A Word on Mashed Potatoes

It would hardly be a proper post around here if I didn't mention we get a CSA box from Aarstiderne. We do. And along with all those dang carrots, we get potatoes every week too. Which is great, because we get to eat French fries and mashed potatoes alot, which are always a hit with the young, hip crowd that live here.

Now, have you ever had the feeling that the mashed potatoes you make could double as an adherent for wallpaper? I'm not sure the exact chemical processes that make this so, but I suspect is has to do with how you beat the potatoes, and also how much they are boiled. But here, I have a few tips for bringing the perfect mashed potato to your table.

1) This is a Heston Blumenthal tip, not exactly energy efficient, but it really gives you a perfect mashed potato. Heat potatoes up in a large pot of water. When the water starts to steam, though just before bubbling, drain the water from the potatoes. Yes, drain the water and throw it away. Most of the starches will have left your spuds by now, so add fresh water to the pot and potatoes, a sprinkling of salt, and carry on as you always have.

2) Instead of a whole serving of mashed potato, use half potatoes, and other tubers for the rest. I like using celeriac, parsnip, carrots, jerusalem artichoke, root parsley et. al. They add a different flavor, different nutrients and aren't starchy like potatoes can be.

3) I hand beat mine, with an egg beater, or even a fork sometimes. It gives a nice rustic feel to it, and doesn't beat the starches out of the potatoes and into the dish.

Anyone else have tips?

In Many Ways a Perfect Cake

Since last, our carrot supply has actually grown. I keep having to think of creative ways to use them up, and this is harder than you would think! We are just not carrot people, but they are in our CSA nonetheless. I found this oh so yummy carrot/banana cake on the interwebs yesterday, and it was not only quick and easy, it was absolutely delectable, moist, perfect texure and with a cream cheese frosting, and we all love that, n'est-ce pas?



The Perfect, Moist Banana/Carrot Cake

3 medium eggs
175g soft brown sugar
175g plain flour (I used my usual spelt flour w/germ)
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
175ml sunflower oil (I used coldpressed rapeseed/canola)
175g walnut pieces (I used 90 grams of Texas Pecan Meal)
2 ripe, medium bananas, mashed
175g grated carrot

Icing
75g butter, softened
75g cream cheese
150g icing sugar, sifted
1 tsp vanilla extract
Chopped walnuts, to decorate (optional)

Preheat the oven to 170°C. Grease a 20cm-diameter cake tin with removable base.
Beat the eggs and the sugar together until thick. Sift in the flour, baking powder, salt and bicarbonate of soda. Mix well then add the oil and walnuts, then the banana and carrot.
Pour into the tin. Bake for 1¼ hours or until a skewer comes out clean. Cover with foil if it begins to brown too much (I didn't do this, and mine was pretty brown, but by no means burnt). Cool on a rack.
For the icing, beat the butter and cheese together, then add the sugar and vanilla. Spread on the cold cake. Finish with walnuts.

As if we could wait that long for the last bit. We ate it still warm with a side dollop of the frosting. Perfect for a night in while dogsitting for friends. We didn't share with our furrry friend though. This recipe is originally for 8 people, but if you're anything like Mik and me, this is a weekend cake for two.

The Most Decadent Popcorn, Evah!

To combat the Autumn in Denmark, Danes do the "hygge" thing. They make tea, light candles, snuggle and under afghans with a good book, if they don't just go whole hog and bring the duvet into the sofa. That is one of the many variations at least. We do a Blockbuster run, renting 4-5 dvds at a go, splurging on hot cocoa and popcorn (and maybe a mixed bag of sweets after the kids are asleep).

I have slowly learned to elevate popcorn to a new level, beyond the salt, beyond the melted butter. It took me a while to catch on. My first lesson was this one at Everybody Likes Sandwiches. Then, I turned on to truffle oil, and now I can never go back. The truffle oil I use os diluted to begin with, the stuff is potent I tell you!

I fry my popcorn in a big pot, in the old fashioned manner. I use cold pressed virgin coconut oil in the pot, for that genuine cinema popcorn effect. I melt a good 50-60 grams of butter, and when that's melted and taken off the heat, I add just 1-2 tsp. of truffle oil to it. Mix it well with the finished popcorn, adding a good sprinkling of sea salt as you go. Some call for a handful of shredded parmesan to top it all off as well. Divine. And for all the luxury it exudes, it goes down very well with hot cocoa and dvds.

Smørrebrød Revisited

People often think of open faced sandwiches when they think of Denmark. The typical variations are pickled herring, liver pâté, slices of smoked sausage or other cold cuts, with a number of various garnishes to top them off. They're usually stacked so high that eating them with knife and fork is required. I'll do that in good company of course, otherwise I have a contest with myself to see what I can shove in my mouth (tsk tsk). This is what I'd call a "Californian" smørrebrød. Very simple, healthy, yummy and elegant. Until you eat it that is.

