Dillkött, a Swedish delicacy

This is an old, unfortunately almost forgotten, Swedish recipe. The blend between sour and sweet is characteristic for the old Swedish kitchen. You can also make this dish with baby lamm, instead of veal, at the beginning of spring.

Dillkött

• 1,2 kg Veal shoulder
• 1 yellow Onion
• 1 Carrot
• 1 piece of Celeriac
• 1 Bay leaf
• 1 twig Thyme
• 1 bunch of Dill, the sprigs to boil with the meat and the finer part to decorate/ flavour the sauce
• 1 l Water (or enough to cover the meat)
• 2 tbsp Vinegar ( 3%)
• 1 teaspoon Sugar
• 1 dl Cream
• 1 Egg Yolk
• 1 tbsp Butter
• 1 tbsp Wheat flour
• Salt and pepper

Cut the meat in cubes (2×2 cm) and put them together with the bone in a casserole. Peel the onion, the carrot and the celeriac and cut them in rough slices/ pieces. Add it all to the casserole together with thyme, bay leaf, dill sprigs and cover it all with water. Let it come to a boil and simmer for approximately 40 minutes.

Lift out the meat and keep it warm. Strain the veal broth. Melt the butter in a pot, whisk the wheat flour with the butter and pour in the broth little at a time until you get a good sauce consistency. Add the cream and add, if necessary, a bit more broth. Let boil for 4-5 minutes. Flavour with vinegar, sugar, salt and pepper.

Add the meat to your sauce and sprinkle the fine chopped dill on top. Serve together with boiled potatoes and carrots.

Music: Listening to Ben Folds singing the lyrics from Nich Hornby on the record Lonely Avenue

Mussels with curry and dark beer

There are some good things about the winter. One is certainly the supply of really good mussels. And to a fair price as well. Mussels are perfect if you have invited guests. It is prepared in a sec, tastes wonderful and it makes fun to get together around the pot. The only problem is that you need a huge pot if you are more than 4 at the table. If you only eat mussels I recommend 3 kg for 4 persons.

• 3 kg mussels
• 4 dl dark beer
• 2 tbsp curry powder
• 4 shalots, finely chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
• 100 g celeriac, diced 5×5 mm
• 2 tbsp oil
• 2 dl cream
• parsley

Clean the mussels and make sure everyone closes when you give them a knock. If not, throw away.

Fry the curry, shalots, garlic and celeriac gently for 3 min. Pour the beer and let it boil. Add mussels and steam under a lid until the mussels are opened (app. 5 min). Remove the mussels from the sauce. If any mussels have not opened, throw them away. Add the cream to the mussels sauce and cook for 3 min. Flavour with pepper and salt if needed. Pour the sauce on top of the mussels and garnish with parsley. Enjoy with a good white bread or fries.

Music: Listened to Donkeyboy

Espresso Braten[iato]

Mein guter Freund Paul hat mir von einem Wettbewerb erzählt. Man soll ein Rezept kreieren mit Kaffee als einer Zutat. Ich fand es eine echte Herausforderung und habe mir dementsprechend Gedanken gemacht. Dessert schien mir ein bisschen zu offensichtlich und deshalb langweilig und folglich habe ich mich für ein Hauptgericht entschieden.

Ich bin Halbschwede und koche daher am liebsten mit Zutaten, die ich in der schwedischen Natur vorfinde. Deshalb sind die wichtigsten Zutaten in diesem Gericht Hohe Rippe, Sellerie, Birne, Chicorée und natürlich Kaffee (alles Bio). Kaffee hat wenig mit Schweden zu tun aber die Schweden haben den zweithöchsten Kaffeeverbrauch in der Welt (10 kg pro Jahr). Und wir trinken unseren Kaffee viel stärker als die Deutschen. Also, Kaffee ist auch für mich keine unbekannte Ingredienz.

Ich bin ein großer Freund von Fleisch, das langsam gekocht wird: es gibt eine wunderbare, kräftige Sauce. In diesem Gericht wird das Fleisch von einer Sauce mit einer angenehmen Kaffeenote begleitet. Im Rezept benutze ich die edlen Arabica-Bohnen da die bittere Note aus den Robusta-Bohnen nicht so gut passt. Der Kaffee-Geschmack passt wunderbar zu dem süßen Sellerie-Birne-Püree. Chicorée ist ein bisschen bitter, aber Zucker und der Orangensaft machen ihn behaglich und frisch. Als Tüpfelchen auf dem i kommt der Kaffeeschaum mit seinem dezenten Aroma. Das Essen ist wirklich einfach zu kochen aber du brauchst ein bisschen Zeit. Lass es dir schmecken!

