic of pyttipanna is that whatever you choose to put in it you make all the pieces approximately the same size. The typical size of the dices tends to be 1cm by 1cm but that's only because the frozen products are that size, just try and keep them kinda small and the same size and it wont matter.


8-10dl diced raw potato
2 chopped yellow onions
4dl diced meat that is already cooked (anything from roast beef to fried pork chops)
salt
pepper
1 egg per person/serving

Rinse the potato cubes in cold water so that the starch is washed away. (otherwise the will stick together during the frying) Then let all the water drain.

Fry the potato cubes until they are golden brown then remove them from the pan and repeat the process with the onion and then the meat.

Once the meat has gained some color mix everything together and season with salt and pepper.

Fry each egg in the way each person likes and place on top of their portion.

Traditionally served with pickled red beets but ketchup works quite well with it.


Enjoy!

Bacon Wrapped Cod With Pea Purée

A simple recipe that goes extremely quick (the fish anyway). The purée is a nice variation to that classical fish accompaniment, the pea. Can be served with just these two dishes but you can of course have boiled potatoes and a salad with it.

600g fillet of cod or other similar white fish
1 package of bacon (ca. 140g)
2 1/2dl frozen peas
1/2dl crème fraîche or sour cream
1/2dl chopped chives
salt
pepper

Thaw the fish if it's frozen.

Season them with salt and pepper then wrap the fillet with the bacon slices.

Place them in a ovenproof dish and place them in middle of the oven for about 10min at 250ºC.

Boil the peas in lightly salted water according to their own instructions, then drain them.

Put them in a blender or use a handheld one and blitz them to a paste together with the crème fraîche or sour cream.

Stir in the chives.

Serve the fish and purée with boiled potatoes, a salad and a slice of lemon.


Enjoy!

Lemon Sorbet

A very light and refreshing dessert that fits nicely after a big dinner.


juice from 2 lemons
zest from 1/2 lemon
5dl water
2dl sugar
1 egg white
1/2dl icing sugar

Pour the water, sugar and zest in a bowl and heat it at full effect in a microwave for 5-7min.

Then remove the zest.

Let the mixture get cool and add the lemon juice.

Place in the freezer until it turns into a thick almost frozen sludge (a few hours should do).

Beat the egg white and icing sugar into a hard foam.

Mix this into the near frozen sludge and freeze for another couple hours.

Serve scooped into small bowls and garnish with a sprig of fresh mint or a thin chocolate wafer.


Enjoy!

Roman Lamb Stew

Roman dishes tend to be fairly quick to cook and with loads of herbs and spices. The main reason for this seems to stem from the fact that Rome was the major trading hub of Italy and therefore had access to lots of spices and had to have the food ready for travelers.

1tbl oil
1tbl butter
600g lamb cut into 2 1/2cm cubes (1 inch)
4 garlic cloves
leaves from 3 thyme sprigs
6 anchovy fillets (sardeller to the Swedish)
1 1/2dl red wine
1 1/2dl lamb stock
1 tsp sugar
ca. 60g black olives, halved
2tbl chopped parsley


Heat the oil and butter in a large pan that can fit a lid on it and fry the lamb for 4-5min until they are nice brown all the way around.

Crush the garlic, thyme and anchovy into a smooth paste using a mortar and pestle.

Pour the wine and stock into the pan and then stir in the paste, adding the sugar at the same time.

Bring to the boil, then lower the temperature and let simmer with a lid on for 30-40 minutes or until the meat is tender. Remove the lid for the last 10 minutes so that the sauce can reduce a little bit.

Add the halved olives and mix thoroughly.

Sprinkle the chopped parsley over the top and serve with fluffy mashed potatoes.


Enjoy!

Aniara Salad

The name of this salad comes from a Swedish science fiction story (that nobody has ever read) that was made into an opera and this salad was invented for the premier.

1/2 cauliflower
1 red bell pepper
1 green bell pepper
250g peeled shrimp
2 1/2dl cooked rice
50g olives
1/2 yellow onion
3-4dl Rhode Island dressing
salt and pepper


Break the cauliflower into small florets.

Peel the onion and chop it and the peppers into tiny pieces.

Mix all the ingredients with the Rhode Island dressing and flavor with salt and pepper.


