23.12.2010

Dear friends! I’m so happy it’s Christmas time again because it always means lots and lots of yammy decent food! I want to thank Alex, Caren, Dumba, Knuti-Judi and Mervi for their contributions – although I know Mervi pinched her recipees from Wikipedia but you didn’t hear this from me! Sorry, I can’t write more – my stomach tells me it needs filling!

A special type of smörgåsbord is the julbord which is the standard Christmas dinner in Scandinavian countries. Julbord is a word consisting of the elements jul, meaning Yule (today synonymous with Christmas) and bord, literally table. The classic Swedish julbord is the highlight of Swedish cuisine, a traditional smörgåsbord starting with bread dipped in ham broth and continuing with a variety of fish (salmon, herring, whitefish and eel), ham, small meatballs, head cheese and sausages, potato, boiled or potato casserole, soft and crisp bread, butter and different cheeses, beetroot salad. cabbage (red, brown or green) and rice pudding and beverages.

As with the smörgåsbord, the traditional julbord is typically eaten in three courses. The dishes include local and family specialties. The first course would typically be a variety of fish, particularly pickled herring and lox (gravlax). It is customary to eat particular foods together; herring is typically eaten with boiled potatoes and hard-boiled eggs and is frequently accompanied by strong spirits like snaps, brännvin or akvavit with or without spices. Other traditional dishes would be (smoked) eel, rollmops, herring salad, baked herring, smoked salmon and crab canapés, accompanied by sauces and dips.

The second course is often a selection of cold sliced meats, the most important cold cut being the Christmas ham (julskinka) with mustard. Other traditional cuts include homemade sausages, leverpastej and several types of brawn. It is also common to serve the cold meats with sliced cheese, pickled cucumbers and soft and crisp breads.

The third course would be warm dishes. Traditionally, the third course begins with soaking bread in the stock from the Christmas ham. Warm dishes include Swedish meatballs (köttbullar), small fried hot dog sausages (prinskorv), roasted pork ribs (revbenspjäll), and warm potato casserole, matchstick potatoes layered with cream, onion and sprats called Janssons frestelse (literally “Jansson’s Temptation”).

Other dishes are pork sausages (fläskkorv), smoked pork and potato sausages (isterband), cabbage rolls (kåldolmar), baked beans, omelette with shrimps or mushrooms covered with bechamel sauce. Side dishes include beetroot salad in mayonnaise and warm stewed red, green or brown cabbage.

Lutfisk, lyed fish made of stockfish (dried ling or cod served with boiled potato, thick white sauce) and green peas that can be served with the warm dishes or as a separate fourth course. Lutfisk is often served as dinner the second day after the traditional Christmas Yule-table dinner.Julbord desserts include rice pudding (risgrynsgröt), sprinkled with cinnamon powder.photo Traditionally, an almond is hidden in the bowl of rice porridge and whoever finds it receives a small prize or is recognized for having good luck. Julbord is served from early December until just before Christmas at restaurants and until Epiphany in some homes.

 

 

Swedish meatballs (Köttbullar)

Here’s what you need: (note: use either metric or imperial, but do not mix and match)

500g/ 1 lb ground beef
300g/ ½ lb ground pork
300g/ ½ lb ground veal (optional)
1 dl/ ½ cup fresh bread crumbs
1 garlic clove, finely chopped
1 onion, finely chopped
1 dl/1/2 cup milk and/or cream
1 egg
several dashes of soy sauce
2-3 pinches ground paprika
salt and pepper to taste
butter
oil

Here’s what you do:

Mix the bread crumbs, garlic, onion, milk/cream, egg, soy sauce, paprika and salt and pepper thoroughly. Let stand for ten minutes. If it’s too wet, add more bread crumbs. If it’s too dry, add a little more soy or dairy.

After ten minutes, add the meat, but don’t over-mix, as this will cause the fat to render too much and you will end up with dry meatballs.

Heat your frying pan to a medium-high heat. Drop in a knob of butter with a small dash of ordinary cooking oil (to prevent the butter from burning)

Once the mixture is ready, wet your hands with cold water and form either small or large meatballs. We prefer to make them slightly smaller than a ping pong ball as this allows them to cook through without the risk of burning the outside.
Fill the frying pan with the meatballs, making sure you leave room enough for them to move around. Shake the pan regularly to help maintain the round shape and to keep them turning. Should it become necessary to prevent burning, use a spatula to turn the meatballs.