Hohe Rippe mit Kaffeenote, karamellisiertem Chicorée, Sellerie-Birne Püree und Kaffeeschaum.

Zutaten:

Fleisch

• 800 g Hohe Rippe im Stück
• ½ L Rotwein
• 150 ml Portwein
• 700 ml Kalbsfond
• 1 dl Kaffeebohnen (Arabica)
• 3 Lorbeerblätter
• 1 Zwiebel
• 1 Karotte
• 1 Knoblauchzehe
• 1 Esslöffel Tomatenmark
• 4 Pfefferkörner

Sellerie-Birne Püree

• 500 g Sellerieknolle
• 1 große Williamsbirne
• 1 Zwiebel
• ½ L Hühnerfond
• 2 Esslöffel Butter
• 1 dl Crème Fraîche

Chicorée

• 2 Chicorée
• 2 Esslöffel Butter
• 2 Esslöffel Zucker
• Saft aus einer Orange
• 100 ml Hühnerfond

Kaffeeschaum

• 300 ml Milch
• 50 ml Kalbsfond
• 4 Kaffeebohnen (Arabica)

Mit dem Fleisch anfangen. Fleischstück und Kaffeebohnen im Topf in der Butter anbraten. Grob gehackte Zwiebel, Knoblauch und Karotte sowie Tomatenmark hinzufügen. Einige Minuten anschwitzen. Wein, Fond, Pfeffer und Lorbeerblätter hinzufügen. Kochen lassen und den Schaum abschöpfen. Danach 4 Stunden auf niedriger Hitze kochen.

Wenn das Fleisch zart ist, aus dem Topf nehmen. Die Sauce durch ein Sieb seihen und reduzieren, bis die Hälfte (800 ml) bleibt. Eventuell, wenn nötig, die Sauce andicken.

Die geschälte Sellerieknolle und Birne in kleine Würfel schneiden. Die Zwiebel klein schneiden. Zwiebel, Sellerie und Birne in Butter anschwitzen. Warmen Hühnerfond zugießen. Kochen bis die Gemüse weich sind, ungefähr 15 Minuten. Den Fond abgiessen, und die Gemüse mit Crème Fraîche zu Püree mixen. Mit Salz und weißem Pfeffer abschmecken.

Chicorée halbieren und in einer warmen Pfanne mit Butter und Zucker auf der Schnittfläche karamellisieren. Nach 2 Minuten Orangensaft und Hühnerfond hinzufügen. Unter Deckel 5 Minuten kochen. Salzen.

Kaffeebohnen, Kalbsfond und Milch zum Kochen bringen. Die Flüssigkeit abkühlen lassen. Kaffeebohnen entfernen. Vorm Servieren die Flüssigkeit aufschäumen, entweder mit einem Püree-Stab oder der Espressomaschine.

Das Fleisch in 4 Stücke schneiden und in der Sauce warm werden lassen. Servieren wie auf dem Bild mit karamellisiertem Chicorée, Kaffeeschaum und Püree.

Musik: Fantastischen Vier 4:99

Espresso Meat[iato]

Swedes are mad about coffee, strong coffee. The Finns are the only ones drinking more than we are. Each Year the average Swede use approximately 10 kg coffee.

Coffee is an excellent flavour not only in desserts but in almost all beef stews. It gives the stews a nice body.

In this recipe I’ve braised prime beef for 4 hours in wine, stock and coffee beans. The beans give the sauce a wonderful richness and it goes well together with the sweet purée of celeriac and pears and with the chicory. The meat can be cooked a day in advance and then the dish takes less than 30 min to prepare. Good luck!

Prime rib with coffee touch, caramelized chicory, celeriac-pear purée and coffee foam.