Enjoy!

Peanut Chicken

This is a recipe I found in a British cook book from the seventies that I thought was quite tasty and worth putting up here. It can be quite heavy with the milk and cream but this can be countered with something like Thai sweet and sour chili sauce.

5tbl oil
1 chopped yellow onion
2tbl flour
salt and ground black pepper
4 thighs or breasts of chicken
1 1/2dl chicken stock
1 1/2dl milk
1tbl peanut butter
2tbl cream
50g salted peanuts

Heat up the oil and braise the onion for a few minutes and then move it to a casserole dish leaving the oil in the pan.

Mix the salt and pepper into the flour and roll each piece of chicken thoroughly in it.

Brown the chicken in the oil until nice and golden brown then move them to the casserole dish as well.

Pour the stock into the pan then whisk so that all the flavor from the pan comes lose.

Add the milk and peanut butter and heat up.

Pour the mixture over the chicken and onion and cover with a lid.

Put the dish in the oven for 50min at 180ºC.

Mix the cream into the sauce and ladle some over the chicken again.

Garnish with the salted peanuts and serve with rice or any potato dish and a green salad.


Enjoy!

Roquamole

This is a creation of Nigella so all credit goes to her. I am merely posting this here so I can find it easier. It works extremely well with tortilla chips and dippable vegetables. Can also be used in tacos or similar. You can easily skip the jalapenos or onions if you want, they are there for more flavor and texture.
You may also want to add a little bit of lemon/lime juice to keep it from turning brown.

125g Roquefort or St. Agur cheese
60ml sour cream
2 ripe avocados
35g sliced pickled green jalapenos (5-8 slices)
2 finely sliced spring onions (scallions)
1-2 pinches of paprika powder


Crumble or mash the cheese in a bowl and mix it with the sour cream.

Mash in the avocados using a fork.

Roughly chop the jalapenos and stir in them and the sliced onions into the mix.

Pour into a serving bowl and dust with the paprika.

Serve with tortilla chips or vegetables suitable for dipping.


Enjoy!

Weekends Off

I've decided to not post on weekends anymore so as to not lose steam, unless it's a special occasion of course.

Spiced Vinegar

This vinegar makes for a nice addition for dressing or as a condiment on its own. You can easily add a sprig of your favorite herb to add more flavor. You may have to make the stick shorter so that you can place a lid on the bottle you use.

2 cloves of garlic
2 shallot onions
1 thin wooden stick (barbeque skewer or similar)
2dl white wine vinegar
herb sprig (optional)


Peel the garlic and onion and halve them if they are too big.

Carefully thread the garlic and onions on the stick so they don't come apart.

Place the stick in a wide necked bottle or similar and pour the vinegar into it.

(Add the herb sprig at this stage if you want it).

Heat the vinegar in the microwave for about 1min.

Put a lid on it and let stand for a couple of days before using it.

Keep in a cool place with a lid on and leave the onion, garlic and herbs in.


Enjoy!

Almond Flarns

These chewy cookies are the perfect accompaniment to ice-cream or fresh berries. Flarn is Swedish for a thin or flat cookie or biscuit.


100g chopped almonds
1dl sugar
1tbl honey
100g butter
2tbl flour
1tbl milk


Set the oven to 200ºC.

Mix and heat almonds, sugar, honey and butter in a saucepan.

Add the flour and milk when the butter has melted.

Let simmer for 1-2 minutes.

Spread teaspoon sized dollops on a baking paper covered pan. (don't place them too close together because they spread quite a bit)

Bake in the middle of the oven for 5-6min until they have a nice golden grown color.

If you want them bent for something a little fancier let them cool off a little bit and place them on a rolling pin or bottle.

Otherwise just let them get cold as they are.

Keep in cookie jars with tight lids.


Enjoy!

Mushroom Cod

A quick dish that is made all the quicker by cooking  the fish in the microwave.


400g frozen cod fillets (usually comes in blocks)
2 pinches of salt
1 small yellow onion
100g fresh mushrooms
1/2dl cream
1/2 pinch of pepper
chopped parsley

Thaw the fish halfway through on defrost mode on the microwave ca. 5min.

Cut it into slices about 2cm thick and put them on a dish with raised edges.

Salt with half the salt.

