Tag Archives: Swedish

CELEBRATING FIKA 5 YEARS

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Five years ago, Anna Brones and I released our book Fika: The Art of the Swedish Coffee Break. In honor of our 5th “book birthday,” we decided to put together a zine devoted to the basics of fika.

Maybe you have our book on your shelf, maybe you’re a fika aficionado, or maybe you’re entirely new to fika, the Swedish coffee break. Regardless of what your fika background is, we made this zine so that you can easily print it at home, color it in, and add your own drawings. There’s a recipe for chokladbollar, Swedish chocolate balls, too. We wouldn’t want you to go without a fika treat.

Why fika?

In this time when a lot of us are at home and socially distancing, fika seems like a good ritual to remind ourselves to take a little break from the onslaught of news, and find a little space to just be present.

Slow down.
Take a deep breath.
Re-calibrate.


Make a plan for a virtual fika
Fika is often a social affair, but you can fika and still practice social distancing. Why not use this as an excuse to call a friend and have a virtual fika?

Make “stay home and fika” your new mantra—click here to download and print the How to Fika zine. If you’ve never made a one-page zine before, it involves a little cutting and folding. Here’s a video that breaks down the process.

Trevlig Fika!
Anna (text) & Johanna (illustrations)


Please share your fika moment with us by tagging

#artoffika * #stayhomeandfika * #virtualfika
@johannakindvall & @annabrones (instagram)
@kokblog & @annabrones (twitter)

Selection of Fika treats on kokblog

* Cardamom Buns
* Cinnamon Buns
* Toscakaka (Swedish Caramel Almond Cake)
* Mazariner (A Swedish classic)
* Cardamom Biscuits
* Fyriskaka with Pear
* Struvor (Swedish Rosettes)
* Ginger Spice Cake
* Hazelnut & Cinnamon Cookies
* Lussebullar (Saffron Buns)
* Ginger Lime Tart
* Apple & Lemon Galette
* Joulutorttu (Finnish Christmas Tarts)
* Marängtårta (Meringue Torte)
* Semlor (Swedish Fat Tuesday buns)

How to make struvor (Swedish rosettes)

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Last summer, when I helped my mother pack down her house that she’d lived and worked in for almost 50 years, I found her old struvjärn. Obviously I snuck it out right away, slightly afraid that she or any of my siblings might object! In Sweden struvor (rosettes in English) are a deep fried pastry that’s most common around Christmas but I think they work all year round, by themselves or together with chocolate sauce and ice cream.

These cookie-like pastries are made with a struvjärn which is preheated in hot oil, dipped into a pancake like batter, and then deep fried until golden brown, crisp, and light. The iron tool comes in many different decorative designs like stars, snowflakes, butterflies, and hearts. They are best eaten freshly made, dipped in granulated sugar spiced with cardamom. The granulated sugar gives an extra crunch to this airy deliciousness.

The batter for the rosettes is pretty much the same batter you use to you make Swedish pancakes or crepes. In general the batter is just flavored with a pinch of salt and occasionally with a dash of vanilla. In US it’s common to add sugar to the batter but in most Nordic recipes it’s not. The Finnish struva, which are called tippaleipä (similar to funnel cake) are made with yeast and simply piped out with a pastry bag (or a bag with a cutoff corner). Talking about it on Instagram, I learnt that there are several similar pastries around the world, (see list below). If you know of any other variations and types, please share in the comments and I will add it to my list.

The recipe here is originally a recipe by Johan Sörberg which I liked because he suggests to add a few tablespoons of porter to the batter. Instead of porter you can use stout or any other beer. Except for the addition of cardamom to the topping, I haven’t really changed this basic recipe more than made it work in both metric and imperial measurements.

Serve the rosettes as they are or together with vanilla ice cream. They are also delicious to  dip in chocolate sauce.

Struvor (Swedish Rosettes)
plenty to feed 6 to 8 for dessert or a special fika

batter
1 ¼ cup (300 ml) whole milk
2 eggs
pinch of salt
2 ½ tablespoon porter (or stout)
1 ¼ cup (6.25 oz, 180 g) all purpose flour

1 cup (250 ml) neutral vegetable oil such as sunflower oil, plus more if needed

topping
granulated sugar
ground cardamom, to your liking (or ground cinnamon)

Whisk together milk, eggs, salt, and porter. Sift in the flour and mix until a smooth batter.

