Fika

Krumkake

May 8, 2019 by Kristi Leave a Comment

What are Krumkaker?

Krumkake is a Norwegian waffle cookie that is pressed inside a decorative iron and then wrapped around a form while it is still hot creating a cone shape. Krumkake actually means “bent cake” in Norwegian. Krumkaker (the plural form) can be eaten plain, or they can be filled with whipped cream or some other kind of sweet filling. They are often served alongside fresh berries in the spring and summer.

If you are of Scandinavian descent, chances are good that you have encountered krumkaker on a Christmas cookie tray at some point in your life. Here in the United States, they are most often made during the holiday season and are a beautiful addition to the Christmas cookie line-up. Delicate and golden with a decorative imprint on the surface, there is no doubt that these cookies have a lot going for them in the looks department.

But sometimes, krumkaker can be ALL looks and no substance. Many of the recipes out there produce a one-dimensional, overly sweet cookie that is drop dead gorgeous but hardly worth eating. When I decided to include a recipe for krumkaker here on the blog, I set out to change that. There’s no reason these cookies can’t be beautiful and delicious.

The Importance of Sugar

When I began testing recipes, I immediately began by reducing the amount of sugar. This worked well to a point, but if I reduced the amount of sugar too significantly, the cookies didn’t crisp up as well. I did a little research and as it turns out, the sugar in the batter melts as it is heated during the cooking process but then recrystallizes as the cookie cools creating a crispier cookie. So the sugar was playing more of a role than I realized. In the final version, I was able to reduce the sugar by about 1/4 cup from where I started. Any more than that and I was compromising crispiness which I was not willing to do.

Don’t Forget the Salt

Many of the recipes I came across in my research did not include salt. That explained the one-dimensional nature of many of the krumkaker I had tried. In order to fully experience the sweetness in baked goods, you need the presence of a little salt to balance everything out.

Brown Butter

Finally, I couldn’t resist browning the butter before adding it to the batter. I was going to melt it anyway so why not bring out the butter’s toasty, caramel notes and add just a little more depth to this very basic cookie? This version was the clear winner…..delicate and crisp with all of the good looks you might expect but also toasty and buttery with just the right amount of sweetness.

Krumkake with whipped cream and strawberries — *Ready for my close up!*

Keeping Krumkaker Crisp

As I mentioned above, having the right amount of sugar in your recipe is crucial to a crisp krumkake. There are a few other details that will also help achieve (and maintain) that delightfully light and crisp texture:

Add a little cornstarch. Several of the recipes I came across included a little cornstarch in the batter. When I added a little (2 tablespoons) to my recipe, the krumkaker were noticeably more tender and crisp.
Give the batter a rest. Some recipes called for resting the batter before baking the krumkaker. The texture of my cookies greatly improved when I included a short (30-45 minute) rest before baking.
Bake the krumkaker until they are nicely browned. If your cookies are pale in color, it’s possible that they haven’t baked long enough and are still retaining moisture. Brown is better.
Cool completely on a wire rack before storing. Warm cookies haven’t completely dried out and may still contain moisture. Wait until they are completely cool to seal them in an airtight container.
Choose the right storage container. Some people say that you should never store krumkaker in a plastic bag or storage container as it will lead to soggy cookies. I have had this experience as well. I use an old-fashioned cookie tin lined on the bottom with paper towels. I have also read that a glass container works well.
Fill them immediately before serving. Filling your krumkaker with whipped cream or some other delightful filling will eventually lead to sogginess over time. It’s best to wait until the last minute to fill them if you want them to retain their crispy texture.

No more, “I’m just here to pretty up the Christmas cookie tray.” These krumkaker deserve year-round cookie status. Give them a try while it’s still strawberry season…filled with whipped cream and served with fresh berries, these cookies make a stunning fika treat or make-ahead spring dessert.

Krumkake

A toasty, buttery and delicately beautiful cone-shaped cookie.

