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Swedish Meatball Smørrebrød with Creamy Pickled Beet Salad

November 5, 2019 by Kristi Leave a Comment

So you have some leftover Swedish Meatballs languishing in the fridge? Not a problem. In fact, consider yourself lucky. You have the makings of an easy and delicious Swedish meatball open sandwich. While this sandwich looks unusual and you are probably thinking I just made this up, I assure you, it is one of the classics. I like to think of it as a Scandinavian version of the American meatloaf sandwich, but a lot more beautiful and interesting.

This smørrebrød (or smörgås in Swedish) starts with buttered dense rye bread, as so many of them do. From there you add a handful or two of baby lettuces or arugula and a generous spoonful of a simple creamy beet salad. A few cold sliced meatballs finish it off with perhaps a dill sprig or a little chopped parsley or chives for garnish. Lunch is served.

The Nordic open sandwich has, from its inception, been intended as a creative vehicle for leftovers. This gorgeous and tasty Swedish Meatball Smørrebrød is the perfect example of Scandinavian leftovers done right.

Swedish Meatball Smørrebrød with Creamy Pickled Beet Salad

A classic Nordic open sandwich featuring a creamy pickled beet salad and leftover Swedish meatballs. Beautiful and delicious!

Author: Kristi
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 10 minutes
Yield: 2 open sandwiches 1x
Category: Smørrebrød
Cuisine: Swedish, Scandinavian, Nordic

Scale

Ingredients

For the Sandwiches:

2 thin slices dense rye bread

Butter for spreading

A handful of baby arugula leaves or other baby lettuces

Creamy Pickled Beet Salad (recipe follows)

4-8 leftover Easy Swedish Meatballs, sliced

Dill sprigs, chopped parsley or chives for serving

For the Creamy Pickled Beet Salad:

½ cup pickled beets, cut into ½ inch pieces

1 tablespoon prepared mayonnaise

1 tablespoon creme fraiche or sour cream

Instructions

Make the Creamy Pickled Beet Salad: Combine all ingredients in a small bowl and stir to combine.
Assemble the Sandwiches: Transfer bread slices to a clean work surface. Butter the bread. Top with a handful of arugula, a generous spoonful of Creamy Pickled Beet Salad. Artfully arrange meatball slices on top. Garnish with herbs and serve.

Keywords: Swedish, meatballs, smørrebrød, sandwich, pickled beets

Easy Overnight Danish Rye (Rugbrød)

September 24, 2019 by Kristi 2 Comments

In the world of Nordic cuisine, this dense rye bread is an absolute essential. It serves as the base for most open sandwiches, and is an integral part of the Scandinavian diet, not just in Denmark but throughout the region. Rugbrød can be difficult to find here in the United States. Unless you live near a good Scandinavian bakery, it’s likely that the only rye you are able to find is something more like pumpernickel or a deli rye which are definitely not the same thing as rugbrød. If you want an authentic Danish rye, you are probably going to have to make it yourself.

What is Rugbrød?

Rugbrød simply means “rye bread” in Danish. It is a sturdy, dense loaf that is comprised of rye flour, chopped rye grains and is often studded with sunflower, pumpkin and/or flax seeds. It is almost always baked in a 13 x 4 inch pullman pan with a lid. This helps the rye bread bake properly and gives it its characteristic square shape.

Rye breads, particularly those baked here in America, often have a variety of ingredients added to them to enhance their color (making them darker in appearance) and flavor. Common additions include caramel coloring (no thank you), stout beer, cocoa powder, espresso powder and molasses. Rugbrød, in contrast, has very little additional flavoring, perhaps just a little molasses for sweetening. It is meant to be a very straightforward bread so that it can serve as a neutral base for a variety of different sandwich toppings. Sometimes I will come across a rugbrød recipe that calls for flavor enhancers such as caraway, fennel or anise seed in the dough, but this seems to be more of an exception than the rule. Again, simple is the name of the game here.

When it is served, Rugbrød is typically sliced thin (a little less than a quarter of an inch) and buttered liberally with salted butter. There is actually a word in Danish, tandsmør, which means “tooth butter”. It refers to buttering your bread generously enough so that when you bite into it you can see your teeth marks in it. You butter lovers know what I’m talking about. It may be enjoyed as is, simply slathered with butter, or it can be piled with additional ingredients to form the base of smørrebrød, the famous Danish open sandwich.

What Makes Rye So Special?

Rye has many unique qualities that make it quite different from wheat, both as a whole grain and in flour form:

Rye has historically been important for the Nordic region as it is a hearty plant that can tolerate poor soil and weathers cold and wet conditions better than most grains. It was the primary grain relied upon for bread-baking in the north for centuries and is still popular today.
Rye flour has less gluten than wheat flour. Gluten strands form the structure of bread and trap gases produced by the yeast so that your bread leavens properly. Because gluten doesn’t form well when rye flour is mixed with water, rye breads are always more dense in structure and have a closer crumb that wheat breads.
Rye flour holds more water than wheat flour and contains certain enzymes that convert starch to sugar. This can cause rye breads to be overly moist and have a gummy texture if not handled and baked properly.
Rye breads get better with a little age. Unlike wheat breads which are best eaten shortly after cooling, both the texture and flavor of rye bread improves after a rest of 24-36 hours.
An interesting fact: There is a fungus called ergot that can attack rye plants causing the grains to become highly toxic to humans and trigger hallucinations if ingested. Some historians believe that ergot-infested rye was the cause of the hallucinations that led to the Salem witch trials in Massachusetts in 1692. Fortunately, modern industrialization has all but eliminated any risk of ergot-infected rye as any diseased grains are removed prior to processing.