The meat

• 800 g Prime rib
• ½ l Red Wine
• 1,5 dl Port
• 7 dl Veal stock
• 1 dl Coffee beans (Arabica)
• 3 Bay leaves
• 1 Onion
• 1 Potato
• 1 clove of Garlic
• 1 tbsp Tomato paste
• 4 Pepper corns

Celeriac-Pear Purée

• 500 g Celeriac
• 1 large Williams Pear
• 1 Onion
• ½ l Chicken stock
• 2 tbsp Butter
• 1 dl Crème Fraîche
• Salt and white pepper

Chicory

• 2 Chicory
• 2 tbsp Butter
• 2 tbsp Sugar
• 1 Orange, the juice
• 1 dl Chicken stock
• Salt

Coffee foam

• 3 dl Milk
• ½ dl Veal stock
• 4 Coffee beans (Arabica)

Start with the meat. Fry the meat and the coffee beans in butter in a casserole. Add roughly chopped onion, garlic, potato and the tomato stock. Let fry for a couple of minutes, and then add wine, stock, pepper and bay leaves. Let it come to a boil and remove the foam. Let it simmer for approximately 4 hours.

When the meat tender is, take it out of the casserole and strain the broth. Let the broth come to a boil and reduce it to half the fluid. If you find the sauce to thin, use a thickener to get the preferred consistency.

Peel the celeriac and the pear and cut them in small pieces, chop the onion. Fry it all in butter and then add chicken stock. Let it boil until the vegetables/ fruits are done, approximately 15 minutes. Pour out the fluid, add crème fraîche and mix it to a smooth purée. Season it with salt and white pepper.

Caramelize the chicory in a heated frying pan with butter and sugar. Add orange juice and chicken stock after 2 minutes. Cook the chicory under a lid for about 5 minutes. Add salt.

Let milk, coffee beans and veal stock come to a boil. Let it then cool off.  Before serving, take out the coffee beans and make foam. We used our espresso machine but it also works with an electric mixer.

Cut the meat in 4 pieces, it is a bit tricky while the meat almost falls apart. Put the pieces in the sauce and heat them. Serve as shown in the picture with caramelized chicory, coffee foam and celeriac-Pear purée on the side.

Music: Listening to the German band Fantastischen Vier 4:99

Tunnbrödsrulle – a Swedish specialty

This is as Swedish as it gets. It is a totally weird combination but it is good, especially if you are on the way home after a tough night (this is when most of the Tunnbrödsrullar are sold in Sweden). It’s interesting to see what people in different countries eat when heading home from the pub. Without any statistics I would say that Swedes go for Tunnbrödrullar, sausages and burgers. In Berlin the choice would be a döner kebab or falafel.

Well, you do not have to prepare the Tunnbrödsrullar in the middle of the night. They do taste good, even when you are sober.

A Tunnbrödsrulle always contains of Tunnbröd (special thin bread), mashed potatoes, cooked/grilled sausage. To make it more tasty most people add a shrimp salad, Boston pickled gherkins, roasted onions, mustard and ketchup. You are also offered salad, onion and tomatoes. The correct drink to Tunnbrödsrullar is Pucko – a cold chocolate drink.

Shrimp salad

• 1 dl Crème fraiche
• 1 dl Mayonnaise
• 200 g peeled Shrimps
• 1,5 tbsp Chili sauce
• 2-3 teaspoons Mustard
• Dill
• Salt and Pepper

Cut the shrimps roughly, cut the dill and blend everything together.

Boston pickled gherkin

• 1 yellow onion
• 1 red Pepper
• 10 cm Cucumber, without the seeds
• 1-2 Pickled gherkins
• 1 tbsp Mustard seeds
• 1 teaspoon Salt
• 1,25 dl Vinegar essence (12%)
• 1 dl Sugar

Cut the vegetables in small pieces. Let the sugar, the vinegar essence, salt and mustard seeds come to a boil. Add the vegetables and let them simmer for 20 minutes. Most of the fluid should be gone by then. Let your Boston pickles cool off before you serve them.

Music: What you listen to when you eat, is at the time the best music you’ve ever heard, but you never remember it the day after…

Cheese or chocolat?

When we plan what to eat we always end up discussing whether we should have cheese or chocolate as dessert. That’s the beauty with a five course or a seven course than you can have both!

Cheese with fresh figs

• 3-4 fresh Figs
• 8 thin slices of Baguette/ loaf of french bread
• 150 g Goat cheese
• 2 dl Crème fraiche
• 2 leaves of Gelatine
• a pinch of Salt

Soak the gelatine leaves for 5 minutes in cold water. Use an electric mixer and mix goat cheese, crème fraiche and salt to a smooth cream. Let 1/2 dl of the cream come to a boil, squeeze the water out of the gelatine leaves and stir them into the warm cream until they melt. Blend the warm cream with the cold cream.