Peel the onion and clean the mushrooms then chop them into small pieces.

Fry them lightly. (you don't want the onion to get too dark)

Spread the mushroom and onion mixture evenly over the fish.

Mix the cream with the pepper and rest of the salt and pour it over the fish. (carefully so you don't knock of too much of the mushroom and onion mix)

Cover and cook the dish on full effect in the microwave for 6-8min.

Sprinkle the parsley over the top and serve with boiled or mashed potatoes and a salad.


Enjoy!

Egg Salad

Yeah I know "Salad two days in a row?", but one of my friends wanted a easy high protein dish he could make when he realized he hadn't met his quota for the day (he's on some training regime). Egg salad isn't that common outside of the USA but it is perfect for an easy side dish and you can very easily add tuna fish or shrimp to it to make it more special.

8 hard boiled eggs
3tbl mayonnaise
1tbl mustard (usually Dijon but whatever you like)
any spices you like (I usually go for paprika)

Dice the eggs. (using a egg slicer is easiest)

Mix together everything in a bowl.

Check the flavor and add more mayonnaise or mustard if need be.

Serve on lettuce leaves or use in sandwiches.


Enjoy!

Legume Salad

This classical Swedish side dish works very well with cold cut meat, any type of ham or grilled chicken or turkey. It tends to be mostly used as part of buffets nowadays. The most important thing to remember about this recipe is that everything should be diced to about the size of the peas.

1 apple, peeled and cored
10cm of cucumber, peeled
1 large carrot, peeled
5 pickle slices
1dl green peas
2dl mayonnaise
salt
white pepper


Boil the carrot until it's soft, then let it get cold and dice it.

Dice the apple, cucumber and pickle slices.

Put all the diced things in a bowl together with the peas.

Flavor the mayonnaise with the salt and pepper then fold it into the vegetable mix.


Enjoy!

Pepper Burgers In Tomato Sauce

A colorful burger dish that i came up with because I had one half green pepper and half a red one and I wanted to try something different then my usual random stir fry.

400g ground meat
1/2 red pepper
1/2 green pepper
1 egg
1/2 - 1tsp salt
1/2tsp thyme
1 can of crushed tomatoes (400g)
1/2 pinch powdered cayenne pepper
1-2tbl lemon juice


Chop the peppers into small cubes.

Mix together the meat with the peppers, egg, salt and thyme.

Shape it into burgers about 8cm across and 1cm thick.

Fry them lightly in a large pan, about 2-3 min on each side.

Mix the crushed tomatoes with the cayenne pepper and lemon juice then pour it over the burgers.

Cook for about 8-10 minutes, turning the burgers once.

Serve with rice or pasta.


Enjoy!

Radio Cake

This cake gets it's name because it looks like the speaker of an antique radio when you slice it.
It's not even really a cake it's closer to being a huge sliceable candy bar.

250g coconut fat (also called coconut butter)
2 eggs
2 1/2dl icing sugar
1dl cocoa powder
ca. 100g of round or oblong biscuits (Marie biscuits are ideal but anything with a similar vanilla flavor works)

Clad  a oblong bread tin with baking paper.

Melt the coconut fat on low heat, it must not boil.

Let it cool off thoroughly or the batter might spoil.

Beat the eggs and sugar until it's really fluffy.

Add the cocoa powder and pour in the coconut fat in a steady fine stream.

Mix thoroughly.

Spread a layer of the chocolate batter at the bottom of the bread tin and then a layer of biscuits.

Continue alternating between the batter and biscuits and finish with a layer of the batter.

Keep it in the fridge so that the batter sets, preferably over night.

Take it out just before serving and cut it into slices.


Enjoy!

Italian Sausage Stew

A good way of using old potatoes and you don't have add any spices because of all the flavor in the sausages.

1 yellow onion
2 garlic cloves
600g cooked potatoes (usually around 4-6 potatoes depending on size)
400g strong sausages (pepperoni or strong chorizo work best here)
ca. 4dl water
1 cube of chicken stock
5 sun dried tomatoes (preferably marinated)
fresh basil (optional)


Peel and slice the onion and garlic.

Fry the onion and garlic in a little olive oil in a pot or deep pan.

Slice the potatoes and sausages and add them to the onion and garlic.