From bottom to top:
Rye bread
A smear of butter
Sliced tomato
Sliced hard boiled egg
(A thin layer of Hellman's doesn't hurt)
(A sprinkling of curry powder ain't bad either, though I don't know what's Californian about that!)
Sliced avocado
Sprinkling of Maldon sea salt

Eat with knife and fork or alone.

*BLOGGER ATE MY PHOTOS DAMMIT!*

Rainy days have their merits!

There was a lovely picture here of cinnamon buns, but Blogger ate then so you'll have to use your imagination! :)

Anyone in Scandinavia has by now noticed that it's officially Autumn. Grey, rainy, and cold - just how it's supposed to be right? Good excuse to get baking in the kitchen, making warm, yeasty treats like these Norwegian Cinnamon Rolls from Nigella. I woke up this weekend to such a dreary day, and had had a bad dream to boot. Not a great combo. Cooking up comfort food like these babies soothes the soul though. They're not so sticky that you can't eat them with your fingers, and they're not so dry that you have to eat them with a cup of tea. They're quite good at any time of the day. Enjoy.

For the dough
600 gr. flour
100 gr. sugar
1/2 tsp salt
50 gr. fresh yeast (or 3 packages dry)
100 gr butter
4 dl milk
2 eggs

Heat oven to 230 C. Mix the dry ingredients in one bowl. Melt the butter, whisk it with the milk and eggs and add to the dry ingredients. Knead until smooth and firm. Let rise in an oiled bowl for 25 minutes.

Roll a third of the dough out to fit the bottom of a large pan (35x25 cm, circa), lined with paper. Roll out the rest of the dough into a large rectangle, app. 50x25 cm. Now, mix the following ingredients well (I do it with my fingers) and smear it out on the rolled out dough:

150 gr. room temperature butter
150 gr. sugar
1 1/2 cinnamon

Roll the dough from the one long side to the other, until you have a long roll. Cut it into 20 pieces, laying them cut side up/down on the dough bottom in the pan. Beat an egg, and brush it on to your raw cinnamon rolls. Let rise for another 15 minutes, until big and fluffy.

Bake for 20-25 minutes. Check the middle ones to see that they're baked through. Let them cool a bit before tearing into it!

Friday Night is Pizza Night

I promised several people, eons ago, to give them my pizza recipe, but somehow never got around to it. So here is my recipe for the dish we eat most often at our place. It is THE meal to have on a Friday night, but also what I throw together if I have to feed more than four adults at short notice (since making two is hardly any more taxing than making one). I always have these ingredients on hand: Canned artichokes, bell peppers, shredded mozzarella, frozen spinach, tinned tomatoes, which makes this an easy dish to put together. The secret is in the preparation of the dough.

To make the dough mix these dry ingredients in a bowl:
250 grams of flour (sometimes I use tipo 00, sometimes I use spelt. Anything goes.)
3 tsp fresh yeast
1 tsp salt
1 tsp sugar

Add:
1.5 deciliters warm water
dollop olive oil

- Mix well, before kneading gently with a sprinkling of corn flour on the table. Let rise for an hour in an oiled bowl.
- When the dough has risen, I dump it on a big piece of baking paper, and working from the middle and out, use my fingers to spread it out until it's roughly the size of the baking sheet. May take a little practice, so just use your roller if you need it.
- Then, dump one can of chopped tomatoes on the raw dough, smooth it out with a spatula and sprinkle salt on top.
- Bake for about 20 minutes in a very hot oven (about 250 Celsius).
- When the tomato has a thickened appearance, and the crust sounds a little bit hollow, take it out of the oven and add your additional ingredients.

I use:
- sliced onion
- chopped, canned artichokes
- sliced bell peppers
- thawed frozen spinach, fried in a little oil, with garlic
- sliced black olives
- shredded mozzarella
- occasionally, I finely slice chorizo sausage as pepperoni.

This is all negotiable though, the main point of this pizza being that you prebake the dough with the canned tomatoes. After that - it's a free for all.

Big-A** Fluffy Pancakes

Hardly a weekend goes by in this family without an appearance of these babies. The original recipe is Nigella. I have taken the most fattening element away (melted butter in the batter) and replaced the run of the mill flour with whole grain spelt flour (including the germ). They are still excellent. I dare say a cup of thawed frozen blueberries would be an excellent variation!

225 grams flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 tsp sugar
pinch of salt
3 deciliters milk
2 eggs.

Mix the first four (dry) ingredients together in one bowl. Then thoroughly mix the egg and milk together before adding to the dry ingredients. I use a medium heat teflon frying pan for this, no oil or butter, just dry. Pour your batter into appropriated sized splotches and wait until they are bubbly to flip. They'll need a little less time on the other side. Enjoy however you like. My fav is with blueberry maple syrup (NOT Aunt Jemima) and fresh cut up fruit.