Month: August 2011

Victoria sponge

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The quintessentially British cake must be the Victoria sponge, right?! Whenever I make it, people go crazy for it. I understand why, it is very good, but it is so easy to make it should create that much fuss.

I made this for work for the monthly birthdays a while back, and it disappeared in a flash. First when it was finished people looked towards the other cakes, a phenomenal frosted brownie and marzipan cake. Crazy, right?

My go to-recipe for an English sponge is Delia’s. We do these kind of sponges in Sweden as well, but the less buttery ones (some even completely without butter) are more common. They are bouncier and less sturdy, but very moist, but not suitable for this kind of cake. Here you want the firm, but moist, sponge that can handle the weight from the cream and jam and not absorb too much of the liquid.

I made this version slightly summery with some fresh strawberries in it, but you can just have jam and cream if you prefer. It is good either way?

Victoria sponge, serves 8

175 g plain flour

1 tsp baking powder

3 eggs at room temperature

175 g softened butter

175 g caster sugar

1/2 tsk vanilla

Filling:

300 ml whipped cream, sweetened with a tsp of sugar (or vanilla sugar)

100 ml strawberry or raspberry jam

100 g strawberries, slices – not necessary

Sieve the flour into a bowl. Add the other ingredients. Use an electric whisk to incorporate into a batter. Divide the batter between two springforms, greased, of the same size. Place in 175 C oven for about 35 minutes. Do not open the oven door before half an hour has passed so the cake won’t rise unevenly. Leave to cool comletely.

Spread the jam on one of the sponges. Place the sliced strawberries on top (if you want to use them) and then cover with the quite firmly whipped cream. Place the other sponge on top and powder with icing sugar. Keep in the fridge if not consumed immediately (because of the fresh cream). 

Lotta’s restaurant in Ystad, Sweden

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One eveningn in Sweden me, Christopher and my mum and dad headed to Ystad, a small town in the south of Sweden, just by the seafront, and the home of one of Sweden’s buggest crime exports; Wallander. For those of you who have seen the series, I promise that Ystad is actually a nice town and not that grey and brown as portrayed in the series.

My parents wanted to take me to a restaurant called Store Thor (The great Thor), which they think is the best restaurant in the whole of Ystad. During the summer, however, the regular restaurant is closed and instead they only serve more simple dishes, like burgers and chicken scewers and that was not really what we were after. The outdoor seating didn’t look very nice either, as many tables crammed together as possible, I guess so they could make good money during the tourist season, but it would still be nice to keep the normal restaurant open for regulars.

We passed on the burgers and walked across the street to Lottas instead. At least it was a cosier atmosphere. The food was quite good, but still not exactly what we were after, but we still enjoyed it. And if we had booked here and gone here knowing what to expect we would have been quite happy.

The snaila that Christopher, myself and dad chose as a starter were big and juicy, served without the shells and tasted lovely.

Mother chose a toast Skagen instead and received a large plate full of salad, rye bread and prawns.

As a maincourse, three of us chose the same again, this time mother, Christopher and I – the schnitzel Cordon Bleu; thinly sliced pork escalope folded in half with Swiss cheese and smoked ham in the middle. It was huge, as you can see, and very tasy. So was the jus that came with it. The potatoes dissappointed slightly, and was the only potato option on the menu, but still good.

Father chose the pepper steak with peppercorn sauce and the same potatoes, and he really enjoyed the tender meat.

After such sturdy dishes, we were way too full to even think about dessert…

Friday update and a weekly menu, sort of

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I skipped the Friday update last week because of the sad news of the riots in this lovely city.

But things are back to normal now, and regular people have claimed back the city. It almost feels like a bad dream what was happening here 2 weeks ago.

This week I have been extremely tired, after a shock to the system of being back to work for a full week. But I had time for meet up with my friend Jenny for a fro-yo at Snog one day after work. I tried a green tea version which was nice, but didn’t taste that much of tea. Jenny chose passionfruit which tasted more and was really nice. Apart from that it has mostly been early nights, but at least I have a busier weekend. I will spend the day tomorrow with my friend Nick, we will go to a few (food) markets and have a nice dinner. He’s basically showing me some of what East London has to offer. On Sunday we’re going to Ian and Anna’s new flat for lunch and a much needed catch up.