Rye’s unique qualities can make it challenging to use in a bread recipe. When I make Danish rye at home, I use a sourdough starter which is the traditional way to make it. The starter contributes certain acids to the dough which help neutralize some of the negative effects of the enzymes that can cause the bread to have a gummy texture. But I know a lot of people don’t keep starters and may not be up to the commitment that it involves. So I really wanted to find an easy rugbrød recipe, one that relied solely on commercial yeast rather than a sourdough starter for leavening.

I tried several. Some were total disasters and inedible. I’m talking sunken, raw in the center, straight into the trash bad. A few came out okay, but they were not even close to the quality of my sourdough loaf which I consider to be the gold standard. I knew I could come up with something better. I worked my way through several pounds of rye flour, testing and tweaking, until finally finding a consistently successful loaf that had the look and texture of authentic rugbrød. The keys turned out to be a mixture of wheat and rye flour in the dough (in order to help create a gluten structure to hold the bread aloft and keep it from sinking in the center) AND a method of baking that relies on using a few different oven temperatures during the course of the baking time. This helps prevent the enzymes that produce a gummy texture from developing by keeping the bread from spending too much time in the temperature zone where their formation is the most favorable.

If you make your own smørrebrød at home or would like to, please give this bread a try. Bursting with rye, whole grains and a variety of tasty seeds, it is one of the most delicious and nutritious breads out there. And using it as a base for a Nordic open sandwich will give you a true taste of authenticity. If you are new to smørrebrød, there are several open sandwich recipes on the blog to get you started:

Easy Overnight Danish Rye (Rugbrød)

★★★★★

5 from 1 reviews

An easy overnight version of classic Danish rye bread with no sourdough.

Author: Kristi
Prep Time: 20 minutes plus 12 hours resting time
Cook Time: 1 hour, 30 minutes
Total Time: approximately 14 hours, largely unattended
Yield: One 13 inch loaf 1x
Category: Bread
Cuisine: Nordic, Danish, Scandinavian

Scale

Ingredients

For the Soaker:

2 ½ cups 7 grain hot cereal mix such as Bob’s Red Mill brand or rye chops (see note below)

1 cup sunflower seeds

1 cup pumpkin seeds

½ cup flax seeds

2 ⅔ cups cold water

For the Dough:

2 cups dark rye flour (I use the Bob’s Red Mill brand), plus more for dusting the pan and loaf

2 cups bread flour

1 teaspoon instant dried yeast

1 ½ cups cold water

4 teaspoons salt

¼ cup molasses

Butter for greasing the pan

Special Equipment Needed:

Stand mixer

13 x 4 inch pullman loaf pan with lid

Instructions

For the Soaker: Combine all the ingredients for the soaker in a medium bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and let sit at room temperature overnight, approximately 8-12 hours.
For the Dough: Combine both flours, yeast and water in a separate bowl. Stir to combine as best you can (mixture will be thick), and then knead briefly with your hands until you have a cohesive mixture. Dough will be very thick and clay-like in texture. Cover with plastic wrap and let sit at room temperature overnight, about 8-12 hours.
Grease a 13 x 4 inch pullman loaf pan with butter and dust with rye flour, including the lid. Set aside. Combine the soaker, flour mixture, salt and molasses in the bowl of a stand mixer. Fit mixer with paddle attachment and mix on low speed for 2-3 minutes until everything is thoroughly combined, scraping down the sides of the bowl from time to time. Increase speed to medium and mix for an additional 2-3 minutes, stopping to occasionally scrape down the sides of the bowl. Mixture will be quite sticky.
Transfer the dough to the prepared pan. Smooth out the top and sift a thin layer of rye flour over the surface of the dough. Place lid on pan and let the dough rise for 1½ -3 hours at room temperature or until it is about ½ inch from the top of the pan. The time that it takes for your dough to rise will largely depend on the temperature of the dough and your kitchen.
Meanwhile, preheat oven to 500 degrees. Bake loaf with the lid on for 15 minutes. Reduce temperature to 400 degrees and continue to bake, covered, for an additional 15 minutes. Remove pan from oven and carefully slide the lid off. Reduce temperature to 325 degrees and bake, uncovered, for an additional 45 minutes. Remove from the oven and immediately turn loaf out onto a metal cooling rack. Allow the bread to cool completely before slicing, at least 3 hours. Rye bread is even better a day after baking. If you can wait until the following day, let the bread sit uncovered at room temperature overnight before slicing. The bread will keep at room temperature for 3 days loosely wrapped in foil. Freeze for longer storage.

Notes

Rugbrød is traditionally made with rye chops, uniformly cut pieces of rye grain. They are available through King Arthur Flour’s online store at www.kingarthurflour.com. Because rye chops are difficult to find, I call for using a whole grain hot cereal mix such as Bob’s Red Mill’s 7 grain cereal mix. These mixes contained a variety of coarsely milled whole grains, including rye, and make a fine stand in for rye chops.

Adapted from The New Nordic by Simon Bajada

Keywords: Danish, rye, bread, rugbrød, smørrebrød, Scandinavian, Nordic

Swedish Apple Cake

September 9, 2019 by Kristi Leave a Comment

The fact that it is time to bake with apples again brings me great joy. We’ve made some wonderful treats over the summer with berries, rhubarb and peaches, but there is something so homey and cozy about apple desserts, cake in particular. There are many, MANY delicious recipes for apple cake out there in the world, but today we will be focusing on the Swedish Apple Cake.

Nearly all of the recipes I found for Swedish Apple Cake were comprised of a very basic cake (which may or may not include cardamom) topped with circles of cinnamon and sugar-coated apple wedges. I tried a few of these and they were good, but I wanted to take the apple topping to the next level. I LOVE caramelized apples so I figured why not cook the apples on the stove in butter, brown sugar and cinnamon before they go on top of the cake? That way they would have a chance to get golden and caramel-y, something that wasn’t happening when they went into the oven raw.