Author: Kristi
Prep Time: 15 minutes + 30 minutes resting time
Cook Time: 45-50 minutes
Total Time: 1 and 1/2 hours
Yield: About 30 cookies
Category: Cookies
Method: Baking
Cuisine: Scandinavian, Nordic, Norwegian

Ingredients

½ cup unsalted butter

¾ cup granulated sugar

2 large eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 cup whole milk

3 tablespoons water

¾ teaspoon fine salt

2 tablespoons cornstarch

1 ½ cups all purpose flour

Sweetened whipped cream and fresh strawberries for serving, optional

Special Equipment Needed:

Krumkake iron, either an electric model like this one (what I use), or a stove top model

Cone-shaped form (the electric model mentioned above comes with a plastic one, but I like this wooden one)

Instructions

Place butter in a medium skillet (preferably not nonstick or cast iron so that you can more easily see the color change) and heat over medium low heat, swirling the pan frequently. Once the butter has melted, continue to cook over medium low, swirling the pan frequently, until the butter has a nutty aroma and is golden brown in color. Don’t walk away from the stove! Brown butter can go from perfect to burnt in a matter of seconds. Transfer brown butter to a bowl to cool.
Whisk salt, cornstarch and flour together in a medium bowl. Set aside.
Combine granulated sugar and eggs in a large bowl and whisk until fully combined and no lumps of sugar remain. Slowly whisk in cooled brown butter and vanilla extract. Keep whisking until the mixture is emulsified and cohesive.
Add milk and water and whisk until fully combined. Add flour mixture and whisk until batter is smooth and no lumps remain. Rest batter for 30-45 minutes at room temperature.
Working with 1 tablespoon of batter at a time, bake cookies on a krumkake iron, either an electric model or one that goes on the stove, according to manufacturer’s instructions. It may take a few tries to get the hang of how your iron works so be patient. I like to err on the side of a cookie that is darker in color. They are more crisp and have better flavor.
Remove the hot cookie from iron and place it on a clean kitchen towel. Quickly, while the cookie is still hot, carefully roll the krumkake around a cone-shaped form. Use the towel to help start the rolling process if the cookies are too hot for your fingers. The sooner you begin rolling the better. The cookies will almost immediately start to harden as they cool and become difficult or impossible to roll into a cone shape. Let the rolled cookie rest with the form inside, seam side down on the clean towel, while the next cookie is baking. Remove the cone form and transfer krumkake to a wire rack to cool completely. Repeat with remaining batter. Serve.

Notes

Store krumkaker in a cookie tin or glass container at room temperature for 3-5 days. They also freeze well.

Keywords: Krumkake, cookie, cone

Roasted Strawberry Rhubarb Compote

March 29, 2019 by Kristi Leave a Comment

It’s gloomy today and the rain falls steadily as I write. The last of the snow has finally melted and the daffodils are peeking up through the earth. My favorite magnolia tree in the backyard is filled with velvety buds, patiently waiting for her all too brief moment of blossoming. Change is afoot, both outside and in my kitchen as we transition to the early days of spring.

We are a ways out from fresh strawberries and rhubarb here in Nebraska, but the displays in the market tell me that somewhere not too far from here they are already bountiful. I can’t think of a better way to kick off this season of rebirth and renewal than with this Roasted Strawberry and Rhubarb Compote. Think of it as that perfect accessory that you can put with just about anything and elevate it from ordinary to extraordinary. Like a favorite scarf or necklace but edible. A batch of this compote will keep for at least two weeks in the fridge and will cheerfully adorn just about anything you choose to pair with it.

*Like Strawberry Rhubarb Crisp for breakfast!*

You may choose to:

Use it in place of jam on your morning toast

Slather it on top of rye crispbread with cream cheese for afternoon fika (don’t forget the coffee!)
Warm it slightly and spoon it over ice cream

Spoon a dollop next to your favorite granola and yogurt (it’s like having strawberry rhubarb crisp for breakfast!)

You get the idea. Enjoy these early spring days, my friends! They are fleeting. Soon it will be hot and humid and we will long for this in between season of fresh earth, cloudy skies and new beginnings.

Roasted Strawberry Rhubarb Compote

A cheerful spring topping for just about anything!