The autumn is nearly here and it feels like people are getting organised for weekday life again after the summer holidays. Most blogs show this by posting a weekly menu, which is great for mid-week dinner inspiration.

I plan our meals too, most weeks, but I usually decide what to eat but not when to eat it. And I prefer to start my week on the Friday because that is when I get the weekly shopping. I like to have a well-stocked fridge for the weekend and indulge a little extra then.

The following week, starting today, will look like this in our household:

Friday: sirloin steak, celeriac gratin and port and porcini sauce

Sunday: out for lunch, so paninis with salami in the evening

To post a weekly menu is more for my own sake, but hopefully you will find inspiration from it too. It is just so difficult to think of what to have for dinner some days, don’t you think?

Have a nice weekend!

A wonderful day in Copenhagen, Denmark

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Before we left Sweden we had time for a day in Copenhagen. It is so convenient to go there, by car at least, the trains are a pain at the moment. Since it was Christopher’s second time in Copenhagen we decided to be cultural and do some sightseeing.

First stop was Amalienborg Palace, the Danish equivalent to Buckingham Palace. We went into the small museum that was quite uninpressive and then watched the changing of the guards. Although most of the castle is not open to the public, still walk this way just to see the location. With an impressive cathedral right behind it, a wonderful view of the canal and the newish Opera House it feels rather nice.

After Amalienborg we had a quick lunch before heading to Rosenborg castle, which turned out to be amazing. A real, but small, castle complete with a moat and impressive interior. Best of all was the treasury where the crown jewels are kept. And that explained why two guards were combat ready with machine guns and knives outside the castle.

The most important thing with the castle was the grand hall on the second floor where they displayed the thrones. So worth a visit!

After being cultural for most part of the day, we decided we had deserved a nice coffee break. After Daniel and Maria’s recommendations we headed towards Nyhavn (the New Harbour) which is a real tourist trap, although nicely situated by the canal. But if you walk past all the seedy restaurants and turn left you find this amazing wooden deck with amazing views of the river, the opera house and Noma.

The place is called Ofelia beach and has a restaurant inside, as well as a café and bar and all the tables outside. Lovely, and so different to heaving Nyhavn, here was peace and quiet and perfect to sit and just watch the water and what is happening on the other bank.

On our way back towards the big pedestrian street, Strøget, I had to have icecream with guf, which is a must for me when in Denmark. Guf is like loose marshmallow fluff and tastes sweet from strawberries. I love it, but maybe more because of childhood memories than because it is a delicacy…

We also had time for some shopping, wines at Kjær & Sommerfeldt and kitchen stuff at Illums bolighus, then the skies opened and we rushed to the car and drove back to Sweden to meet up with Daniel and Maria for dinner.

Where to go for ‘fika’ in south of Sweden

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Fika is a common Swedish word, meaning to sit down with a hot drink and either eat a sandwich or a cake with it. We do this a lot. When I grew up we would have six meals a day, and three of them being fika. Our day usually looked like this:

  • breakfast
  • morning fika
  • lunch
  • afternoon fika
  • dinner
  • evening fika

When meeting up with friends in Sweden you usually go for fika instead of a drink sometimes, since alcohol is more expensive there, but also because the culture is slightly different. Swedes drink, a lot actually, but not usually much on weekdays unless going out for a meal or it being an occasion.

If you ever go to the South of Sweden – where I’m from – I recommend you to try these few places for fika, lunch or just a cup of coffee:

Kust (Coast): A gem in Falsterbo with a cosy deck with tables, feeling almost like New England. The food is fresh and nice and the sandwiches huge. Everything is made to order, and they ask for your name instead of giving you a number – a nice touch. I went there with Emma and we had a salad each. Caesar salad at the top, and sweet chili chicken below.

http://www.kustcafe.se/

Katrinetorps trädgårdscafé (Katrinetorp’s garden café): Near where the bridge between Denmark and Sweden attach to the mainland you find a nice old house called Katrinetorp. On the grounds you find both an antique shop, English garden and this lovely café with outdoor seating in the most adorable courtyard. We had prawn sandwiches here after my parents had picked up us, and I was too hungry to take any photos. But the food is nice, the cakes look amazing and the surroundings are lovely as well. They also serve proper mains for lunch if you prefer.