In a saucepan, heat up the oil to at least 355°F (180°C).

Prepare a plate with enough sugar to dip the finished pastries in. Add the ground cardamom to your taste and mix well.

When the oil has reached the right temperature, dip the rosette iron into the hot oil and let it heat up for a few seconds, then dip it in the batter. The batter should just reach the top edge of the rosette (if the rosette is totally covered you will have a problem releasing the fried rosette from the iron).

Now dip the battered iron into the hot oil and let it fry until golden, less than a minute. Shake the iron or use a fork to loosen the rosette from the iron, let it fry a little longer to make sure both sides get a nice color. With a large tweezer or a slotted spoon, transfer the rosette to a paper towel to drain before dipping into the sugar & cardamom mixture. Repeat until all the batter is finished.

Best eaten fresh but leftover pastries can be stored, when completely cooled, in an airtight container. Leftover batter can be stored in the fridge for at least 1 to 2 days. The batter can also be used for thin pancakes.

NOTE: Rosette irons are available in many stores online. But you can also try to pipe the batter out with a bottle or plastic bag as when making funnel cake. 

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similar pastries around the world

Rosettes (US)
the Spruce

Tippaleipä (Finland)
similar to funnel cake but made with yeast – by Anna Billing

Funnel Cake(US)
made with baking powder and piped out – Smitten Kitchen 

Kokis (Sri Lanka)
with coconut milk, rice flour & turmeric 

Kuih Loyang (beehive cookies, Malaysia)
with coconut milk & rice flour – Lisa’s Lemony Kitchen 

Bunuelos de Aire (Mexico)
Abuela’s Kitchen

Kue kembang goyang (Indonesia)
made with coconut milk & rice flour – Borneo recipes

Filhós de forma (Portugal)
with orange – by Mónica Pereira da Silva

Frittelle croccanti Altoatesine (Italy)
(roughly translates to “South Tyrolean fritters”)

Churros (Spain)
Cannelle Vanille

Xuxos & Churros (Spain)
kokblog post

Krustader (Nordic)
made with a special type of iron that creates shell like cups – the shells can be filled with either sweet or savory fillings –
via Smagsløgene

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credits:
Animation & illustrations by Johanna Kindvall
Music in movie: Talkies by Huma-Huma

Celebrating with Cardamom Buns

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Today (October 4) is the kanelbullens dag (Cinnamon Bun Day) in Sweden. Swedes call these type of buns Vetebullar (wheat buns) which refers to the sweet yeast dough that can be baked plain or filled with different types of fillings such as cinnamon, almond paste, vanilla or cardamom. In my opinion, kardemummabullen (the cardamom bun) is the queen of Vetebullar and I think she (and the others) deserves to be celebrated on this day too.

Another good reason to bake these buns is that just a few days ago my book Fika turned 6 months old. The book is doing really well so I’m extra thrilled having some buns with you today.

To make it even more festive I have added some ground almonds to the cardamom filling. I also topping the buns with cardamom sugar, which made these buns super cardamom rich. If you want to minimize the sugar intake, you can top the buns with slivered almonds.

Happy bun day!

Kardemummabullar (Cardamom Buns)
Adapted from the recipe in the book Fika – The Art of Swedish Coffee Break by Anna Brones and Johanna Kindvall

makes 30 buns

dough
7 tablespoons (3.5 ounces, 99 grams) unsalted butter, room temperature
1½ cups (360 milliliters) milk
2 teaspoons active dry yeast
4½ cups (1 3/8 pounds, 638 grams) all-purpose flour
¼ cup (1.75 ounces, 50 grams) natural cane sugar
1½ teaspoons whole cardamom seeds, crushed with mortar & pestle
¼ teaspoon salt

filling
½ cup (2½ ounces, 70 grams) blanched almonds
7 tablespoons (3.5 ounces, 99 grams) unsalted butter, room temperature
½ cup (3.5 ounces, 99 grams) natural cane sugar
4 teaspoons whole cardamom seeds, crushed with mortar & pestle

topping
cardamom sugar:
4 1/2 teaspoons sugar mixed with 1 teaspoon cardamom powder.
or slivered almonds
1 egg, beaten

Prepare the dough: Melt the butter in a saucepan and stir in the milk. Heat until it’s warm to the touch (about 110°F/43°C). In a small bowl, dissolve the yeast in 3 tablespoons of the butter & milk mixture. Mix and let sit for a few minutes until bubbles form.