Cook for 4-6 minutes, depending on size. After about four minutes, press one of the meatballs gently in the middle. If it is firm, it should be done. If you want to be more sure, gently break one open. If needed, cook for another minute or two.
Serve with spaghetti, mashed potatoes or boiled potatoes. Or try Judi’s favorite way: soured cream and sliced pickles, or Juan’s favorite: on a baguette. You might also want to try a lingonberry sauce.

If you’d like a quick, easy and delicious sauce, try this:

Once the meatballs are removed from the pan, add 2-3 dl cream and a teaspoon of Dijon mustard to the drippings, whisking quickly. Season to taste and serve immediately. You can also add a small amount of crème fraiche to thicken it.

Smaklig måltid!

Christmas Ham

What you need:

5kg ham on or off the bone (our expert recommends on the bone)
4 tbs salt
2 tbs sugar
½ tbs nitre (saltpeter-optional)

Brine:

7 l water
1 kg coarse salt
25 g nitre
160 g sugar
Handful of Jamaican peppercorns
Bay leaves

For topping:

2 tbs mustard (we recommend Dijon)
1 small egg (you can use just the yolk, if preferred)
2-3 tbs bread crumbs (if making your own, use bread at least a day or two old)

What you do:

Combine all the brine ingredients, then add the ham. Boil one hour per kilo. Remove from the heat and reserve some of the liquid/brine for Dopp i Grytan.

Remove the ham from the brine and put on an oven rack, placing a pan beneath it to catch the juices-to be used for Dopp I Grytan.

Pre-heat oven to 220.225¤C

Mix all the topping ingredients together and coat the top of the ham with half.

Bake for about 15 minutes. Remove the rind, top with the rest of the mixture and bake for a further 10.15 minutes. The topping should be a bit crusty. Mix icing sugar with cold water (should not be runny, but liquid enough to pipe through a piping bag). Decorate the ham in a criss-cross pattern with the icing sugar, then place on clove in the center of each square.

DRINKS:

My advice to you is to always add a ‘schuss’ of something strong!! It makes a merry Christmas even merrier, hihii….

Glögg (Hot Mulled Wine)
Mumma-can be made with or without alchohol
Dark Christmas Ale
Snaps-to drink with the sill

Julmust-a special ‘soda’ in the shops at Christmas-time. It is pure happiness for any child who gets a bottle for him or herself.

SWEET TABLE

Christmas Eve, the 24th of December, is when Swedes exchange gifts and enjoy the main Christmas meal. You nibble from the sweet table while handing out presents or singing Christmas carols.

Christmas Butterscotch (Knäck)
Ginger Bread
Saffron Bread
Ice Chocolate
Cream Candy
Nuts in their shell-walnuts are a must
Fresh fruit
Large raisins-in a special paper box.
Figs
Dates

You’ll find more recipees here

 

From Knuti-Judi – Here is a favourite holiday tradition:

We buy Lazzaroni Amaretti cookies. They are from Italy. The cookies come wrapped in colorful tissues. After enjoying the cookie, one smooths out the tissue and rolls it up into a cylinder. Then one carefully lights the top….the cylinder will rise up and go all the way almost to the ceiling and then a smoke ring comes cascading back down….all to cheers and plenty of
YIKES! It’s fun!

YIKES! WHAT was that?????

Warm Chocolate Raspberry Pudding Cake

yield: Serves 6 generously

The beauty of this cake is that the frosting is baked in the same pan with the batter.

When the cake is inverted onto a cake plate a few minutes…

Ingredients

For frosting

3 ounces fine-quality bittersweet chocolate (not unsweetened)
1/2 cup seedless raspberry jam (about 5 ounces)
1/2 cup heavy cream

For cake batter

1/2 cup boiling water
1/3 cup plus 2 teaspoons unsweetened cocoa powder (not Dutch process)
1/4 cup whole milk
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1/3 cup seedless raspberry jam (about 3‚ ounces)
1 stick (1/2 cup) unsalted butter, softened
1/3 cup packed light brown sugar
1/3 cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs
1 cup all-purpose flour
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt

Garnish: raspberries

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 350°F. and generously butter a 9- by 2-inch round cake pan.