This worked to some extent. I had delicious, caramelized apples to put on top of my cake, BUT the first time I went to bake it, the center of the cake collapsed. Definitely not what I was going for. I retooled the batter slightly and dialed back the amount of apples I was using. Much better! Now I had a sturdy, moist cake that was capable of holding the apples aloft as it baked.

I was almost ready to declare the recipe ready to go when out of the corner of my eye I spotted the leftover apple/butter/brown sugar mixture in the pan. What if I made a quick syrup out of this deliciousness to brush over the cake when it came out of the oven? This was the best version yet, and the syrup gave an attractive sheen to the apples making the cake even more eye-catching than it was before.

Tips for Apple Cake Success

Use a sturdy apple such as the Granny Smith. Because we are sautéing the apples slices before they go on top of the cake, it’s important to choose an apple that can withstand a bit of cooking without falling apart or turning to mush. Granny Smiths will do just that.
Take the time to grind your own cardamom. I know I say this a lot but it really makes a big difference in the flavor of your baked goods. It’s worth the extra five minutes that it takes to get the seeds out of the pods and crush them yourself.
Don’t overmix the batter once you add the flour. Vigorously mixing a cake batter after the flour is added activates the gluten and can cause your cake to be tough in texture. Mix so that the flour is JUST incorporated, no more.
Create your circles of apples so that the slices just touch one another rather than overlap. This should give you just the right amount of apples to fill the space of the cake with two circles of slices. Save the smaller apple slices for the center circle and leave the center of the cake empty.
Don’t skip the step of making the quick syrup and brushing the top of the cake after it has baked. This step really takes this cake from good to great and gives it a gorgeous shine at the end.

As we begin the transition to fall baking, let this apple cake be one of the treats that makes it into your rotation. It’s simple, elegant and delicious…the perfect fall fika treat!

Swedish Apple Cake

An easy and moist cake baked with a hint of cardamom and topped with caramelized apples. The perfect fall fika treat!

Author: Kristi
Prep Time: 30 minutes
Cook Time: 40 minutes
Total Time: 1 hour 10 minutes
Yield: One 9 inch cake 1x
Category: fika
Method: baking
Cuisine: Swedish, Scandinavian, Nordic

Scale

Ingredients

For the Apple Topping:

3 medium granny smith apples, peeled, cored and cut into ½ inch thick wedges (about 1 pound)

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

3 tablespoons packed light brown sugar

1 teaspoon cinnamon

For the Cake:

1 cup all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

½ teaspoon fine salt

½ teaspoon cardamom seeds, crushed in a mortar and pestle or a spice grinder

¾ cup granulated sugar

¼ cup packed light brown sugar

2 large eggs

6 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled

¼ cup sour cream

1 teaspoon vanilla

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour a 9 inch springform pan. Make the Apple Topping: Heat butter in a 12 inch nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add apples and saute until they are lightly caramelized, about 5-8 minutes. Add brown sugar and cinnamon and continue to cook, stirring constantly, until sugar dissolves and apples are evenly coated, about 1 more minute. Remove apples from the heat and set aside.
Make the cake: Whisk flour, baking powder, salt and cardamom together in a medium bowl and set aside. Whisk sugars and eggs together in a large bowl until fully combined. Slowly add melted butter to sugar and egg mixture and continue whisking until uniform in texture. Add sour cream and vanilla and whisk until fully combined. Add flour mixture and whisk until batter just comes together.
Scrape batter into prepared pan and even out the top with a small offset spatula. Arrange apples over the top of the batter in two concentric circles. The apples should just touch each other but not overlap. Reserve the butter and sugar mixture that remains in the skillet. Transfer cake to the oven and bake until golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean or with just a few moist crumbs attached, about 40-50 minutes.
Add a couple of teaspoons of water to the skillet along with the reserved butter and sugar mixture leftover from making the apple topping. Cook over medium heat until warm and syrupy in texture, about 1-2 minutes. Brush syrup over the top of the cake, particularly the apples. Cool cake for at least 20 minutes on a wire rack and serve.

Notes

Adapted from The Cook’s Illustrated Cookbook and Fika by Anna Brones and Johanna Kindvall

Keywords: Swedish, apple, cake, fall, baking, fika, Nordic, Scandinavian, cardamom

Zucchini Barley Cakes with Roasted Cherry Tomatoes and Ricotta

August 23, 2019 by Kristi Leave a Comment

The zucchini gets a bad rap sometimes, largely because of its prolific nature. If you plant zucchini in your vegetable garden, you know what I mean. They tend to come in fast and furious, getting larger by the minute. The next thing you know, they are taking up precious counter space in your kitchen demanding to be cooked or baked into something delicious. Even if you don’t personally grow zucchini, chances are you’ve been “gifted” a bag or two by someone who does. It is nearly impossible (or desirable for that matter) to eat one’s entire harvest of zucchini alone. Some of it must be shared. Know that you are doing a great service to your zucchini-growing friends when you graciously accept their home grown offering. You’ve taken a bit of the burden of preparing and consuming these bountiful summer squash off of their shoulders and they are grateful for it.

If you are currently experiencing your own glut of zucchini, either as a gardener or as the recipient of a well-meant gift, I encourage you to spare one or two for a batch of these Zucchini Barley Cakes. They make a fantastic vegetarian dinner served alongside a simple sauce of summery Roasted Cherry Tomatoes with olive oil, garlic and basil and a dollop of creamy ricotta cheese.

Salt Your Zucchini

shredded zucchini in a colander — *Salt your zucchini!*

One important thing to know about zucchini…they are about 95% water. So when you want to make something crispy from a zucchini it is wise to salt it beforehand in order to draw some of the moisture out of the vegetable prior to cooking it. This is easily done by tossing the shredded zucchini with coarse salt and letting it drain in a colander for 10 minutes or so. Transfer the salted zucchini to a clean kitchen towel and wring out as much moisture as you can before continuing with the recipe. What looked like 4 cups of zucchini when you started will shrink down to about 1 cup after salting and wringing it out thoroughly. Know that I am, deep down, a lazy cook. I would not ask you to take this step of salting and wringing if it weren’t absolutely necessary. Believe me, I’ve tried. You will end up with soggy cakes that don’t hold together well if you skip this step.