http://www.malmo.se/Medborgare/Idrott–fritid/Natur–friluftsliv/Natur–och-rekreationsomraden/Katrinetorp/Katrinetorps-tradgardskafe.html

Lilla kafferosteriet (The little coffee roastery): On the street Baltzargatan in Malmö you encounter this low yellow house on the corner where Christopher had his best latte ever (!). You can buy all sorts of coffee, sandwiches, cakes and buns and it all looks lovely. You can either sit in the mismatched cosy sofas and chairs indoors or take a step out into the garden and enjoy the sun. They also have coffee to go, and a shop where you can buy different coffee blends to use at home. As far from Starbuck’s as possible and sooo much better!

http://rosteriet.blogspot.com/

A nice get together in the summer house

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Our summer house has survived many dinner parties and parties through the years, but the one we had during this holiday in Sweden was probably the best one so far. The weather was good, it was a nice group of friends and the perfect amount of people, and even the food seemed to be appreciated. 🙂

And it is so nice to have a party among old friends sometimes. Friends who without even asking just start helping you. All of a sudden Carina was doing the washing up, Linus carved the meat, Maria made coffee and Claes took charge of the camera. Thanks, guys!

I also had both Malin and Emma to help me in the kitchen with the canapés (and the gossip) and they did a great job (followed orders, I mean).

We started off with two canapés, both found on a lovely Swedish foodblog: Pyttes. We had fried halloumi with grilled peppers and crustades with girolles. Both adorable and extremely tasty!

As a starter I chose a dish I have made before and love; the salmon tartar with cream cheese topping. It is a great summery dish that looks more difficult to make than it is, plus you can prepare it in advance.

For the mains we had barbecued chicken with lemon and rosemary and barbecued leg of lamb marinated in red wine, garlic and rosemary. With this we served celeriac gratin, tomatoes provencale and small carrots.

The dessert was prepared in advance as well, the best way to do it for a large gathering I think. I had made an elderflower pannacotta with passionfruit on top, and it was really nice actually, made with mothers homemade elderflower cordial.

I poured the panna cotta into disposable plastic cups, not very sexy, but nice to skip the washing up, when there is 17 of you!

Thank you to all my great friends for coming!

Halloumi canapés with grilled peppers, serves 20 if combined with another canapé.

2 packets of halloumi

5 bell peppers

1 bunch of basil

crema di balsamico

olive oil for frying

cocktail sticks/small scewers

Cut the peppers into big chunks. Rinse and place on a baking tray. Drizzle with olive oil and season. Put the tray in the oven until the peppers are soft and has got some colour, about 25 minutes, 200C, this step you can do in advance.

Slice the hallomi and fry in olive oil until golden, just before serving. Place a piece of pepper and a piece of halloumi on a cocktail stick with a basil leaf in between. Place on platter and repeat until it is all used up. Drizzle crema di balsamico on the platter. Serve with napkins.

Crustades with girolles, serves 12-18 together with another canapé

2 packs (48 pieces) of crustades (you find them in Waitrose)

500 g girolles

butter for frying

150-200 g garlic and herb cream cheese

50 ml sourcream or creme fraiche

1 tsp honey

1 tsp dijon mustard

salt, white pepper

chives to decorate

Clean the mushrooms and chop them. Fry in butter on high heat. Remove from pan to a bowl and add the cream cheese, sour cream, mustard and honey. Season to taste. Fill the crustades with the mixture just before serving (otherwise the crustades go soggy). Cut the chives and sprinkle on top. Serve and enjoy!

Barbecued whole chicken with rosemary and lemon, 8-10 people at a buffet

2 medium chickens

50 g softened butter

rosmary

1 lemon

4 garlic cloves

Rinse the birds. Mix the butter with lemon peel and rosemary leaves. Season the birds and cut pockets in the skin above the breasts. Fill the pockets with butter and smear the rest of the butter around the birds. Cut the lemon in half and place each half the the bird’s cavarties. Place the chickens in a cooking bag each. Place 2 garlic cloves in each bag. Cut a small whole on the top of the bag (as a chimney) and place the chickens in the oven on 200C for about 45 minutes or until almost done. Remove from the bags and place on the barbecue and cook until done (clear juices at the joints).