Pour in the water and crumble the stock cube in.

Let everything boil for a few minutes so that the flavor from the sausages has time to infuse everything.

Slice the tomatoes into thin strips and sprinkle them over the top  of the stew along with the basil if you use it.


Enjoy!

Chocolate Balls

A Swedish classic that is extremely favored amongst children because no cooking or baking is involved and they get to get their hands dirty. This recipe will get you about 40 of them depending of course on the size you make them.

2dl icing sugar
4tbl cocoa
100g butter, room temperature
1tbl vanilla sugar
5dl oatmeal
6tbl strong coffee (cold of course)
1 1/2dl coconut flakes

Sift the sugar and cocoa together to avoid lumps.

Mix the sugar and cocoa with the butter and then all the other ingredients except the coconut flakes.

Put the batter in the fridge for 30min.

Roll the batter into small balls using your hands. (keep your hands wet so it doesn't stick)

Roll the balls in the coconut flakes.

Keep in the fridge.


Enjoy!

Chicken À La King

This classical recipe seems to have been quite forgotten in the last few decades, the only mention that I can even remember is from Aladdin and that's from 1992. So I thought it was time to reintroduce it.

1 grilled chicken (ca. 1kg, can be replaced by chicken breast or thigh)
200g mushrooms
1 red or green pepper
1 yellow onion
2tbl flour
3dl chicken stock
1/2tsb salt
3-4 drops of Tabasco
1dl cream
parsley


Remove the skin and debone the chicken then cut the meat into small pieces.

Clean and cut the mushrooms, pepper and peeled onion into slices, removing the seeds from the pepper.

Fry the mushrooms first, then add the pepper and onion.

Mix in the flour and then add the stock.

Season with the salt and Tabasco then stir in the cream and let cook for a few minutes.

Add the meat and warm carefully.

Sprinkle chopped parsley over the top.

Serve with rice and a salad or use as the filling for a pie.


Enjoy!

Chili And Garlic Shrimp

I had a bag of frozen shrimp in the freezer and I wanted to do something with them, so I checked what else i had and this is what I came up with.

400g peeled shrimp
1-2 red chili
6-8 garlic cloves
1/2dl oil (olive oil or vegetable oil)
1tsb mushroom soy
parsley to taste

Deseed the chili and cut it into thin slices.

Peel and slice the garlic.

Fry the chili and garlic in the oil for about 5 min.

Add the shrimp and fry them briefly.

Stir in the soy and parsley.

Serve with rice or noodles.


Enjoy!

Gino

This is about the simplest dessert you can make and goes very fast. The original recipe uses bananas, kiwis and strawberries but you can substitute with any fruit you want or just keep to one type of fruit.
The amount of fruit is also dependent on the size of your dish.

2 bananas
3 kiwifruits
10 strawberries
200g white chocolate

Set the oven to 250ºC.

Peel or clean all the fruit and cut them into slices.

Put all the fruit on a greased oven safe dish.

Roughly grate the white chocolate over the fruit.

Bake it high up in the oven until the chocolate has gained some color, ca. 5 minutes.

Serve as is after it's cooled off a bit or with vanilla ice-cream.


Enjoy!

Spaghetti Poverello

This is a variation on the more well know spaghetti carbonara. It differs from carbonara in that you mix in the eggs and cheese with the pasta and you use the whole egg.

280g spaghetti (4 portions worth)
1 package of bacon
3 eggs
2dl grated cheese
2tbl melted butter
black pepper (roughly ground)

Cook the spaghetti.

Cut the bacon into small cubes or strips and fry them crispy.

Pour the bacon and fat in the pan over the spaghetti.

Beat the eggs lightly and mix in the melted butter, cheese and pepper.

Stir in the egg mixture with the spaghetti and serve at once.


Enjoy!

Coconut Cookies

These cookies are extremely easy to do and you only have four ingredients to worry about.

50g butter
2 eggs
1 1/2dl sugar
5-6dl coconut flakes (200g)

Melt the butter and let it cool.

Mix the eggs and sugar and beat them until they go white and puffy, then add the coconut and butter.

Let it swell for about 10 minutes.

Use  two spoons to dollop the batter on baking paper clad oven pans.

Bake them in the middle of the oven at 175ºC for about 10 minutes.