Dress a small tin or dish with plastic wrap, pour the cream and let it set in the fridge at least 6 hours before serving.

Balsamico reduction

• 1 1/2 dl Balsamico vinegar
• 1 dl Port
• a pinch of Salt
• 1 tbsp Brown sugar

Blend all the ingredients in a pot and boil until 1/2 dl remains.

Before serving cut the goat cheese cream in cubes, toast the baguette slices, cut the figs and make a nice pattern with your balsamico reduction. Done!

Chocolate ganache with liquorice ice cream (for 6 persons)

• Cocoa powder
• 1 tbsp Butter
• 100 g dark Chocolate, 70% or more, cut in pieces
• 100 g Butter, cut in pieces
• 2 large Eggs
• 2 large Egg yolks
• 2,5 tbsp Sugar
• 0,75 dl Wheat flour

Set the oven to 175 degrees C. Butter small forms (1,5 dl) and powder them with cocoa.

Melt chocolate and butter in a water bath, when melted lift up the bowl from the water. Whisk eggs, egg yolks and sugar in a large bowl. Pour the chocolate/butter mixture and blend. Sift the flour into the mixture.

Fill your forms to 3/4, put them on a baking plate and bake them for 5-6 minutes. Turn the baking plate around and bake for another 4-6 minutes or until the edges of your ganaches looks fixed and seems to let go of the form. Don’t bake them to long – the middle of the ganache shall be runny.

If you don’t want to eat your ganaches directly, you can put the forms, well wrapped in plastic, in the fridge until serving. Bake them 2 x 9 minutes instead.

Liquorice ice cream

• 10 Egg yolks
• 5 dl Milk
• 5 dl Cream
• 2,5 dl Sugar
• 1 Vanilla Pod
• Liquorice root/ liquorice extract or Lakritsal

Whisk egg yolks and sugar in a large bowl. Let milk, cream, vanilla pod and liquorice come to a boil. Pour the heated fluid on to the egg/sugar mixture during whisking. Warm all of it until it reaches 85 degrees C. Strain the mixture and pour it into an ice cream machine.

Serve your ganaches with the ice cream, raspberries and balsamico vinegar.

Music: Listening to a dear friends new record with his band Playful

King of sandwiches

The best sandwich experience I’ve had was in N.Y. No surprise. I ordered a pastrami sandwich and got a pound of meat between the bread. They understood what is important on a sandwich – the filling. The bread is second.

We saw the master chef Mathias Dahlgren prepare this sandwich in a program last summer. I got his excellent cook book this autumn and now – finally – I took the time to prepare the delicacy. It will take some time but it is worth it. We used a wonderful home-baked sourdough bread with the same flavouring as the filling – fennel. The bread is almost too good to just play the supporting act…

Sandwich with slow cooked pork belly and onion confit.

• 1 kg pork belly
• 1 garlic, finely chopped
• 5 g fennel seeds
• 5 bay leaves
• 1/2 dl chopped rosemary
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• salt and pepper
• 2 onions
• 2 dl olive oil

Pestle the herbs in a mortar. Use a knife and cut thin holes in the meat. Rub the herbs, finely chopped garlic, olive oil in the meat. Cover the rubbed pork with water and cook in oven, 150 degrees C for 3-4 hours. The meat should fall apart when done. Remove most of the fat and the bones. Slice the onions, put in a pot and cover with olive oil. Simmer for 2 hours without getting coloured. Let the onions dry and mix with the cold meat. (keep the olive oil from the onions. It has a wonderful flavour). Put the filled sandwich 3 min in oven, 200 degrees C before serving.

Music: Listened to Fläskkvartetten

Ok, it is still winter…

…and it’s cold and dark and it is Fondue time!!!

We used pork, veal and beef this time. We served the meat together with a tomato and lettuce salad, a mediterranean vegetable salad and a Moroccan carrot salad.

Mediterranean salad

• 1 Zucchini
• 3 Peppers, yellow, red and green
• 200 g Champignons
• 2-3 garlic Cloves
• Olive oil
• 1 Lemon, juice and the zest
• Salt and Pepper

Cut the vegetables in large pieces and fry them in a pan together with the sliced garlic cloves. They shall still be crisp. In the meantime blend olive oil, lemon juice and lemon zest.

Put the fried vegetables in the olive oil mixture and add salt and pepper. Let soak for an hour before serving.