Barbecued leg of lamb with red wine, rosemary and garlic, serves 12

2 legs of lamb

1 bottle red wine

1 bunch rosmary

garlic

Season the meat on all sides and place in a cooking bag each. Add rosemary sprigs and garlic to the bags and pour half the bottle in each bag. Let the meat marinate for 24 hours, make sure to turn the bag a few times so it marinated evenly. Cut a small whole on the top of the bags (as a chimney) and place the bags in the oven (200C) for about an hour. A meat thermometer is a great tool here, but unfortunately our old one in the summer house didn’t work. Take the meat out of the bags and barbecue at the end to get the crisp and sooty outside. Let the meat rest before carving.

Tomatoes provencale, serves 2-4

2 large tomatoes

3-4 tbsp grated parmesan

5 tbsp breadcrumbs

1 garlic clove

chopped parsley

olive oil

Cut the tomatoes in half (nicest if you cut vertically). Place with the cut side up and brush with oliv oil. Bake in 200 C for 15 minutes. Mix parmesan, breadcrumbs, garlic and parsley in a bowl. Add enough olive oil for the mixture to soak it up. Season the tomatoes and place a spoonful of the mixture on each halve. Bake for another 10-15 minutes. Serve warm.

Elderflower pannacotta, serves 6

700 ml cream (I mixed  single and double)

4 tbsp concentrated elderflower cordial (preferrably homemade)

40 g caster sugar

1/4 tsp vanilla

3 gelatine leaves

Decoration: 2 passion fruits + 2 tsp icing sugar

It is best to make this dessert the day before serving so it has time to set properly. Cover the gelatine leaves with cold water in a bowl. Mix sugar, cream and vanilla in a non-stick saucepan. Bring to the boil and remove from heat. Squeeze the water out of the gelatine leaves and add them to the cream mixture. Stir so they dissolve evenly. Add the elderflower cordial and leave the mixture for 30 minutes to cool down. Pour into plastic cups or small bowls. Leave to cool completely before putting them into the fridge. Leave them overnight to set.

On the same day, scoop out the passionfruit and mix with the icing sugar. Divide the mixture between the pannacottas and spread it out over the top. Serve and realise with the first spoonful that you have gone to heaven.

Mosaik, Malmö, Sweden

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We went out eating with friends in Malmö, one evening in Sweden. We headed to Gränden, a cosy court yard restaurant with cheap and cheerful food; but the reason you go is that court yard. But not any more. After been waiting for 45 minutes, having dealt with really rude staff, experienced flat drinks and having tables given away to other people although we were first on the waiting list is just not acceptable.

Tired, hungry and grumpy we went to Mosaik on the grand square instead. We were greeted by happy, efficient staff and managed to have a lovely evening despite the way it began.

Mosaik is a tapa style place with dishes from all over the Mediterranean. One dish Christopher and I shared was these mussles. They look fantastic don’t they?! They were good, but less tasty than they look unfortunately.

The fried potatoes looks quite plain but was delicious! After the meal my friends asked me what the best dish was and I actually said the potatoes. They looked at me with amazement and shook their heads… 🙂

But then I remembered the mushroom risotto, which actually was the best dish we had that evening. Creamy, light and full of flavour.

Christopher enjoyed this goat’s cheese toast all by himself, I had no idea what was with me, but for some reason I didn’t fancy goat’s cheese that day. Didn’t fancy cheese, how unlike me!

I love calamari, and when I make them myself I usually don’t coat them with batter because they are so soft and lovely as they are. Normally when dipped in batter it is because they are either readymade and rubbery (read: horrible) or like they want to hide less good produce. With those sceptic thoughts I was quite surprised when these calamaris were smooth and soft on the inside with crispy batter on the outside, not the rubbery limd at all.

We were three couples eating together and each couple chose their selection of tapas to try, and all of us ended up trying the teriyaki marinated chicken wings which were lovely.

