Daring Bakers are all about flourless

he February 2009 challenge is hosted by Wendy of WMPE's blog and Dharm of Dad ~ Baker & Chef. We have chosen a Chocolate Valentino cake by Chef Wan; a Vanilla Ice Cream recipe from Dharm and a Vanilla Ice Cream recipe from Wendy as the challenge.

Flourless chocolate cake is a very dense dessert, consisting of just three ingredients - chocolate, eggs and butter. I frequently make one by Rose Levy Berenbaum which also has a little bit of sugar, and uses a different method. I have to say that I much prefer that one, and won't be making this one again, but it was fun to compare them.

For this challenge, I decided to use up some of the chocolate I already had. Since it was such an intensely chocolate cake, I decided that slightly spiced chocolate might be perfect. So, here's what I ended up using:

90 g Organic Meltdown Indian Spices
100 g Green & Black Maya Gold
100 g Green & Black 70%
100 g Green & Black 85%
60 g Green & Black Milk

I quickly decided to take advantage of the option to not make an ice cream. It's not that I don't like ice cream, or am scared of making my own - oh no, I love it! However, I don't really like ice cream with cake. I much prefer ice cream on its own, and cake with whipped cream. So, I decided to serve this cake with raspberry whipped cream. The raspberries worked really, really well with the subtle spicing in the cake. However, the cake itself was too chocolatey, too bitter and too dry.

The instructions said to bake the cake until the internal temperature was 60°C and suggested 25 minutes. Well, after 18, mine was at 64°C so I took it out at that point. This resulted in, sadly, a very dry cake. I wish I had used a thermometer from the beginning, but I didn't think the timing would be *so* off. Oh well - lesson learned!



Do go to the blogroll or the forums and check out what everyone else made!

Tandoori Tofu

I saw this over on Mango Power Girl: Tandoori Tofu Kebabs

Who says only meat eaters have fun barbecuing?! These Tandoori Tofu Kebabs are so flavorful and easy to make that even tandoori meat lovers will happily eat them!


I used:
1 block extra-firm tofu, drained and cubed
1 cup plain yogurt
1 tablespoon chana flour
1 tablespoon freshly grated ginger
1 tablespoon freshly grated garlic
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 teaspoon garam masala
1 teaspoon dhana-jeeru powder (a blend of ground cumin and coriander seeds)
1/2 teaspoon red chili powder
1/2 teaspoon turmeric
1/8 teaspoon ground cardamom
salt to taste
rock salt and lemon to garnish

Trying this one now, because she's right, why SHOULD only carnivores get to have barbequed yum?

I'm using regular flour because I can't see buying a whole package of chickpea flour for a spoonful, and I'm also just adding cumin and coriander, instead of dhana-jeeru powder.

Unrelated: I think extra-firm tofu and tofu skins are delicious, and I also like super-soft tofu in smoothies. But everything in the middle is just weirdly squishy and not something I like.

Via Mango Power Girl: Tandoori Tofu Kebabs.

Boulangerie Frantzen/Lindeberg

Frantzen/Lindeberg is a really exciting restaurant, serving a "white menu" with a long list of ingredients but they won't tell you in advance exactly what you're getting. I have reservations there in a few days time, so I'll report back on that! However, they just opened a small bakery as well, and I had lunch there with Pia a few weeks ago. I had a baguette with cheese, ham, tomato, dijon mustard and raw red onions, and it was just perfect. For dessert, I tried a cardamom bun which was also really good but maybe a little bit on the over-baked side for my liking. The coffee was however pretty weird, and tasted burnt. Next time I'll go for tea, or hot chocolate. But I'll definitely go again, for the amazing, wonderful bread!


Pia's soup

The atmosphere is nice too - it's a tiny hole in the wall, across the street from the restaurant, and the cooks constantly run back and forth to pick things up. They also serve a soup and salad every day, so you can have lunch there even if you're in the mood for something more than a sandwich. And of course, you can buy bread or baked goods to take home.

Frantzen/Lindeberg Boulangerie
Lilla Nygatan 16
Stockholm (Old Town)

Cabbage Ground Beef Stew

This is one of those weekday dishes that sound fairly boring, and it's not much to look at. However, it's really good, and it should have a nice balance between sweet, salty and slightly sour. Cabbage is still very much in season, so buy a nice big head and try to use it up in a few days. It has lots of vitamin C, and it's good in a whole lot of dishes. Here are some of my favorite ways to use it:


Chicken Cabbage Salad with Feta Cheese
Lime Jalapeño Slaw with Peanuts
Chèvre Lemon Cabbage
and obviously - Cole Slaw.

Cabbage Ground Beef Stew
Serves 4

500 g ground beef
1 onion, medium size
2 garlic cloves
1 leek
400 g cabbage
oil, for frying
2-3 tbsp soy sauce
2-3 balsamic vinegar
1-2 tbsp brown sugar
salt, pepper

Chop onion and garlic, and slice the leek and cabbage finely. Fry the beef, garlic, leek and onion in a heavy pan with a little bit of oil. After a few minutes, add the cabbage and leave to fry for five more minutes or so. Add soy sauce, vinegar and sugar, and let it cook for five minutes. Season to taste, and serve - it's good on its own or with hot sauce, but for more traditional Swedish flavors, serve it with boiled potatoes and lingonberries.