Can be decorated by drizzling melted chocolate over them or dip one side of them in it.


Enjoy!

Fresh Pickled Cucumber

These pickles are very easy to do and work very well with cooked salmon, veal or any wild meat.
 Use the dill if it's intended for fish and the parsley if for meat.

1 cucumber
2tbl vinegar (12% spirit vinegar)
2tbl sugar
1dl water
1/2 pinch white pepper
1/2tsb salt
2tbl chopped dill or parsley

Rinse and peel the cucumber and then slice it thinly (a cheese slicer works perfectly for this).

Mix the vinegar, sugar, water, pepper and salt in a bowl.

Add the cucumber slices.

Sprinkle over the dill or parsley.

Let stand for at least 2 hours before serving.


Enjoy!

Liver Stew With Bacon And Olives

Liver is a very unappreciated food, mostly i think because parents don't introduce it to their children anymore. Liver goes very well with vegetables that have strong flavors such as onion, paprika or cabbage. Mushrooms also work very well with it.

300-400g beef liver
1 package of bacon (ca. 140g)
2dl beef stock
2 yellow onions
1tsb salt
1 pinch of pepper
2-3tbl chopped parsley
10-12 olives (usually green with pimento but black works just as well)

Rinse and dry the liver.

Cut the liver into thick slices and cut the bacon into thin strips.

First brown the bacon in a pan and then the liver a little at a time.

Put the meat in a pot and whisk the pan with the stock to get all the flavor left there and pour it over the meat.

Peel and cut the onions into wedges and fry them for a few minutes, then add them to the pot.

Flavor with the salt and pepper and cook it for about 10 minutes.

Sprinkle the chopped parsley and sliced olives over the stew.

Serve with boiled rice or potatoes, steamed vegetables and a dollop of sour cream.


Enjoy!

Sweet And Sour Lamb

This was a quite tricky recipe to put down, mostly because some the ingredients where very vaguely written.

500-700g lamb cut into 2cm cubes
1 1/2dl white wine vinegar
1 1/2dl stock or pineapple juice
1/2tsb salt
3tbl brown sugar
1 medium sized yellow onion cut into slices
1 can of pineapple chunks in their own juice (ca. 500g)
2tbl arrowroot

Set the oven to 180ºC.

Brown the meat lightly for about 3-4 minutes.

Put the lamb in a casserole dish or similar that has a lid.

Mix all the other ingredients together with the exception of the arrowroot and pour it over the meat.

Put the lid on dish and put it in the oven for 2 hours or until the meat feels tender.

Remove the dish from the oven and skim of any fat that is floating on top.

Thicken the sauce with the arrowroot.

Serve with any variant of rice.


Enjoy!

Meringues

I thought something sweet and beautiful would be fitting for today. The vinegar/lemon juice is there to help stiffen the batter and make the bubbles of air much smaller and finer. It's important to use as clear and tasteless a vinegar as possible so as not to discolor or ruin the flavor the meringues.

3 large egg whites
5 drops of vinegar or fresh lemon juice
1 1/2dl sugar

Set the oven to 100ºC.

Whip the egg whites into a white foam.

Add the vinegar and whip it some more until the bubbles in it have become much finer.

Whip in the sugar a little at a time and keep whisking until the batter is stiff and keeps it's shape.

Click or spritz out meringues the size of golf balls on to baking paper on a baking sheet.

Bake them for 1-1 1/2 hours, until they feel light and are easily loosened from the baking paper.

Let them cool off on a oven grate.

Eat them as is or have them with ice-cream, strawberries and chocolate sauce.


Enjoy!

Milk Stewed Macaroni

This is a traditional Swedish recipe that for some reason has become more and more uncommon during the last 10 years. Kids tend to love it because it goes very well with ketchup.

7-8dl milk
1tsb salt
1 1/2tbl butter
3dl macaroni (traditionally small elbow shaped macaroni but what ever you have)
1 pinch of pepper
1 pinch of ground nutmeg (optional)


Bring the milk, salt and butter to the boil.

Mix in the macaroni and let them swell at very low heat without a lid for 10-25min (depending on the type of pasta) or until they have gone soft.

Stir from time to time and dilute with more milk if needed.

Add the pepper and the nutmeg if you want to use it.

