holiday – Page 4 – Scandelights

Sweden: dinner by the beach at Badhytten

Published on September 26, 2017September 26, 2017 by HannaLeave a comment

My first night in Sweden was sunny and glorious and I spent it the best way possible: with dear friends having dinner at the beach.

This restaurant, bar and nightclub is our favourite place to go in the summer as the setting is beautiful and the place has a fun atmosphere. In recent years it’s been rebuilt, so although the charm from when I was younger is gone it feels a lot more modern and grownup in it’s current design.

We all enjoyed our meal here, it’s not a place where you come just for the food, but combined with the decent wine list, helpful waiters and lovely atmosphere it’s a lovely place.

For the starter, we all ordered exactly the same, the Scandinavian classic Toast Skagen. It’s essentially prawns in mayonnaise and dill served on toast. Here the toast was brioche (nice!) and it was nicely presented with a ribbon of cucumber holding the prawns in place. Extra plus for the generous size!

For our main courses two had the cod loin with pea purée, new potatoes and carrots, two steak and fries with bearnaise sauce and one fish stew.

We were all pleased with our choices, and although the menu is very similar to last year, it’s consistent. My only remark was that my steak was rather overcooked, but still nice.

After the two courses each we were far too full to have pudding, so instead we moved to the lounge area of the restaurant to finish our wine and have teas and coffees. Then later on we hit the bar and dance floor upstairs!

Badhytten, Skanörs hamn, 239 30 Skanör, Sweden

Swedish summer

Published on September 21, 2017September 25, 2017 by HannaLeave a comment

What happened?! It’s been over a month since I got back to London after my lovely holiday in Sweden and it’s been NON-STOP, until now. I finally feel like I can breathe a little now. In this past month I’ve had a cold for three weeks (sigh), moved house and been really busy with work.

So sorry for the delay in sharing this post with you; the first little glimpse of my lovely two and a bit weeks in Sweden in August. I have lots more to share with you so STAY TUNED!

My time at home was mainly spent in Skåne, in the South, where I’m from, in my parents’ summer house. But I met up with friends, had people over for lunch and dinners, went to the opera, and the beach, went to Copenhagen for a day, had as much ice cream as I could and indulged in all the things I miss when I’m in London.

Like Swedish pizza, a real guilty pleasure of mine. It’s greasy, messy and wonderful the two times per year when I eat it.

As usual there was lots of seafood too, and champagne and burgers on the barbecue. And strawberries, which is unusual for August but so yummy!

Some evenings we took a nice long stroll along the beach, taking in the wonderful nature.

Thanks for a lovely break, Sweden!

Easter at home

Published on April 18, 2017April 19, 2017 by HannaLeave a comment

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Happy Easter!

I got back from Sweden last night after ten wonderful days with friends and family. I didn’t get to see everyone I wanted to see, but I’m starting to learn that I never have that much time when I go home. And I’m happy I managed to squeeze in as much as I did.

I ate a lot of pick ‘n mix and cooked a bit, met up with friends and got invited over to theirs for lunches and dinners. And I got to enjoy the fresh countryside air, pick wood anemones in the woods and unwind a little.

Here are a few pictures from the trip and I will post a lovely recipe later in the week!

pa13 — Our Easter dinner on Holy Saturday; plenty of eggs and herring!

Champagne, nibbles and quality time with my dear parents.

British asparagus! with homemade hollandaise sauce – SO good!

Rhubarb meringue pie – our new favourite pudding!

Cape Cod: Spanky’s Clam Shack in Hyannis

Published on November 22, 2016 by HannaLeave a comment

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The second day in Cape Cod, we managed to catch the boat to Nantucket and explored the pretty island for the day (top tip: book your ferry in advance!). When we arrived back into Hyannis, we headed straight for dinner, eager to eat at a more socially acceptable time than the evening before.

We went o Spanky’s Clam Shack, which seemed like the place to eat in this little town, and joined the queue at the bar. I’m really not a fan of waiting or queuing in general but when I can sit at a bar and sip a drink (in this case frozen strawberry daiquiri) I really don’t mind.

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When we were shown to the table (after only a ten minute wait) we got snacks straight away, like they could sense our hunger. I really liked the crab dip and crackers, although the presentation could have been improved on. But this is one busy restaurant so I can see why they like plastic bowls and wrapped crackers.

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We got our starters quickly too. Sinead got another mountain of crispy calamari with a tomato chilli dip.

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I tried something completely new for me; a stuffed quahog (no, not a Family Guy reference, it’s the actual name of the clam). It’s a huge clam filled with breadcrumbs, butter and herbs, and I really liked it. But it’s quite compact and therefore really filling.

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While we were munching on our starters we saw lobster after lobster leaving the kitchen.

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We got the main courses while we were still eating our starters (we had already sent them back once so felt bad if we did it again). But considering the size of the starters it would have been nice with a pause in between courses.

Anyway, Sinead’s chicken with kale and fries was really nice.

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But I think my clam bake was even better. The lobster was huge and perfectly cooked and the corn was the best I’ve ever had. I also had a plate full of a local type of clam and as I hadn’t come across them before I got a lesson in how you peel and eat them from our lovely waitress (it required removing them from the shell, pull of a membrane and then soak them in stock for quite a while to remove the sand). It’s always fun to try new things, and the clams were quite nice but I prefer the regular sweet ones. I also got a baked potato which I barely touched as the lobster, corn and clams were more than enough for me.

I really liked this place, but be prepared for big huge portions and a quick pace.

Spanky’s Clam Shack, 138 Ocean St., Hyannis, MA 02632

Cape Cod: Black Cat Tavern in Hyannis

Published on November 18, 2016November 18, 2016 by Hanna1 Comment

The first evening in Cape Cod, we decided to have dinner at one of the restaurants in the Hyannis Harbour. We’d been driving around the Cape during the day so got to the restaurant we had decided on, Black Cat Tavern, quite late. We were the last guests to arrive and eventually we were the only people left (bar the staff).