Chill

Your Zucchini Barley Cakes will greatly benefit from a quick chill time in the fridge, just 20-30 minutes will do. This helps the mixture hold together as you transfer the cakes into the skillet. Better yet, do your future self a favor and make a batch of these the day before you want to cook them. Cover them with plastic wrap and pop them in the fridge. Won’t you feel clever and prepared when dinner is practically done tomorrow night!

When you’ve had it with zucchini bread and are ready for something new, pull a zucchini or two from that pile on the counter and give these a try. Let me know how they turn out in the comments!

Zucchini Barley Cakes with Roasted Cherry Tomatoes and Ricotta

Delicious and hearty cakes made with pearl barley, zucchini and fresh herbs served alongside roasted cherry tomatoes and fresh ricotta cheese. A delicious late summer vegetarian dinner!

Author: Kristi
Prep Time: 1 hour (including chilling time)
Cook Time: 20 minutes
Total Time: 1 hour 20 minutes
Yield: 12 cakes
Category: vegetarian
Cuisine: Scandinavian, Nordic

Ingredients

For the Zucchini Barley Cakes:

1 pound zucchini

1 ½ teaspoons coarse salt, divided, plus more for sprinkling

2 cups cooked and cooled pearl barley (see note below)

3 large eggs

3 scallions, minced (Both white and green parts)

3 garlic cloves, minced

3 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley

1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme

Freshly ground pepper

1 cup panko bread crumbs

2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

6 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided

For the Roasted Cherry Tomatoes:

2 pints cherry or grape tomatoes

3-4 garlic cloves, peeled and sliced thin

3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

1 teaspoon coarse salt

¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes

1 teaspoon white balsamic vinegar

2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil

Whole milk ricotta cheese for serving

Instructions

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Shred zucchini on the large holes of box grater. Transfer to a colander and toss with 1 teaspoon salt. Allow zucchini to sit for about ten minutes and then transfer it to a clean cotton kitchen towel and squeeze out as much moisture as possible. Set aside.
In a large bowl, lightly beat the eggs. Add zucchini and remaining ingredients except oil. Combine thoroughly.
Using a large ice cream scoop or a metal measuring cup, transfer a ¼ cup portion of the mixture to a baking sheet. Press down and shape gently to create a cake that is about ¾ inch thick and 3 inches wide. Repeat with remaining mixture. Cover with plastic wrap and chill for at least 30 minutes or up to a day. You should have about 12 cakes.
While cakes are chilling, make the Roasted Cherry Tomatoes. Combine all ingredients except vinegar and basil in a 9 x13 baking dish. Stir to combine. Transfer to the oven and roast until tomatoes are soft and beginning to burst, about 25 minutes. Remove from oven and add vinegar and basil.
Add 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil to a large nonstick skillet. Heat over medium heat until just shimmering. Using a thin spatula to help you, carefully add 6 cakes to the skillet (they may be a little fragile). Cook until golden brown on the first side, about 3-4 minutes. Flip each cake over and continue to cook until golden brown on the opposite side and cooked through, about 3 more minutes. Transfer to a paper towel-lined plate to drain. Sprinkle with additional coarse salt. Carefully wipe out the skillet with a paper towel and add remaining 3 tablespoons of olive oil. Repeat with remaining cakes. Serve with Roasted Cherry Tomatoes and a generous dollop of ricotta cheese.

Notes

To cook pearl barley: Bring a large pot of salted water to boil over high heat. Add 1 cup pearl barley. Cook over medium-high heat until tender, about 30-35 minutes. Drain and chill. (If you are in a hurry and want the barley to cool quickly, spread it out on a baking sheet and transfer to the refrigerator.) This makes about 3 cups of cooked pearl barley which is a little more than you will need for this recipe.

Adapted from Megan Gordon’s Whole Grain Mornings

Keywords: barley, zucchini, cakes, vegetarian, summer, cherry tomatoes

Roasted Peach Ginger Compote

August 14, 2019 by Kristi Leave a Comment

I have extolled the virtues of the fruit compote here on the blog before. In fact, this is my third compote recipe in only six months of blogging! Here’s why I think everyone should have a jar of seasonal fruit compote in the fridge at all times:

They are easy to prepare. Simply toss cut fruit with your sweetener or choice and any additional flavorings and let it roast in the oven for 40 minutes or so. Done.
It is a no-fuss method for making the most of seasonal produce. Have a bunch of peaches/apples/pears/strawberries from the farm stand that are ripe and ready to go but not feeling up to making a pie at the moment? Perfect! The compote is your simple solution to preserving the life of your fruit without turning it into a complicated project.
Compotes are better (and easier) than jelly or jam. Compotes can be used in place of jam or jelly on your morning toast, and they typically contain less sugar and have better, truer fruit flavor. An all-around win!
They freeze beautifully. Most compotes will keep in the fridge for a couple of weeks (not that you won’t finish it before that), but they also store well in the freezer for a few months. For when you need that taste of summer peaches come January.
And the number one reason to make compotes part of your cooking repertoire…..they are INCREDIBLY versatile.