Make frosting:
Chop chocolate. In a small heavy saucepan bring jam, cream, and chocolate to a simmer, stirring occasionally, until smooth. Pour frosting into cake pan.

Make cake batter:
In a bowl whisk together boiling water and cocoa powder until smooth and whisk in milk, vanilla, and jam. In a large bowl with an electric mixer beat together butter and sugars until light and fluffy and add eggs 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Into another bowl sift together flour, baking soda, and salt and add to egg mixture in batches alternately with cocoa mixture, beginning and ending with flour mixture and beating well after each addition.

Pour batter evenly over frosting mixture and bake in middle of oven 30 to 35 minutes, or until a tester inserted into cake comes out clean (frosting on bottom will still be liquid). Cool cake slightly in pan on a rack, 10 to 20 minutes. Cake may be made 1 day ahead, cooled completely in pan and left in pan, covered, at room temperature. Reheat cake, uncovered, at 350°F. 10 to 15 minutes.

Run a thin knife around edge of pan and twist pan gently back and forth on a flat surface to loosen cake. Invert a cake plate with a slight lip over cake pan and, holding pan and plate together with both hands, invert cake onto plate. Frosting will cover cake and run onto plate. Serve cake garnished with raspberries.

Bavarian Cream (Bayerische Creme)

If we are at home on Christmas, our kitchen is only open on Christmas Eve. Traditionally we are enjoying Fondue with Scotch Fillet, different souces, salats and baguette. You all know how a Fondue works. But after the Fondue we usually have Bavarian Creme (Bayerische Creme) with fruit (strawberries, red and black raspberries and/or Kiwi).

1/2 l Milk
1 Vanilla Bean
4 Eggs (egg yolks)
100 gr Sugar
5-7 leaves of Gelantin
400 g Cream
ca 2 Liter Iced Water
Gelatin to be soaked in cold water. Whip the cream

Boil the milk with the opened Vanilla Bean and leave for 5 minutes.

Remove the Vanilla bean. Mix the egg yolks with the sugar and slowly add the Vanilla Milk

Press out the Gelatin and carefully mix with the hot cream until Gelatin dissolves. Insert the bowl with the cream in the Iced Water and stir until the cream cools down until the mass has a creamy consistence.

Carefully put the Whipped Cream under the creamy mass and leave for 3-4 hrs. to until coagulation.

Decorate with fresh fruit such as strawberries, raspberries and/or Kiwi

Due to the fact that the weeks before Christmas are so very stressful and hectic, we both agreed to go out for dinner Christmas Day and Boxing Day.

Another stress-factor is finding and buying presents. For quite some years we both agreed on just one tiny little present (as a Christmas Surprise) for each of us..

This year we will be donating to the Bears’ Sanctuary (Gnadenhof für Bären) instead of buying presents for relatives and friends. We let them know on a handmade Christmas Card that instead of a present, the money is transferred to the Sanctuary for the sake of nine brownbears. I wonder how the reaction from our relatives and friends will be J.

Please enjoy a relaxed Christmas Season!

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year, Hugs from caren&bernd

Zubereitung:

Eiweiß zu steifem Schnee schlagen und den Zucker unterheben. Eine Springform dünn mit Butter ausstreichen. Die Eiweißmasse gleichmäßig hineinfüllen. Die Form in siedendes Wasser stellen. Darin 45 min. ziehen lassen, die ersten 20 min. zugedeckt. Den Pudding auf eine Platte stürzen und kalt stellen.Während der Pudding im Wasserbad steht, eine Schokoladensauce zubereiten. Die Schokolade in Stücke brechen. Die süße Sahne mit der Milch mischen. Die Schokolade darin auf milder Hitze schmelzen lassen. Dann heiß zum Pudding reichen. Vorsichtig umrühren, damit sich beim abkühlen keine Haut bildet.