Author: Kristi
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 40 minutes
Total Time: 50 minutes
Yield: 1 1/2 cups 1x
Category: sauce
Method: roasted
Cuisine: Nordic, Scandinavian

Scale

Ingredients

1 pound fresh strawberries, hulled and halved if small, quartered if large

2 cups chopped rhubarb stalks, fresh or frozen

½ cup granulated sugar

¼ cup water

Pinch of salt

½ vanilla bean

Instructions

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
Combine all ingredients except vanilla bean in a 9 x 13 baking dish.
Using a small knife, slice down one side of the vanilla bean lengthwise so that it opens like a book. Using the back of the knife, scrape the black seeds from the inside of the split vanilla bean pod and place in the baking dish. Add the pod as well.
Stir everything together. Roast for 20 minutes. Remove from oven and stir mixture. Return to the oven and roast for another 20 minutes or until fruit is bubbly, extremely soft and falling apart.
Remove the vanilla bean pod. Using a potato masher or the back of a fork, lightly mash the fruit mixture until it is a jam-like consistency. Allow to cool. Store in an air-tight container in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks.

Keywords: Strawberry, Rhubarb, Compote, Sauce, Jam, Roasted, Nordic, Scandinavian,

Simple Brown Butter Carrot Cake

March 18, 2019 by Kristi Leave a Comment

easy brown butter carrot cake — *Easy, delicious, simple carrot cake*

I associate carrot cake with springtime. Even though I can easily buy carrots 12 months out of the year, NOW is when my thoughts turn to carrot cake. Does it have something to do with Easter? Bunnies (and by extension their beloved carrots)? I honestly don’t know, but last week, right on schedule, the craving hit and I set out to develop a recipe for an easy, delicious carrot cake.

Something to know about me as a baker….I lean towards the simple and rustic. You are not likely to find me in the kitchen painstakingly assembling a three-tier layer cake embellished with piped frosting and elaborate decor. While I admire this kind of work and will gladly eat it, it’s just not my personal style. I like a cake that is easy to put together for an afternoon fika treat, something I can pair with a strong cup of coffee around 4 pm without having to do too much planning ahead.

Something to know about me as a carrot cake lover….I like to keep it basic. Just carrots, spices and that tangy cream cheese frosting. You can keep your pineapple, your coconut, your chopped nuts. I want a carrot cake that is the essence of simplicity. When I began developing my own version, I started with a recipe for Danish Carrot Cake from the Scandinavian baking bible, The Great Scandinavian Baking Book by Beatrice Ojakangas. It was an all butter recipe, which seemed like a good idea (many carrot cakes are made with vegetable oil rather than butter), and it was a simple 8 inch square cake that looked like it would come together quickly. Unfortunately, it wasn’t quite what I was looking for. Pale in color, light on carrots and spices, it hardly seemed like a carrot cake. Back to the drawing board.

I began researching why so many carrot cake recipes have oil rather than butter. It turns out that oil has more fat than butter (butter is part water), and the oil gives the cake that moist, almost dense quality we associate with carrot cake. So canola oil in, butter out for this next round. I also doubled the amount of carrots and swapped out a portion of the regular sugar for dark brown sugar to improve color and texture. This version was much better. I was happy with the texture but the cake still lacked flavor. For my next round, I doubled the spices and the salt (the contrast of salt is essential for bringing out the sweetness in baked goods) and swapped out a portion of the canola oil with brown butter. You know brown butter….unsalted butter that has been melted over low heat until it becomes nutty and golden brown? It makes a wonderful addition to baked goods (try it in chocolate chip cookies), and I was hoping that it would add a little richness and flavor without compromising the texture of the cake which had so greatly improved when I swapped oil for the butter. Success! This final version boasts a dense, moist crumb, plenty of carrots and just the right amount of richness and spice. And don’t forget the cream cheese frosting! It’s absolutely essential in my opinion. As is a good, strong cup of coffee to go with it.

Simple Brown Butter Carrot Cake

A simple, perfectly-spiced carrot cake with luscious cream cheese frosting.