Let me expand on the versatility piece. Once you have a jar of this peach compote in your fridge, for example, the options beyond your morning toast are endless. A few suggestions:

Layer it with skyr or Greek yogurt and granola for a morning breakfast parfait (this is SO good….like peach crumble for breakfast)!
Spoon on top of a Nordic Buttermilk Waffle with some whipped cream.
Stir into your morning oatmeal with a little cinnamon and whole milk or cream.
Use it in place of the strawberry rhubarb compote in these barley scones to create a ginger peach version.
Sandwich it in between two layers of vanilla cake with some pastry cream and top with whipped cream and fresh peaches. Peaches and cream cake!
Use it in place of the blueberry filling in these rye crumble bars.
Spoon on top of vanilla ice cream (so simple and delicious).
Rye crispbread + cream cheese + compote = tasty and easy breakfast or afternoon snack.

And I’m sure you’ve already thought of some ideas beyond what I’ve suggested here. It’s no wonder that fruit compotes are popular in the Nordic region where growing seasons are short and preservation of seasonal goodness is paramount. This week, stop by the farm stand and pick up a batch of peaches and give this one a try. I can’t wait to hear how you choose to put it to use in your own kitchen!

Roasted Peach Ginger Compote

A delicious and simple roasted fruit compote with just a hint of ginger. So simple and versatile!

Author: Kristi
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 40 minutes
Total Time: 55 minutes
Yield: Just under 2 cups 1x
Category: compote
Method: roasting
Cuisine: Nordic, Scandinavian

Scale

Ingredients

6-8 ripe peaches, about 2 ½ pounds

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

Pinch of fine sea salt

¼ cup light brown sugar, packed (more to taste)

Instructions

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Peel peaches using a serrated peeler (alternatively you can score the bottom of each piece with an “X” and dunk into boiling water for 30 seconds or so. The peel should come off easily at this point). Remove the pit and slice each peach into ½ inch chunks. Transfer to a 9 x 13 baking dish.
Add remaining ingredients and stir with a rubber spatula. If your peaches aren’t particularly sweet, feel free to add a couple of extra tablespoons of brown sugar. Transfer baking dish to the oven and bake for 20 minutes. Stir the compote and return to the oven and continue baking for an additional 20 minutes.
Set aside to cool slightly. Serve or store tightly covered in the fridge for up to two weeks or freeze for longer storage.

Keywords: peach, ginger, compote

Nordic Buttermilk Waffles

August 12, 2019 by Kristi Leave a Comment

Beatrice Ojakangas says that there are many different Nordic waffle recipes, “one for every Scandinavian cook.” In her book, Scandinavian Feasts she describes the waffle cottages of the Swedish province of Dalarna:

The waffles that are served in waffle cottages are baked in irons that separate each one into five small hearts, which when attached are called a lagg. When broken into individual sections, they are eaten like cookies, with jam and sweetened whipped cream or sour cream in the middle. Waffle cottages are open all winter to serve skiers. In the summertime, when visitors come to enjoy the midnight sun, the waffle cottages also add an old-fashioned stew called söpådor to the menu.

If you have ever visited a waffle cottage, please let me know. I would love to hear about it. I have not yet had the pleasure, but that’s not going to stop me from making my own version of Nordic waffles at home. It’s not as though we are unfamiliar with waffles here in America. Slathered in butter and drizzled with maple syrup, waffles are a Sunday morning mainstay. But they do waffles their own way in Scandinavia. A few distinct differences:

They are charmingly heart-shaped.
The batter is often made with cream or sour cream.
The batter usually contains cardamom.
They are delicious hot but are often served room temperature.
Whipped cream and fresh berries or jam are the toppings of choice.

When I set out to make my own recipe for Nordic waffles, I began by trying what was out there. I loved the addition of cardamom, but using cream in the batter yielded a VERY rich waffle, a bit too rich for my taste. Maybe that’s the idea, but as these are MY Nordic waffles, I decided to use buttermilk instead of cream. I went back to my favorite basic buttermilk waffle recipe, courtesy of Martha Stewart. I tweaked it slightly, adding cardamom, vanilla extract and an extra tablespoon of sugar (Nordic waffles tend to be sweeter as they are not served with maple syrup). The result was just what I was looking for. Tender and buttery without being over the top. And the combination of vanilla and cardamom gave them that quintessential Scandinavian touch.

Whipped cream is always lovely, but I began thinking about how I could jazz up the topping a little. I remembered a version of whipped cream I used to make to go with a favorite apple tart that was half cream, half sour cream. What if I tried something like that with skyr, the deliciously creamy Icelandic yogurt? I changed the ratio slightly for my version, opting for a bit more yogurt than cream and added a touch of vanilla and sugar. The result? A tangy and creamy topping that is the perfect compliment to waffles and fresh berries.

Nordic Buttermilk Waffles

Buttery heart-shaped Nordic waffles with just a hint of cardamom and vanilla. Perfect with whipped skyr cream and fresh berries!

Author: Kristi
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 15 minutes
Total Time: 30 minutes
Yield: 6 waffles
Category: Breakfast
Cuisine: Scandinavian, Nordic

Ingredients

For the Waffles:

1 cup all-purpose flour

2 tablespoons sugar

1 teaspoon baking powder

½ teaspoon baking soda

½ teaspoon fine salt

¼ teaspoon cardamom seeds, ground in a mortar and pestle or a spice grinder (or ¼ teaspoon ground cardamom)

4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled

1 cup buttermilk

1 egg

½ teaspoon vanilla extract

For the Whipped Skyr Cream:

1 cup plain full-fat skyr or Greek yogurt

½ cup heavy whipping cream

½ teaspoon vanilla extract

2 tablespoons sugar

To Serve:

Fresh berries, sliced peaches, jam or fruit compote

Special Equipment Needed:

Heart-shaped waffle iron

Instructions

Make the Waffles: Whisk flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt and cardamom together in a medium bowl. Set aside.
Whisk buttermilk, butter, egg and vanilla together in a large bowl until fully combined. Add dry ingredients to wet ingredients and stir until the mixture just comes together (It will not be entirely smooth).
Heat up waffle iron according to manufacturer’s instructions. Cook waffles one at a time until golden brown and crisp. Transfer to a wire rack to cool or to 200 degree oven to keep warm.
Make the Whipped Skyr Cream: Combine skyr and whipping cream in the work bowl of a stand mixer. Using the whisk attachment, whisk on medium speed for one minute. Add vanilla and sugar. Continue whipping on medium high until mixture is light and fluffy, like a loose whipped cream. Serve waffles with fresh berries, sliced peaches, jam, fruit compote, Whipped Skyr Cream and/or other toppings of your choice.