We managed to have a really nice evening together, like you always do with good friends, and we definitely had better food were we ended up. Still a cheap place, but with far better service…

Nice lunch with friends

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As an ex-pat, you feel very liked and popular when you go home to visit; everyone wants to invite you over for dinner. The tricky part is to have time to meet everyone in just a week.

A couple who has invited us over for several times are Therèse and Tobbe, and this time we could gladly accept.

It was a perfect summer’s day when we got to their house for lunch the other day. They had set the table outside and Tobbe was barbequing when we arrived. We had a great time together, and enjoyed salmon barbecued in tin foil with tomatoes, leek and feta, bulgur wheat, salad and a cold caviar sauce. Very nice and fresh! For dessert we had a chocolate mousse with whipped cream and melon.

So lovely to sit outside in the sunshine, sipping on crisp white wine and just chatting away. Thank you guys, for a wonderful afternoon!

Barbecue and canapés with girolles

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The second day in Southern Sweden we spent the day in Falsterbo, a lovely little town by the seaside because Christopher was playing golf with Claes there all day, at a links course with insane amounts of water but nice views. I don’t play golf, so I spent the day with my best friend Emma (Claes’s fiancée). We gossiped a lot, had lunch at a nice café and prepared dinner for the boys. When they got back feeling tired after a day outside, we bribed them with beer to light the barbecue, while we took care of the rest of the cooking.

When we went to the supermarket I was pleased to see that they had lots of fresh girolles, that are in season now. It is my favourite mushroom and I find it really sad that I can’t buy them in a normal supermarket here in the UK. Girolles are best paired with butter and garlic and they make out a simple, but delicious, canapé.

We also had souvlaki, a nice salad with cucumber, tomatoes, leafy mixed salad, red onions and plenty of feta and another salad with giant couscous, pitta and homemade tzatsiki.

Emma gave the sauce top marks! It tastes fantastic with fat yoghurt and a big glug of olive oil. Yu-um…

I prefer giant couscous to the smaller variety, it is chewier and tastes better I think. In the salad above I kept it really simple, adding just thin slivers of red onion, herb salt, olive oil and chopped parsley. Simple yet delicious.

Girolle canapés, serves 4

100-150 g girolles, brushed and chopped

1/2 solo garlic or 1 garlic clove, pressed

a large knob of butter (enough to coat the mushrooms generously but not enough for them to bathe in)

chopped parsley

a bag of readymade brushettinis (garlic and herb if available

Fry the girolles on high heat in some of the butter. Add more butter as well as the garlic and lower the heat (so the garlic won’t burn). Season and mix in the parsley. Scoop up onto the biscuits and serve.

The first evening back home: crayfish and hollandaise

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We went back home to Sweden last Tuesday and after being picked up in Malmö we had a lovely lunch at Katrinetorp where we also had a look in their antique shop and after a quick visit at the shop Provinsen more close to home we finally got home to the summer house.

It is situated on the south coast in Sweden, only 2 km from the most Southern point in Sweden, and I love coming there and breathing the sea air.

I had wished for crayfish for dinner, so we had that as a starter, followed by barbecued fish, salad, potatoes and homemade hollandaise. To eat it outside on a blue and white tablecloth made it a perfect summer’s evening with Christopher and my parents.

For the first time I tried to make hollandaise a different way than normal (for me). Instead of melting the butter and adding it to the egg yolks, I used cold butter cut in cubes and incorpotating them into the yolks instead. It worked a charm and makes it easier not to split the sauce, since the temperature rises more slowly than with melted butter.

After dinner mum and I went for a quick stroll on the beach and I really enjoyed being home.

Hollandaise sauce sås, serves 4

3 egg yolks

150 g (cold) salted butter

1/2 – 1 tbsp lemon juice

salt & white pepper

Mix egg yolks and lemon juice in a non stick saue pan (start off with only half a tbsp lemon juice if you don’t want the sauce too sharp, you can add more add the end). Cut the butter into cubes and put one of two into the egg yolks, while whisking. Let all the butter melt before adding more and repeat this until all the butter is used. The sauce will slowly thicken and when it is thick enough, remove it from heat, still stirring, season and pour it into a cool dish to serve immediately.