Author: Kristi
Prep Time: 30 minutes
Cook Time: 30 minutes
Total Time: 60 minutes + cooling time
Yield: 1 8-inch cake 1x
Category: cake, fika
Method: Baking
Cuisine: Scandinavian, Nordic

Scale

Ingredients

For the Carrot Cake:

¼ cup unsalted butter

1 ¼ cups all-purpose flour

1 ¼ teaspoons baking powder

½ teaspoon fine sea salt

2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

½ teaspoon ground nutmeg

½ cup packed dark brown sugar

¼ cup granulated sugar

2 eggs

½ cup canola oil or vegetable oil

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1 ½ cups packed grated carrots (about 8 ounces)

For the Cream Cheese Frosting:

4 ounces cream cheese (½ of a block), room temperature

2 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature

1 cup powdered sugar

½ teaspoon vanilla extract

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour an 8 inch square cake pan.
Place butter in a medium skillet (preferably not nonstick or cast iron so that you can more easily see the color change) and heat over medium low heat, swirling the pan frequently. Once the butter has melted, continue to cook over medium low swirling the pan frequently until the butter has a nutty aroma and is golden brown in color. Don’t walk away from the stove! Brown butter can go from perfect to burnt in a matter of seconds. Transfer brown butter to a bowl to cool.
Combine flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon and nutmeg in a medium bowl. Whisk together and set aside.
Combine eggs, brown sugar and granulated sugar in a large bowl and whisk until fully combined and no lumps of sugar remain. Slowly whisk in oil followed by cooled brown butter and vanilla extract. Keep whisking until the mixture is emulsified and cohesive.
Add dry ingredients to wet ingredient and stir with rubber spatula until just a few streaks of flour remain. Fold in carrots until mixture is just combined.
Using a rubber spatula, transfer cake batter to prepared pan. Bake for 30-35 minutes or until a skewer or toothpick poked into the center of the cake comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs attached. Set cake aside to cool.
Meanwhile, make the frosting: Combine butter and cream cheese in work bowl of a stand mixer. Beat with the paddle attachment on medium high until fluffy and fully combined, scraping down the bowl with a spatula as necessary.
Reduce speed to low and add powdered sugar. Once it is combined with the butter and cream cheese, add vanilla extract and return mixer speed to medium high and beat until the frosting is light and fluffy, stopping to scrape down the sides of the bowl once or twice.
Once cake has cooled completely, spread frosting on top. Serve.

Notes

Grate your carrots on the large holes of a box grater or using the grater attachment of your food processor.

If you don’t want to bother browning the butter, you can substitute 1/4 cup addition canola oil for butter.

It’s important that your butter and cream cheese be room temperature it you want a smooth, luxurious frosting.

Keywords: carrots, cake, simple, easy, cream cheese frosting, Spring, brown butter

Dill Caper Butter

February 28, 2019 by Kristi Leave a Comment

Compound butters are quite simply butter that has been mixed with flavorful ingredients such as fresh herbs, chiles, capers, anchovies, mustard, lemon juice, garlic or shallots. They offer an easy way to infuse a simple meal with complex flavor and require minimal effort. Wrapped in saran wrap in a cylinder shape, compound butters also freeze like a dream. When you are ready to use it, simply cut off the amount of butter that you need and return the remaining portion to the freezer.

This dill caper butter is one of my favorites. I love it on a piece of rye crispbread topped with a sliced hard-boiled egg and fresh dill…a quick, savory breakfast or snack that tastes like more than the sum of its parts. You might also try it on bread of any kind, stirred into a simple bowl of cooked grains, or dolloped over the top of a piece of roasted salmon. The options are endless!

Dill Caper Butter

Try spreading this savory compound butter on a piece of rye crispbread topped with sliced hard-boiled egg and fresh dill.

Author: Kristi
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 5 minutes
Total Time: 5 minutes
Yield: 1/4 cup 1x
Category: Butter
Cuisine: Scandinavian, Nordic

Scale

Ingredients

4 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature

1 tablespoon small capers stored in brine, rinsed and drained and chopped

1 tablespoon chopped fresh dill

Salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

Mix all ingredients together. Season to taste with salt and pepper (it may not need salt because of the capers). Store in the fridge for up to two days or freeze in a wrapped cylinder shape for up to 3 months.