Notes

Adapted from marthastewart.com

Keywords: waffles, Nordic, Scandinavian, skyr, berries

Danish Hotdogs

July 15, 2019 by Kristi Leave a Comment

Hotdogs are the street food of choice in Copenhagen. They are served with a variety of condiments, but this particular combination is a true classic…a creamy curried remoulade sauce, fresh pickled cucumbers and crispy fried onions. It might sound a bit odd, but all of these condiments are quite common in Danish cuisine and are absolutely delicious together. The curry remoulade in particular is absolutely life-changing (dip your fries into it and tell me I’m wrong). This creamy, crispy, cucumber-y trio of toppings breathes new Nordic life into the humdrum hotdog with its standard ketchup and mustard toppings that we are all so very familiar with.

I’m guessing that most of us don’t even eat hotdogs that often anymore. They were a cornerstone of my diet growing up in the 1980s, but have become something of an indulgence as I’ve gotten older. I might enjoy one at a baseball game or the state fair, but that’s about it. While I am all for making nutritious choices when it comes to food, I am also a big believer in balance. And I’m quite sure there is room in a healthy diet for indulgences now and then. So the next time you are hankering for a hotdog, DO IT RIGHT. Mix up this tasty trio of condiments, fire up the grill and do things the Danish way. Your tastebuds will thank you.

Danish Hotdogs

Grilled hotdogs topped with creamy, curried remoulade sauce, fresh pickled cucumbers and crispy fried shallots. A Danish street food classic!

Author: Kristi
Prep Time: 50 minutes
Cook Time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 1 hour
Yield: 4–6 hotdogs 1x
Method: Grilling
Cuisine: Danish, Scandinavian, Nordic

Scale

Ingredients

4-6 best quality hot dogs

Crispy Fried Shallots, recipe follows

Pickled Fresh Cucumbers, recipe follows

Remoulade Sauce, recipe follows

4-6 hot dog buns for serving

For the Crispy Fried Shallots:

3 medium shallots, sliced into thin rings, rings separated from one another

¼ cup all purpose flour

¼ teaspoon fine salt

Freshly ground pepper

1 cup canola, vegetable or peanut oil for frying

Coarse sea salt for sprinkling

For the Pickled Fresh Cucumbers:

2 cucumbers, sliced thin

1 cup distilled white vinegar

1 cup water

¼ cup granulated sugar

1 teaspoon black peppercorns

1 teaspoon coarse salt

2 tablespoons chopped fresh dill

For the Danish Remoulade:

½ cup prepared mayonnaise

2 tablespoons skyr or greek yogurt

1 heaping teaspoon dijon mustard

1 tablespoon capers, coarsely chopped

2 tablespoons Pickled Fresh Cucumbers (recipe above), finely chopped

1 tablespoon finely chopped shallot

2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley

½ teaspoon curry powder

Instructions

Make the Pickled Fresh Cucumbers: Place sliced cucumbers and dill in a quart-size mason jar (cucumbers should come about three quarters of the way up the jar).
Heat remaining ingredients in a saucepan over medium heat until simmering.
Pour vinegar mixture into the jar with the cucumbers and dill. Let sit at room temperature for at least 30 minutes before using. If you are not eating them immediately, cover and refrigerate the cucumbers once the mixture has cooled to room temperature. The cucumbers are best fresh but will keep in the fridge for a couple of days.
Make the Crispy Fried Shallots: Combine flour, salt and a few grinds of pepper in a large ziploc bag. Add shallots, seal and toss around until shallots are coated with flour mixture.
Meanwhile, heat oil in a large saucepan until it reaches 280 degrees. It’s worth using a thermometer here if you have one. If the oil is too hot, the shallots will burn and if it is too cool they will be soggy.
Remove half of the shallots from the bag, shaking off any excess flour. Place in pan and fry until golden brown and crispy. This may take as little as two minutes or as long as five. Keep your eye on them, stir them frequently and look for the visual cues. Remove from oil using a slotted spoon. Place on paper towels and allow to drain. Sprinkle with sea salt and allow them to cool slightly and crisp up. Repeat with the other half of the shallots. Shallots can be used immediately or stored in the refrigerator for 5-7 days. Mine usually stay pretty crisp, but you could warm them in a 200 degree oven to crisp them up again if necessary.
Make the Danish Remoulade: Combine all ingredients in a small bowl and stir until fully combined.
Heat grill. Grill hotdogs over medium heat until heated through and nicely browned, about 5-7 minutes.
Place one hot dog inside of each bun. Spoon remoulade over the length of the hot dog, followed by pickled cucumbers and a sprinkle of crispy shallots. Serve immediately.

Keywords: hotdogs, Danish

Nordic Morning Granola

June 17, 2019 by Kristi 2 Comments

High summer fruit season in nearly here, and I want us to be ready. Ready for easy, delicious breakfasts topped with peaches, plums, nectarines, berries…whatever sweet abundance is available where you live at this time of year. Enter my Nordic Morning Granola, summer fruit’s new best friend.

I have made this recipe so many times, I can practically do it with my eyes closed. This granola is a pantry staple around our house, perfect with milk, yogurt and/or fruit for a quick breakfast, or by the handful for an afternoon snack. It is easy, delicious and nutritious. And, fair warning, slightly addictive. If you are currently in the habit of buying granola at the store, this recipe will most certainly ruin that experience for you. It’s nearly impossible to consider going back to the store-bought stuff once you start making your own granola at home.