Sacristanpudding – Ingredients for 4 Persons:

6 egg whites
120 g sugar
100 g chocolate bittersweet
1/8 l cream
1/8 l milk butter for cake-pan

Preparation:

1. Whisk the egg whites till it is stiff and fold the sugar under.
2. Grease the spring pan with butter.
3. Put the whipped egg white even inside
4. The spring pan has to be put in boiling water, it has to stay there for 45 min, and the first 20 min covered.
5. Put the pudding on a cake plate and let it cool of
6. While the pudding is in the water bath, you have to prepare the chocolate sauce.
7. For the chocolate sauce, you have to break the bittersweet chocolate into pieces
8. Mix sweet cream with milk
9. Melt the chocolate by low heath.
10. After it is melted offer it hot to the pudding.
11. Stir carefully so there will be no membrane on the pudding.

Von Alex

From Dumba:

The”SPITZBUBEN” used to be the favouite cookies for everybody. Everybody also loved “QUITTENSPECKCHEN”. “SPRINGERLE” were not so popular as they used to be very hard and had a flavour of anise, which was not so much appreciated amongst the youngsters. It was a running gag at Christmas time to tell that my father and his brothers used to call those cookies “BESUCHSBRÖTCHEN” (canapés for guests as they hoped, such they would get the more favourite cookies, and the guests would help themselves to the “SPRINGERLE” … )) Ha-ha-ha, ‘villains’ these boys! Hugs Rosi

SPITZBUBEN

1/2 Pfund Mehl
150 g gute Butter
100 g Zucker
?60 g gehackte Mandeln

(ich tu immer noch ein bisschen abgeriebene Zitronenschale dazu – steht aber nicht im Originalrezept!)

Für Füllung und Überzug:
Puderzucker
Vanillezucker
Himbeermarmelade

Mehl auf Tisch, Zucker drüber, Mandeln drüber, weiche Butter in Stücken drauf. Alles mit dem Messer zerhacken und danach kneten.

Teig in Pergamentpapier in Kühlschrank. Teig auswellen, mit möglichst scharfkantigem Schnapsglas runde Plättchen ausstechen. Glas immer wieder in etwas Mehl tauchen, damit nicht verklebt.

Plätzchen auf nicht zu stark gefettetes Blech setzen und goldgelb backen (geht relativ schnell).
Je 2 Plätzchen mit Himbeermarmelade zusammenkleben und anschließend rundherum in Gemisch aus Puder- und Vanillezucker wälzen.

PS: Variationen für die Füllung sind keine Grenzen gesetzt (z.B. Erdbeeren, Aprikosen, Johannisbeeren, Schokolade etc.), aber glaubt mir, am besten schmeckt Himbeermarmelade!

SPITZBUBEN (villains) – English

For preparing the pastry you need:

- 1/2 a pound of flour

- 150 grams of good butter

- 100 grams of sugar

- 60 grams of fine chopped almonds

- I personally add a bit lemon zest, however, this is not part of the original recipe))

For the center and the coating of the biscuits you need:
- powdered sugar
- vanilla sugar
- good raspberry jam

Put the flour on a table/bread-board, add sugar, add the almonds, put room temperature pieces of butter on top of the pile. Now cut everything in pieces (such it mixes best), finally knead the pastry thoroughly.

Wrap the pastry ball in parchment paper. Put it into refrigerator. When pastry has cooled down, roll flat rather thin (but not too thin!). Cut out small round pieces with a shot glass. Put the glass once in a while into flour, such the rim of the glass does not adhere with pastry.

Put the biscuits on a lightly greased (with good butter) baking sheet. Bake until golden yellow, which takes not a lot of time.

Cohere two biscuits with raspberry jam (not too much but enough the whole surface sticks together after a short pressure on the pair!).

To finish, put powdered sugar and vanilla sugar together on a dish, mix it, and turn biscuit (two cohered with raspberry = 1 biscuit!) such that mixture sticks roundabout.

Do store biscuits in cookie-tin lined with paper napkins.

Ha-ha-ha, believe me, there is near to never something left to store!

PS: There are no limits for variation of the filling (different kind of jam, as e.g. strawberries, apricots, redcurrants, … chocolate) but believe me, best is raspberry jam!

SPRINGERLE

QUITTENSPECKLE/Quittenspeckchen– typischer sind allerdings in Hagelszucker gewälzte RAUTEN s.u.:

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

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