Keywords: butter, compound butter, dill, capers, Scandinavian, Nordic

Swedish Almond Cake

February 28, 2019 by Kristi Leave a Comment

Fika treats do not need to be complicated, but it is nice if they are homemade. This particular cake is the essence of simplicity, perfect for a busy day when you know you will need a little pick-me-up at 4:00 or so (this is everyday for me). You can whip this cake batter together by hand in to time at all, no mixer required. A little less than an hour later, you will be rewarded with a dense, moist almond-flavored cake that needs nothing more than a sprinkling of powdered sugar and a strong cup of coffee to go with it.

Swedish Almond Cake

A deliciously moist almond cake. Perfect for afternoon fika!

Author: Kristi
Prep Time: 1 hour 20 minutes
Cook Time: 45-55 minutes
Total Time: 1 hour 20 minutes
Yield: 12–15 slices 1x
Category: Cake, Fika
Method: Baking
Cuisine: Scandinavian, Nordic

Scale

Ingredients

You will need a special Scandinavian Almond Cake Pan for this recipe, available at fine Scandinavian stores everywhere or on Amazon.com. A worthy investment, I assure you!

1 1/4 cup flour

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt

1 1/4 cup sugar

1 egg

2 teaspoons pure almond extract

2/3 cup whole milk

1/2 cup unsalted butter (1 stick), melted and cooled

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray cake pan generously with baking spray such as Pam with flour. This is important! The cake is likely to stick to the pan otherwise. Place prepared pan on a cookie sheet.

2. Whisk flour, baking powder and salt in a medium-size bowl. Set aside.

3. In a large bowl, whisk together sugar, egg, almond extract and milk. Add flour mixture and whisk until mixed well. Add butter and mix until fully combined.

4. Pour batter into prepared pan. Place cookie sheet with pan on top into the oven. Bake for 45-55 minutes or until edges are golden brown and toothpick inserted into center comes out clean.

5. Let cake rest in the pan for 10 minutes before inverting onto a serving tray. Let rest another 5 minutes before removing the pan. Sprinkle with powdered sugar and serve.

Keywords: almond cake, Swedish, cake, fika, Nordic, Scandinavian

Shall We Fika?

February 28, 2019 by Kristi Leave a Comment

To truly fika requires a commitment to making time for a break in your day, the creation of a magical moment in the midst of the routine and the mundane.

–Fika, Anne Brones and Johanna Kindvall

At its very essence, the Swedish term “fika” (pronounced fee-ka) means to take a break and enjoy a cup of coffee and possibly a delicious baked good to go with it. Fika can be a noun (it’s time for fika) or it can be used as a verb (shall we fika?). But to simply call it a coffee break as we understand that term in English would be missing the point. The tradition of fika runs deep in Sweden. Life in structured to accommodate fika, even in the workplace, and the expectation of a midday opportunity to stop what you are doing and enjoy a cup of coffee and a treat is something that is anticipated and enjoyed as a part of daily life. According to Nordstjernan, The Swedish Newspaper of America, most Swedes fika twice a day for an average of 52 minutes in total.

Fika is not something you do in front of a computer screen or as you scroll through social media on your phone. It is meant to be a sacred pause in the day, an opportunity to rest and reconnect. If you are enjoying fika in the company of others, consider it a time to relax and engage in face-to-face conversation with your companions. If you are on your own, simply siting and enjoying your break in silence can be a quiet moment of peace and restoration. Or maybe you turn to the company of your journal and a pen or an engaging book. The particulars are entirely up to you…coffee or tea, treat or no treat, alone or with company. What matters most is that you pause, unplug and enjoy a momentary respite from the day.