Lucky for us, homemade granola is super easy to make. It comes together in less time than it takes to heat up the oven and bakes for a short 30 minutes. The ingredients themselves are simple, straightforward and wholesome. It’s perfectly crunchy and contains just the right ratio of nuts, seeds and oats. It’s also vegan and gluten-free (assuming you use gluten-free oats) if those things matter to you. And of course I’ve added a little Nordic touch in the form of freshly ground cardamom, sliced almonds and almond extract. The result is a simple and straightforward granola that is easy enough to whip together once or twice a week.

Granola Making Tips and Tricks

A few things to keep in mind for ensuring that your granola is the very best that it can be:

Stir the dry ingredients well before adding the oil, syrup and extracts. This will help distribute the salt and spices evenly throughout the mixture.
Heat the maple syrup slightly. Because the coconut oil solidifies when it comes into contact with cold ingredients, I’ve had greater success with my granola when I take the time to warm the syrup. This helps the oil remain liquid and coat the dry ingredients more evenly.
Stir the granola half-way through the baking process to redistribute everything on the baking tray.
Firmly press the half-baked granola back into the pan in an even layer with the back of a metal spatula. This is a really important step if you want your granola to clump together.
Let it cool completely before removing from the pan. If the granola is still warm when you package it, you run the risk of soggy granola.
Freeze for long-term storage. Granola keeps well in an air-tight glass container at room temperature for about a week. For longer storage, freeze in zip-loc freezer bags. When we are really on top of it around here, we will make four batches of granola on a Sunday morning and stash it away in the freezer for a month’s worth of breakfast and snacks. And granola straight from the freezer is oddly delicious, especially in the warmer months of the year!

So go ahead and bake up a batch of homemade granola, and buy that box of ripe peaches, those pints of fresh berries! You’re set for easy and healthy breakfasts all summer long.

Nordic Morning Granola

An easy, delicious and healthy recipe for homemade granola with a Nordic twist!

Author: Kristi
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 30 minutes
Total Time: 40 minutes
Yield: 6 cups 1x
Category: Breakfast
Method: Baking
Cuisine: Nordic, Scandinavian

Scale

Ingredients

4 cups old-fashioned rolled oats

1 cup sliced almonds

½ cup raw pepitas (pumpkin seeds)

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

½ teaspoon cardamom seeds, ground to a powder in a mortar and pestle or spice grinder

1 teaspoon fine salt

½ cup extra-virgin coconut oil, warmed until liquid

½ cup real maple syrup, warmed slightly

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

½ teaspoon almond extract

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
Combine oats, almonds, pepitas, cinnamon, cardamom and salt in a large bowl. Stir well, ensuring that the salt and spices are evenly distributed throughout the mixture.
Add coconut oil, syrup and extracts. Using a rubber spatula, stir well to combine.
Transfer granola to prepared pan. Pat down with a rubber spatula to distribute the mixture in an even layer. Bake for 15 minutes.
Remove granola from the oven and stir with a spatula to redistribute on the baking sheet. Firmly press down on the mixture using the back of your spatula, creating an even and tight layer of granola. Bake for an additional 10-15 minutes or until granola is toasty and golden brown.
Remove from the oven and allow to cool completely on the baking sheet.
Use a spatula to transfer the granola to glass containers for storage (or freezer bags if freezing). Granola keeps for about a week at room temperature, several months in the freezer.

Notes

Adapted from Cookie and Kate’s The Very Best Granola.

Keywords: granola, healthy, easy, vegan, vegetarian, nordic, oats, breakfast

Nordic Summer Herb Sauce

June 3, 2019 by Kristi Leave a Comment

As we settle into June, it’s time to move into the season of effortless cooking. Or almost effortless anyway. The evenings are warm and inviting. There are walks to take, gardens to weed, lawns to mow, books to read….the last thing we need is to overcomplicate things in the kitchen. Not that we don’t want to eat delicious food! This is not a suggestion that we all turn to a steady diet of take out for the summer. What we need are a few tricks up our sleeve, like this sexy little sauce, that make even the most basic meals very NOT basic. Allow me to introduce you to my Nordic Summer Herb Sauce.

I’ve been playing around with this sauce for weeks. My first version had toasted bread and a good amount of toasted almonds in it. This one was really paste-like and almost like a savory almond butter. Definitely not what I was looking for. I ditched the bread and tried it with fewer almonds. This gave the sauce more of a pesto vibe. It was good, but still not quite what I was after. In the end I ended up with something more akin to Italian salsa verde. Not the tomatillo-based Mexican style salsa for tacos and tortilla chips (also delicious, though), but an olive oil based sauce that is made with chopped fresh parsley, capers, garlic and lemon. Traditionally served on grilled meats (flank steak, I’m looking at you) and vegetables, this sauce is the summertime pick-me-up for just about anything savory. I’ve added a little dill to give it that Nordic touch, and toasted the garlic to mellow it out slightly. It is otherwise very true to its original Italian form. Some ideas for putting it into action:

Spoon over grilled steak, chicken or fish
Use as a condiment for a grilled burger
Drizzle on grilled or roasted vegetables
Spoon over freshly sliced tomatoes from the garden
Drizzle on avocado toast with a squeeze of fresh lemon juice
Spoon over eggs
Stir into steamed green beans
Drizzle over boiled new potatoes

*On top of avocado toast with a squeeze of lemon* and a sprinkle of sea salt

And that’s just for starters! The options really are endless, especially with all of those fresh summer vegetables heading our way in the next few weeks. So I’m just going to leave the recipe for this versatile little sauce right here for you when you need it. Our summer meals just got easier, tastier and little more exciting.

Nordic Summer Herb Sauce

A lively olive oil-based sauce with parsley, dill, capers, toasted garlic and lemon zest. The perfect way to perk up easy summer meals!