In a large bowl, mix together the flour, sugar, cardamom, and salt. Add the yeast along with the remaining butter & milk. Work together with a dough whisk or with your hands until you can shape the dough into a ball. Transfer dough to your countertop and knead for about 3 – 5 minutes until smooth and elastic. The dough should feel moist. If the dough feels sticky, add a little bit more flour. You can check if you are done kneading by making a slice into the dough with a sharp knife. If you see even small air bubbles throughout, you are done. Shape the dough into a ball and place it in a bowl. Cover with a tea towel and let it rise in a warm and draft-free place until almost double in size, about 1 hour.

Grease a baking sheet or place medium paper liners on the sheet.

For the filling, grind the blanched almonds in a food processor together with the sugar until just slightly coarse. Add the butter in small portions at the time. Lastly, add the crushed cardamom. Mix until an even spreadable paste.


When the dough has finished rising, take half of the dough and place it on a flat surface. Roll it out with a rolling pin to an 11 x 17 inch (28 x 43 cm) rectangle. Spread half of the filling on top of the rolled-out dough so that it covers the whole area (see diagram). Grab one of the edge of one of the long sides, fold it over so it meets the other side (like folding a paper on the middle, see illustrated diagram above). Slice the folded dough into 15 equal stripes. Stretch & twist every stripe and swirl them up to a nice bun (see video). Place each of them on a the greased baking sheet or in a paper liner. Repeat with the second half of the dough. Cover the buns with a clean tea towel and let rise for about 45 – 60 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 435°F (225°C).

When the buns have risen and you are ready to bake the buns, brush every bun with beaten egg and sprinkle each with cardamom sugar .

Bake for 8 – 10 minutes. Remove from the oven and cover with a tea towel to cool. Serve freshly baked or freeze when they are completely cooled.

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related links

• Kanelbullar (Cinnamon Buns) – kokblog recipe

• More bun shapes and a sneak peek into my kitchen over at Pantry Confidential

• How to twist Cinnamon Buns by Brontë Aurell, ScandiKitchen café. Video by Ryland Peters & Small

• want more?  Check out –> Fika – The Art of the Swedish Coffee Break. The cookbook is all illustrated by me, Johanna Kindvall and the recipes are created and developed together with Anna Brones. Published by Ten Speed Press. You can get the book here (see more shopping links in the left sidebar).

 

Pump up the Carrots! (by Sofi Meijling)

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One of the first times I met Sofi Meijling she treated me to a fantastic eel salad. It was Christmas eve and the salad was blended together with apples and dill. Since then we have become really good friends and she is somebody who I really enjoy having around in the kitchen. Sofi is that kind of person who could turn a catastrophic moment in the kitchen into a culinary adventure. She always has a great idea of how to turn a bland stew into something sensational.

Sofi, who used to be a graphic designer, works as a dramaturge (litterary adviser for theater plays) in both Malmö and Copenhagen. She is an excellent translator and is fluent in both Danish and English. She can also get around with some Russian. Impressive!

For some time Sofi lived without a normal kitchen and instead of getting a microwave she cooked her meals with an electric kettle and a soup thermos. She developed methods to steam different kinds of vegetables, boiled soft eggs and, according to Sofi, made the best couscous ever. She mastered the kettle and thermos so well that she once cooked an entire dinner for 4 adults and two kids.

I hope Sofi one day will start her own blog as I really enjoy her cooking and stories. Until then I’m happy to host her here.