Roasted Pear Compote with Cardamom, Vanilla and Fresh Ginger

February 26, 2019 by Kristi Leave a Comment

roasted pear compote on rye crispbread with cream cheese and coffee — *Rye crispbread with cream cheese and roasted pear compote*

It’s time we had a little chat about cardamom. Citrusy, spicy, floral….it is, shall we say, a very complex and exotic spice. Although native to India, cardamom has somehow managed to find its way into many traditional recipes for Scandinavian baked goods. The Nordic countries are famous for their cardamom buns, cakes and cookies. How did this far-flung spice find its way from India to Scandinavia? Some claim that the Vikings brought it north with them after encountering it on their travels to the Byzantine Empire (now Turkey) or possibly Constantinople (now Istanbul). Others say it was first brought to mainland Europe when the Moors established a presence on the Iberian peninsula, and it made its way to Scandinavia from there. Whatever the circumstances, cardamom is the darling spice of the Nordic baking world.

It is not, however, beloved by all. I once bought my daughter a large cardamom-laced sugar cookie from a Scandinavian bakery. She eagerly took a big bite, unaware of the cardamom lurking inside, and spit it out, disgusted. “Mom, why does my cookie taste like soap!?” Oh, how my Swedish, Norwegian and Danish ancestors must have rolled in their graves upon hearing this! Clearly I had not done as good of a job raising her as I thought I had. Not enough exposure to cardamom and now the taste was unpleasant, foreign and apparently soapy to her. We joke that it might make a good title for her memoir someday: Why Does My Cookie Taste Like Soap? Discovering my Nordic Heritage the Hard Way (coming to a book store near you in 20 years or so). As I said, not beloved by all.

To be honest, I didn’t like cardamom as a kid either. I now enjoy it in small doses ( a little goes a LONG way), and I feel like some of the recipes I encounter are a bit heavy handed with this potent spice. If you are new to cardamom or are trying to convince your children of its deliciousness, I would suggest a light touch at first…a quarter or half teaspoon of it here or there. I also recommend buying the pods and grinding the seeds inside yourself rather than purchasing ground cardamom. You will be rewarded with a much truer flavor.

This pear compote is delicately laced with whole cardamom seeds, and I absolutely love it. It makes a delicious topping for toast, crispbread, porridge and granola served with filmjölk, yogurt or milk of your choice. Or you can just eat it with a spoon! According to Live Lagom: Balanced Living the Swedish Wayby Anna Brones, compotes are a very common way to serve fruit in Sweden. This one is my take on a pear compote I made in cooking school some years back. In class we used it as a filling for a gingerbread cobbler, which is something to consider. The combination of pears and gingerbread is utterly magical.

Roasted Pear Compote with Cardamom, Vanilla and Fresh Ginger

This delicious fruit compote makes a perfect topping for rye crispbread, porridge, granola, oatmeal….the options are endless!

Author: Kristi
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 45 minutes
Total Time: 1 hour 20 minutes
Yield: 12 ounces 1x
Category: compote
Cuisine: Scandinavian, Nordic

Scale

Ingredients

5-6 small to medium-sized Bartlett pears, peeled and cut into ¾ inch cubes

2 tablespoons honey

Seeds from 2 crushed cardamom pods, pods discarded

4–5 thin slices of fresh ginger (no need to peel)

a pinch course salt

½ vanilla bean

1 teaspoon freshly squeezed lemon juice

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Combine all ingredients except vanilla bean and lemon juice in an 8 or 9 inch square baking dish.
With a small sharp knife, split vanilla bean down one side of the pod.Open up the pod and lay it flat on your cutting board. Using the back of your knife, remove the black seeds from the interior of the pod by scraping from one end of the open pod to the other. Place seeds and empty pod in the baking dish along with the other ingredients.
Bake for 45 minutes, stirring half way through, or until pears have softened considerably.
Remove the pan from the oven. Using a spoon, remove and discard the vanilla bean pod and ginger slices. Mash pears with a potato masher or the back of a fork until they are create a chunky, rustic mash. Add lemon juice. Taste the mixture and season with additional lemon juice, salt or honey to taste. Once the compote has cooled, transfer to a clean jar and store in the refrigerator for up to two weeks.

Keywords: compote, pears, cardamom, ginger, Scandinavian, Nordic