At this stage you can sprinkle over or stir in parsley or dill to add some color and extra flavor.

Serve with sausages, bacon or Swedish meatballs.



Enjoy!

White Chocolate Cake

This recipe was quite difficult to translate because of one ingredient, quark. This is quite a common dairy product in Europe but is very difficult to find in the USA. I've decided that mascarpone or cream cheese would work quite adequately but will result in a richer cake.

100g white chocolate
100g butter
2dl sugar
150g mascarpone or cream cheese (quark if you can find it)
2 1/2dl flour
juice and zest from half a lemon
2tsb vanilla sugar
1tsb baking powder
1/2tsb salt

Grease and breadcrumb a cake tin with removable edges.

Melt the chocolate and the butter separately.

Mix the sugar and mascarpone until it is an even batter.

Add the melted chocolate and the butter and stir thoroughly.

Stir in the lemon zest and juice.

Mix together all the dry ingredients and add them to the batter a little at a time.

Pour the batter into the cake tin and bake for 25 minutes at 200ºC.

Serve with whipped cream and/or fresh strawberries.


Enjoy!

Filled Bacon Wrapped Sausages

This is a recipe with a wide variety of options that you can choose depending on what you have. They can be grilled, fried,done in the oven or even in the microwave. The filling can be changed with mushrooms, chili sauce, relish, mango chutney, chopped apple or onion.

4 sausages (usually of the hot dog variety but whatever you prefer)
1-2tbl mustard
ca. 100g cheese
1/2 green bell pepper
1/2 red bell pepper
8 pieces of bacon

Set the oven to 225ºC.

Make a cut lengthwise in each sausage but not all the way through.

Smear the insides of each sausage with the mustard.

Cut the peppers and cheese into thick sticks and push them into the cuts in the sausages.

Wrap two pieces bacon around each sausage tightly.

Now put the sausages on an oven grate and put a baking sheet covered in tin foil just underneath to catch anything that drips of the sausages so as to keep the oven nice and clean.

Keep them in the oven until the sausages are done and the bacon is starting to go crispy on the edges, this usually takes somewhere between 15-25min depending on the type of sausage.

Serve with hot dog buns and a light salad.


Enjoy!

Gratinated Pineapple Slices

This recipe is quite easy to do and quick because you can do it all in the microwave as I will show here.

1 can of pineapple slices (ca. 500g)
2tbl margarine or butter
1/2dl honey
1tbl flour
1tbl milk
ca. 40g of roughly chopped walnuts

Let the pineapple slices run of and put them on a serving plate that fits in your microwave.

Melt the margarine.

Stir in the honey, flour and milk into the margarine.

Heat it all for 2 minutes.

Mix in the chopped walnuts and spread the mixture over the pineapple slices.

Put the plate in the microwave and heat the dish at full effect for 1-2 minutes.

Serve with ice-cream.


Enjoy!

Sausage And Mushroom Pasta

This simple recipe is perfect for when you don't have time for a long cooking session.


300g spicy sausages (bratwurst, chorizo or something similar)
150g mushrooms
2dl crème fraiche or cream
1-2tsp soy (mushroom soy works best I find)
chopped parsley

Slice the sausages and mushrooms and fry them together with a little butter.

Stir in the crème fraiche and let it cook for a few minutes.

Flavor with the soy.

Sprinkle the parsley over the top.

Serve with freshly cooked pasta.


Enjoy!

Oatmeal Cookies

These quick and easy cookies can be modified quite easy to taste. You can mix in raisins, chocolate chips or even things like pieces of almonds.

1 1/2dl sugar
3dl oatmeal
1 1/2dl flour
1tbl baking soda
150g butter that's at room temperature
1dl raisins, chocolate chips or chopped nuts (optional)


Set the oven to 175ºC.

Mix all the ingredients together until you have a dough.

Shape the dough into small balls.

Place them on a baking tray covered with baking paper and flatten them a little.

Bake them in the middle of the oven for around 15 min.

Let them get cool and keep them in containers with tight lids.


Enjoy!

Potatoes With Bacon And Green Beans

I found this recipe together with a recipe for cocoa and chili covered pork. The pork wasn't the best but this has become a staple of my family.