We thought that was why our main courses arrived while we were in the middle of eating our starters. I don’t like to be rushed when eating as it always give me a stomach ache, but we were to polite to say anything as the restaurant was emptying out around us.

But the following evening when we went to another restaurant, the same thing happened, although we had dinner much earlier and the restaurant was full. In the middle of our very substantial starters, we actually told the waitress we wanted to wait. She completely understood but the kitchen seemed to insist to get the food out, so when it arrived again, after five minutes we let them put it on the table.

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I don’t understand this culture of rushing your guests through a (large) meal. Is it just in this area, or is it because of tourist season or what’s the reason?! Please do tell me if you have an idea.

Anyway, the food was nice in both the places, and I really like how understated the seafood is here. In Europe where oysters and lobster are luxurious and quite expensive it’s served a certain way or in certain places. Here, where you have lobster and oyster in abundance, you can enjoy it in your flipflops straight from the beach and I really liked that.

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At Black Cat Tavern I had Oysters Rockefeller (baked oysters with a spinach and cheese topping and in this case cured ham as well) as my starter and they were really nice. Generous portion too!

Sinead had a minor mountain of calamari with a chillie dip – also really nice! As I was a little bit stressed by the time our maincourses arrived I only manage to snap a picture of my own plate of bakes scallops (a first for me), with baked potato and creamy lobster sauce, but I do know that Sineads food was nice as well.

Black Cat Tavern, 165 Ocean St, Hyannis, MA 02601, USA

Cape Cod: Canteen in Provincetown

Published on October 27, 2016October 27, 2016 by HannaLeave a comment

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On this unplanned US trip I trusted Google to help us find places to eat in Cape Cod. In P-town, one of the places I found was Canteen, and as we walked past it approximately two minutes after having stepped out of the car we decided it was a great place for lunch.

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I, not surprisingly, made sure to get my (first) lobster fix for the day and decided on a lovely lobster roll. I also got a glass of frosé but it was too sweet for my liking.

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Sinead had prosecco instead, and a lovely salad with quinoa and chicken.

This laid-back place is perfect for a quick bite while wandering around town. The food was really nice and fresh and the staff super friendly.

Canteen, 225 Commercial Street, Provincetown, MA 02657

Cape Cod photos

Published on October 26, 2016 by HannaLeave a comment

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My summer holiday was just lovely. First five days in New York; eating, shopping and drinking our way around the city. Then five days in glorious Cape Cod with blue skies, great beaches, boats and lobster (and a few days in Boston before heading home). We drove around the cape singing to the 90s songs the local radio played, only caring about where to stop for pancakes.

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It was as idyllic as it sounds (and looks), and we had a great time taking in the New England style houses and pretty little towns.

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Sadly we didn’t have enough time on the beach but it was still a lovely few days.

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One day we explored Nantucket and wished we could just stay there for the rest of the summer. It’s such a little paradise.

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But we also enjoyed the fabulous gay-town Provincetown at the end of the cape; filled with pride flags, drag queens and a wonderfully warm atmosphere.

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Oh, take me back!

Eating NYC: breakfast at Balthazar

Published on September 27, 2016 by HannaLeave a comment

Not jet-lagged at all while in the US, we actually overslept breakfast at the hotel every single morning and had to find breakfast elsewhere. An easy feat in New York, but also a little bit tricky if a donut from Dunkin’s (they’re everywhere!) doesn’t constitute breakfast in your opinion. One day we just happened to walk past Balthazar and decided to try our luck. We got a table straight away. A small one in a corner. But still, we were hangry and breakfast was near so it was perfect!

I had my favourite egg dish; Eggs Benedict, and this was a great version. More rustic than The Wolseley’s but almost as nice. And in my ravenous state I loved the addition of the fried potatoes. Sinead had a lovely omelette, also served with fried potatoes, so we were both very happy with our menu choices. An hour and breakfast here put us in a good mood for the rest of the day. I would still like to try the breakfast at the hotel as it seemed great, but that’s for another trip.

Balthazar, 80 Spring St, New York, NY 10012

Italy in spring

Published on April 5, 2016April 7, 2016 by Hanna2 Comments

For Easter my friend Caroline and I went to Italy, to enjoy glorious spring weather and eat copious amounts of pasta. That’s our type of holiday.

We spent most of the time in Bologna, in the Emilia-Romagna region, but we also drove to Modena, Cierva and Ravenna. Driving in Italy was an, ehum, experience but we got into it after a while.

It was lovely to see all the fresh produce at the greengrocers. Bright red tomatoes, asparagus and courgette flowers made the mouth water, and strawberries were in season too!

We of course enjoyed pasta, cheese and charkuteries as well. And fish and seafood.

Just a change of scenery and pace was lovely, but also to enjoy some sunshine and be able to sit outside was amazing. I’m such a spring and summertime person I feel I came alive again!

I have plenty to tell you about the restaurants we went too, so hope you’re up for a few posts on Italy!

New year, new recipes

Published on January 8, 2016January 8, 2016 by HannaLeave a comment

Hello dear readers,

Happy New Year!

I hope you haven’t missed me too much the last couple of weeks. I went home to Sweden for Christmas and needed a proper break, seeing friends and family and not sitting in front of a computer.

But I still cooked and ate a lot, so I have lots of new things (and some things from the autumn and even summer of last year!) to blog about.

If you want to see what I get up to outside of the blof, then follow me on Instagram where I am the most active (my username is @scandelights, and there is a link in the right hand margin).

Wishing you all a prosperous new year!

Hanna