Author: Kristi
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Total Time: 15 minutes
Yield: 1/2 cup
Category: sauce
Cuisine: Nordic, Scandinavian

Ingredients

1 clove of garlic, unpeeled

Zest of ½ of lemon

1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh dill

⅓ cup finely chopped Italian parsley leaves

1 tablespoon capers, finely chopped

5 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

Coarse salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

Instructions

In a small skillet or saucepan, place unpeeled garlic clove and toast over medium low until the garlic softens and the peel becomes spotty brown, about 8 minutes. Set aside to cool. Once garlic is cool enough to handle, remove peel and mince.
Combine all ingredients except salt and pepper in a small bowl. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Store in the refrigerator for up to 2 days.

Keywords: herb, sauce, salsa verde, dill, parsley, summer, capers

Springtime Barley Salad with Asparagus, Red Pepper and Spinach

May 3, 2019 by Kristi Leave a Comment

Salad and I….let’s just say that our relationship has been strained over the years and largely because of a few early misconceptions on my part. Growing up in the Midwest in the 1980’s, salads meant iceberg lettuce, stale croutons from a box and gloppy dressing from a bottle. I’m sure some of you know what I’m talking about. And then there were the salad bars at my high school and the college dorm cafeteria. Both of these experiences make me think of cottage cheese and bacon bits for some reason. Hopefully that’s not all I ate, but I can’t promise anything. In those days it was easy to fill your plate with a bunch of very non-green foods while still feeling virtuous because you chose the salad bar. When I was out on my own, I gave up on salad for awhile. There were several years in my 20’s when I subsisted largely on blueberry bagels and strawberry cream cheese and Golden Grahams….not a green leaf in sight. It’s a wonder I’m still here.

Thankfully things change. I’ve become a curious (and better) cook and eater over the past 20 years. The selection of lettuce options available in the grocery store today is vast, almost overwhelming. Farmer’s markets offering freshly picked greens abound. Oh, and as it turns out, you can put all sorts of different things into a salad! Bulk them up with hearty grains, add some roasted or sautéed vegetables, sprinkle nuts, seeds or cheese on top, make a quick and delicious homemade vinaigrette…honestly, we are only limited by our imagination. Salad, I feel that I’ve misjudged you. I think it’s time to breathe new life into this relationship.

Which brings us to this delicious combination. Hearty pearl barley, bright asparagus, red bell pepper and spinach are a far cry from iceberg lettuce and croutons. I first began making a version of this salad, minus the pearl barley, several years ago when I came across it in an issue of Cook’s Illustrated magazine (a.k.a. my cooking bible from 1990-2005). It made a lovely first course then, and it makes an even lovelier main course salad now with the addition of barley and a sprinkling of toasted almonds. There are a few things that really make this salad special: thin, tender spears of seasonal asparagus, creamy goat cheese crumbles and a sherry vinaigrette that is incredibly simple and just what you need to pull everything together. The salad is tossed in two bowls and while it does require the tiniest bit of extra dishwashing, your efforts will be rewarded. Keeping the baby spinach separate from the asparagus and barley mixture really helps maintain the integrity of the ingredients and prevents bruising the delicate greens.

Don’t let those early years of not loving salad hold you back. You were just a kid! Now you know better. You can turn things around. This delicious combination is just the thing to remind you of how interesting and satisfying a good salad can be.

Springtime Barley Salad with Asparagus, Red Pepper and Spinach

A delicious and hearty spring salad with sautéed asparagus, red pepper, spinach and pearl barley

Author: Kristi
Prep Time: 20 minutes + 30 minutes to cook the pearl barley
Cook Time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 30 minutes
Yield: 2–3 large salads, 4 side salads 1x
Category: salad
Method: sauté
Cuisine: Nordic, Scandinavian

Scale

Ingredients

1 tablespoon + 1 teaspoon sherry vinegar, divided

1 garlic clove, minced

6 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided

Coarse salt and freshly ground pepper

1 red bell pepper, cut into a medium dice

8 ounces thin asparagus spears, trimmed and cut into 1-inch pieces

1 medium shallot, sliced thin

1 ½ cups cooked pearl barley, cooled (see note below)

4-5 cups baby spinach

¼ cup sliced almonds, toasted

Soft goat cheese for crumbling over the top

Instructions

Combine vinegar and garlic together in a medium bowl. Set aside.
In a large nonstick skillet, heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil over medium high heat. Add red pepper and cook until lightly browned and beginning to soften, about 2 minutes. Add asparagus and cook until nearly tender, about 2 minutes. Add shallot and cook until softened, about 1 more minute. Remove from heat and add remaining teaspoon of sherry vinegar. Stir in cooled barley. Set aside to cool while you make the vinaigrette.
Whisk remaining 4 tablespoons of olive oil into garlic and sherry vinegar mixture. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
Toss spinach with 2 tablespoons of vinaigrette in a large bowl. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
Add asparagus and barley mixture to the medium bowl with the remaining vinaigrette. Toss to combine. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
To serve, create a bed of spinach on the bottom of each plate. Arrange the asparagus and barley mixture over the top. Sprinkle with toasted almonds and crumbled goat cheese.

Notes

To cook pearl barley: Bring a medium pot of water to a boil over high heat. Season with salt. Add 1 cup pearl barley. Cook until tender, about 25-30 minutes. Drain and set aside to cool. If you want to expedite the cooling process, spread the cooked barley out on a sheet pan and place it in the refrigerator. 1 cup of dry pearl barley makes approximately 3 cups cooked so you will have more than you need. (Barley can be made up to 2 days in advance and stored in the refrigerator in an airtight container).

Adapted from the May/June 2003 issue of Cook’s Illustrated magazine.

Keywords: spring, salad, asparagus, spinach, red pepper, goat cheese