8-10 potatoes
1-2 onions (yellow or red)
1 package of bacon (ca. 140g)
1 can of green beans (ca. 400g)
ca. 2tbl vegetable oil
salt
pepper


Set the oven to 175ºC.

Clean or peel the potatoes and cut them in half.

Put them flat side down on a greased baking tray or similar.

Peel the onions and cut them into big chunks and spread them among the potatoes.

Drizzle the potatoes and onions with the oil and salt and pepper.

Place in the middle of the oven for 45min.

While the potatoes are in the oven cut the bacon into small pieces or strips.

When the bacon is crispy drain the green beans and add them to the pan with the bacon.

Turn of the heat to the pan and mix them together a bit and let the beans soak up the bacon fat.

When the potatoes and onions are done put them in a large bowl or container (something like Corningware or similar works well).

Mix the bacon and beans with potatoes and onions until it's evenly distributed and looks like a potato salad.

Serve with any kind of meat or fowl.


Enjoy!

French Toast

French toast (known as Poor Knights in Sweden) makes a special breakfast or a filling dessert depending on your mood.

1 egg
3dl milk
1dl flour
8 pieces of bread (usually unsweetened white but whatever you prefer)
sugar
cinnamon


Whip the egg together with a little of the milk.

Mix in the flour and whip until the batter is smooth.

Add the rest of the milk and stir together.

Lay the bread slices in the batter until they have gone soft and soaked in batter from both sides.

Fry them until they are wonderfully golden brown on both sides.

Turn them over in sugar mixed with cinnamon or sprinkle it over them.

Serve freshly fried with jam, marmalade or fresh berries.


Enjoy!

Brian's Fillet Of Pork Special

This is a recipe that I've modified to have a little more zing to it by adding white wine and replacing the dill with parsley, these flavors work better together i feel.

500g fillet of pork
1tbl butter
1 1/2 - 2 glasses of white wine
2dl crème fraiche
2tbl french mustard (Dijon or similar)
1dl chopped parsley (half this amount if it's dried parsley)
salt and pepper to taste

Cut the fillet into slices about 1 1/2 - 2 cm thick.

Melt the butter in a frying pan and brown the meat on both sides so it gets some color.

Add the wine and let it reduce for a while until there is about half of the liquid left.

Mix in the rest of the ingredients and let it simmer for a few minutes.

Serve with boiled potatoes, pasta or rice and maybe a mixed salad.


Enjoy!

Caramel Cake

This cake is very tasty and not very heavy, so it works quite well even after a big dinner. It traditionally has arrak punsch in the almond base but that is difficult to get outside of Sweden but you can replace it with rum or skip the alcohol altogether.

Base
300 g almond paste
1-2tbl arrak punsch (optional)
3 eggs

Caramel
1 1/2dl cream
1/2dl sugar
1/2dl light syrup (golden syrup)

Take a baking tin with removable edges and clad the bottom with baking paper and butter the sides.

Grate the almond paste finely in a bowl and add the arrak punsch or rum.

Add one egg at a time and mix carefully between each one.

Pour the mixture into the tin and bake it for 30 min at 175ºC.

Let the cake cool off.

Whilst the cake is baking make the caramel.

Mix the cream, sugar and syrup in a wide, thick bottomed sauce pan.

Boil until the caramel thickens, stirring often.

Don't boil it for to long but just enough so that you can create "streets" in the caramel when you drag a spoon along the bottom of the pan, which allows you to temporarily see the bottom of the pan.

Let it cool off a little bit then spread it over the cake.

Is favorably served cold.


Enjoy!

Bacon Wrapped Meatloaf

I have made one major modification to this meatloaf  and that is what it is baked in, which happens to be a regular rectangular bread tin. This helps keep the shape and makes it easier to get the bacon around it. I only bind the meat together with one egg and don't add any milk or water to the mixture because I want it to be quite compact and therefore easier to slice without breaking apart. You can also fill it with any number of things like olives and sun dried tomatoes to pickles and capers.

400-500g minced meat (usually 50/50 pork and beef but whatever you like)
1 egg
1 1/2tsb salt
1 pinch white pepper
1 package of bacon (around 140g)
ca. 100g cheese cut into sticks


Set your oven to 175ºC.