Moroccan carrot salad

• 3 Carrots, sliced
• 1 red Chili fruit
• 1-2 tbsp grated fresh Ginger
• 1-2 teaspoons Cumin
• 1 tbsp Honey
• 100 g Chèvre, goat’s milk cheese
• 1/2 dl dried Cranberries
• 1 dl roasted Pumpkin seeds
• 1 dl chopped Parsley
• 1/2 Lime, the juice
• 2-3 tbsp Olive oil
• Lime zest
• Salt and pepper

Fry the carrots in a neutral oil together with the honey and the spices for approximately 10 minutes. Put the carrots in a bowl, sprinkle cheese, cranberries and pumpkin seeds on top.

Blend lime juice, olive oil, parsley and lime zest and pour it over your salad. Season with salt and pepper.

To this we served 3 different sauces and a red onion chutney.

Smoked mayonnaise with chili

• 3 Egg yolks
• 1 tbsp Mustard
• 1-2 teaspoons white wine Vinegar
• 2-3 dl Rape oil
• squeeze of lemon juice
• salt and pepper
• 1 red chili, chopped
• a splash of Liquid smoke

Make sure that the egg yolks, the vinegar and the mustard have the same temperature as the oil before you start. Use an electric mixer; start with the egg yolks, mustard and vinegar then carefully add drops of oil until i thickens. Season your mayonnaise with lemon juice, red chili, liquid smoke, salt and pepper.

Barbecue sauce

• 1 yellow Onion
• 2-3 Garlic cloves
• Rape oil
• 4-5 dl Red wine
• 1 can of Tomatoes
• 1 tbsp brown Sugar
• 2 tbsp Chipotle paste
• 1 Espresso
• a splash of red wine Vinegar or sherry Vinegar
• Salt and pepper

Fry onion and garlic in rape oil until they get colour. Add the rest of the ingredients but hold the vinegar, salt and pepper. Let simmer until the fluid is reduced to half or a little less than half. Taste it and add more of whatever is missing. Season with vinegar, salt and pepper. Ours is different every time depending on the “chefs” mood 🙂

Red onion chutney

• 2 large red onions, sliced
• Rape oil
• 1-2 tbsp red wine Vinegar
• 2 tbsp Honey
• 2 dl Water
• 3-4 Cloves (kryddnejlika, nelken)
• Salt and pepper

Fry the onion in rape oil until it is soft. Add the rest of the ingredients and let simmer approximately 20 minutes, until almost all of the fluid is gone. Season with salt and pepper.

Cold herb sauce with egg

• 1 hard-boiled Egg, chopped
• 1 bunch of Parsley
• 1 bunch of Basil
• 2-3 sprigs of Estragon
• 2 garlic cloves
• 1 dl Olive oil
• 2 dl Yoghurt
• 1 tbsp Capers
• 1/2 Lemon, the juice
• Salt and pepper

Mix the herbs, the garlic, the olive oil, the yoghurt and the capers together with an electric mixer. Add lemon juice, salt and pepper. Is it good? Then add the chopped egg and serve. You would perhaps like a splash of honey as well, but that is up to you.

Music: Robyn’s Body talk pt. 1, 2 and 3

Kalops

Kalops is a classic simple Swedish food dish. It is also on number 6 on the “Most googled recipes in Sweden 2010”. Like most casseroles they taste better when they get the opportunity to set.

You will like this day one but you will love it day two!

Kalops

• 1,5 kg Prime rib or brisket
• 2 yellow Onions
• 2 Carrots
• Butter
• 1/2 tbsp wheat Flour
• Water
• 10 Allspice corns
• 4-5 Cloves
• 6 Bay leaves
• 2 tbsp Anchovy liquid
• Salt and pepper

Cut the meat in 4 cm cubes. Peel onions and carrots and cut them in large pieces. Brown the meat all around in butter in a cast iron pot. Season with salt and pepper. Powder the meat with the flour, stir and pour just enough water to cover the meat and the vegetables.  Add all the spices and the anchovy liquid and let simmer for 1 1/2 – 2 hours. Stir now and then, so that nothing gets stuck at the bottom of the pot.

Before you serve, taste the casserole and if needed add more salt and pepper. Serve together with boiled potatoes and pickled beetroots.

Music: Listening to Magnus Carlsson & The Moon Ray Quintet singing Riders on the storm