Pump up the carrots!
by Sofi Meijling

This time of year I am getting a bit bored with the old swedes, parsnips and carrots. Roasting them in the oven, blending them in a hot lentil soup, mashing them into a golden puree is all nice and comforting, but now’s the time to wake them from the dead of winter and let the sunshine in! This delicious way of enjoying them raw suits any blend of roots, or carrots on their own. They will keep for several days, so you can make a large batch at a time. (Just make sure to use clean tools when you fish out the portion needed.)

Orange Cured Carrots
Fill a glass storage container with thinly sliced carrots. I recommend the use of a mandolin, if you are not particularly fond of slicing.
Use one orange per pound of roots to make the marinade. Choose organic oranges, since you want to use the zest, but tart or sweet variety doesn’t matter, the acidity will have to be balanced to taste anyway. Grate the zest off first, then press the juice from the halved fruits. Add double the amount of sunflower oil, a pinch of salt, a pinch of sucanat, a pinch of Korean chili flakes, a little ground black pepper, and a clove of garlic, cut in half but not crushed. Now add your apple cider vinegar, generously if your brand is full-bodied, a little less if the oranges were tart to begin with; the mix should be fresh and pleasantly sour.
Pour the marinade over the carrots and leave in the fridge overnight. Try it as a side dish with pork, with roman lettuce and rocket in a green salad, gently heated with lots of blue poppy seeds for your vegetarian buffet – or as I did last week: add their glory to a fish soup.

Waiting for spring Fish Soup
Sweat thinly sliced fennel, coarsely cut spring onion (or the green part of a leek) and a little thinly sliced garlic with olive oil. Season generously with salt, black pepper and some lovage. Set portion-cuts of haddock, pollock (saithe) or cod on top of the vegetables and add boiling water until just covered. Simmer gently for a few minutes. Add the oranged carrots when the fish is almost done, let them get warmed through but not softened. Sprinkle each serving with freshly chopped tarragon and/or cilantro.

(kokblog recommend to always check what fish to buy…
Seafood Watch (US) and WWFs fisk guide (Sweden)

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related links

Quick Pickled Cucumber

Äggakaga (Eggy Cake)

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Äggakaga (Eggy Cake) is a South Swedish thick pancake that’s baked on top of the stove. This cake is rich in eggs and baked with plenty of butter and pork fat (not for a slim diet). Its creamy and hearty and fills the stomach with pleasure and warmth. Traditionally the cake is served for both lunch or dinner with plenty of smoked bacon and lingonberry jam. As a lunch it will give you strength for a hard day’s work. For dinner it gives you comfort and a good night’s sleep. It will also be enjoyable as a brunch served with ale instead of mimosas.

My version is made with an addition of fresh rosemary and brown sugar is used instead of regular white sugar. The rosemary works really well with smoked bacon and adds a nice touch to this old traditional dish.

Äggakaga with Rosemary 
for 2 servings

4 eggs
1 2/3 cup (400 ml) milk
¾ cup (175 ml) regular flour
1 ½ tablespoon brown sugar
1 teaspoon salt

plenty of butter for frying

½ lb (250 g) smoked bacon, sliced
2 sprigs fresh rosemary, chopped

Crack the eggs in a bowl and whisk them together with the milk. Add salt and sugar. Sift the flour into the batter little by little to avoid lumps. The mixture is done when all is well mixed and has become a smooth batter. Let it rest on the counter while you fry the smoked bacon. Add the rosemary to the bacon when its almost done. Set the bacon aside and reserve the fat, as that will be use when cooking the pancake.

The pancake should be about 1- 1 ½” thick so a regular frying pan (about 10″-11″ wide) that can fit the whole batter will work perfectly. Heat up the pan  and melt a large lump of butter. Lower the heat to medium and pour in the batter. With a spatula, scrape the bottom and move the firm batter into the middle of the pan to prevent the mixture being burnt. Continue until all batter is firm. Turn the cake by covering the pan with a plate before turning. Add some more butter if necessary before sliding the cake onto the pan again, raise the temperature slightly and cook until the cake has browned underneath. Turn one more time. This time add the bacon fat before sliding the cake onto the pan. The cake is done when it’s golden brown on both sides.

Top the cake with the fried Rosemary bacon and enjoy with lingonberry (or cranberry jam). Best served with either milk or beer.

This recipe was first published at Honest Cooking, 26 January 2012.