Line the bread tin with the bacon so that the ends of the bacon hang over the long side of the tin.

Mix the minced meat with the egg, salt and pepper (add any other spices you feel like).

Take half the meat and press it into the bottom of the tin.

Push the cheese sticks in vertically in the  meat at regular intervals.


Add the rest of the meat on top and push down so that it becomes one loaf.

Fold over the ends of the bacon so that they cover the top of the meatloaf.

Put it in the middle of the oven for 45-60 min.

Lift out of the bread tin with a sturdy pair of forks or similar and put it on a cutting board to drain and be ready to slice.

Serve with any type of brown sauce or gravy, fried or boiled potatoes and lingonberry jam or red/blackcurrant jelly.

It is also extremely delicious to have cold on a sandwich.

Enjoy!

Farmers Omelette

This omelette is perfect if you have leftovers in the fridge. Use what you have at home but here is a basic recipe that you can modify depending on what you have available and best of all you don't have to flip it.

1 chopped yellow onion
2tbl butter or margarine
150g smoked ham in cubes
3-4 boiled potatoes in cubes
6 eggs
5tbl water
2 pinches of salt
1/2 pinch ground pepper


Fry the onion in the butter until it starts to get transparent but not gained any color.

Put in the potatoes and ham and fry until it's all warmed up.

Whip together eggs, water and spices and pour it over the potatoes, ham and onions in the pan.

Drag a plastic fork underneath it so that fresh batter can reach the heat and harden.

Serve when the batter has just hardened on the top with some freshly chopped parsley on top if you like.

Enjoy!

Sweet And Creamy Fish Soup

This recipe is something my dad got from a friend of his, I have no idea why but I am grateful for it because it is very delicious.

1 leek
3 bell peppers (different colors)
1 jar of taco sauce (230g pineapple salsa if you can get it)
1 jar of water (use the salsa jar)
1 cube of fish stock
2 1/2dl cream
2dl crème fraiche (paprika and chili flavored if available)
1 small can of sweetcorn
400g cod or other similar white fish
salt and paprika powder to taste

Slice the leek and chop the peppers in to medium sized pieces and fry them until they have softened somewhat.

Add the taco sauce, water and fish stock and let it boil together a little bit.

Mix in the cream and crème fraiche.

Chop the cod into pieces (not to small).

Add the cod to the soup, carefully so it doesn't break.

Cook at low heat until the cod is done.

Drain the corn and add it.

Let it all heat up and add the spices to taste.

Serve with tasty bread.


Enjoy!

Simple Porridge

A friend mentioned to me that he had no idea how to make porridge which i thought was a bit surprising but here is the simplest recipe for porridge that i know.

1dl oatmeal
2 1/4dl water
1 pinch of salt

Mix everything together in a breakfast bowl.

Put the bowl in a microwave for 2min at full power.

Add milk.


One variation that is very tasty is to mix the oatmeal with powdered cinnamon before you add the water so that it mixes evenly, serve with chopped apple or applesauce.

Enjoy!

Swedish Chocolate Cake (Kladdkaka)

I thought I would start with a quick and easy one with a slight twist, it's done in the microwave.

175 grams of butter
3 eggs
3dl of sugar
2dl of ordinary flour
4tbl of cocoa powder
1tbl vanilla sugar or 1/4tbl vanilla extract if you can't find the sugar


Melt the butter.

Whip the eggs and sugar white and fluffy but still slightly runny.

Mix the flour, cocoa and vanilla sugar until evenly mixed. If you are using liquid vanilla extract add that when mixing everything together.

Stir the melted butter in to the sugar and egg mixture.

Stir the dry ingredients (and vanilla extract) into the mixture until it's an even batter.



At this stage you can run amok and add all kinds of extras, such as nuts, chocolate chips, chunks of digestive biscuits or anything you can come up with.

Pour the batter into a tin that can take being in the microwave, a silicone cake tin works best.

Nuke it on full blast for 6-8 minutes depending on how gooey you want it.

If you don't have a microwave oven with a spinning tray turn it around after half the time to get an even bake.

Usually served with a dollop of whipped cream and works well both hot and cold.


This cake works very well for beginners because it's not a very sensitive recipe at all and even if you eat it raw or cook it as hard as biscotti it will taste fantastic.


Enjoy!