Recipe in Swedish:
Kål- och köttfärsgryta

New flavor from Ben & Jerry

This week is all about yummy stuff, as you can see. Today, I recieved an advance sample of Ben & Jerry's new flavor here in Sweden: Chocolate Macadamia. I got an e-mail from one of my favorite PR contacts, who said it was due to launch next week. The craving hit immediately, so when she offered to send me some... well, it was a done deal.

And I have to say, this might be one of my favorite flavors ever from B&J! (I also really like Cherry Garcia and Chunky Monkey, but they tend to be a little bit gritty... and I don't like the fake "chocolatey pieces" that much.) I normally don't go for chocolate ice cream, but this one has chocolate and vanilla swirled together which makes the chocolate a lot less intense, and much smoother and softer. And then it has chocolate-covered macadamias. And this is just yummy beyond belief. I really love macadamias - they're so tender and flaky, due to their outrageously high fat content. The chocolate these are covered in - well, it doesn't seem to be straight up chocolate, it's more melting and a little bit salty, but I don't complain at all. It's delicious.

Finally!

Well, I *was* going to write that today is finally the official day to eat the semla - this basic yeasted bun filled with almond paste and whipped cream. It's been sold all over Sweden since christmas, but today is really "the day". The photos show a lovely little homemade mini-semla by Dagmar, which was absolutely delicious. She also has a recipe if you want to try this yourself.



However, the big news in Sweden today is that we're going to have a royal wedding! Our crown princess, Victoria, finally got officially engaged to her long-time boyfriend who will now be called Prince Daniel. Despite being a modern democracy, many Swedes are absolutely besotted with our royal family and thus very excited about this. (Me, not so much - I'd prefer a republic!)

Broken Spoke Saloons Hang out!

Jay Allen, Michael Lichtor and Whiley E Sunglasses spent time having a drink at Santiago's! Michael Lichter asked if Santiago's always went out of their way to make people feel so at home with the table side guakamola!!

Alive and sizzling!

Friends of Santiago's are always close by!

New food mag: Jamie

I was pretty excited to see a new food mag on the shelves - Jamie. Seems Jamie Oliver has expanded his ever-growing empire to include a magazine! And first impression..? Well, a bit so-so I'm sorry to say. For me, it didn't hold a whole lot of inspiration, but then again I already have all of Jamie's books and am fairly jaded by food magazines in general. It seems to have an awful lot of plugging for his own series of china, or spices. I'll give this a few more issues before deciding, though. Has anyone else read it? What did you think?

Mexican fast-food in Stockholm!

I've been wanting a good mexican fast-food place in Sweden for a very long time. In fact, ever since I was introduced to Taco Bell in California. (Yes, yes, I know it might not be a particular "good" fast-food place but hey, I like it.) Sweden does however have Taco Bar, and that's all. And that sucks. Their food is just... not good. At all.



So. Imagine my delight when I got an e-mail from Einar Örn Einarsson, an Icelander now starting up Serrano in Stockholm. Serrano is a fast-food concept from Iceland, which is very successful there, and they just opened the first Swedish restaurant in Vällingby which is one of the Stockholm suburbs.



I haven't been able to go yet, but I promise to tell you as soon as I do. Einar has given me a bunch of free coupons though, and I'd love to share them with you - so, if you want to go eat at Serrano, just leave a comment below (making sure you have a valid e-mail address, or I won't be able to contact you for your address) and the first ten of you to do so will each reciece two coupons each, good for a burrito or a quesadilla off the menu.



All photos are published with permission of Serrano restaurant.

Another semla

The official day is February 24, but I hope I can cram in a few more semlas before then. This one, with a great latte in that pretty green glass, was served at Hurry Curry which is a nice little place to have coffee or lunch in central Stockholm.

Hurry Curry
Slöjdgatan 11
Stockholm

The best ever: Blueberry Cornmeal Muffins

Let me start by saying I don't like muffins much. I like making them, because they're quick, easy, and everyone else loves them. I just don't, generally, like eating them.

Generally. There are exceptions. And these ones? They are great. Absolutely brilliant, in fact. I found them via Debbie at Words To Eat By and followed the recipe fairly closely. I'll make many variations in the future though - blueberry are great, but so would chocolate chips, raspberries, bananas & walnuts or apple/cinnamon be. I plan on making them all. What makes these so special then? Definitely the combination of cornmeal and flour - the cornmeal makes them crunchy and golden, and the flour keeps them fluffy. Perfection!

And I'm very grateful that I have a fair amount of cornmeal stored away - because it's not sold in Sweden. You can use polenta instead, as finely ground as possible. And although I haven't tried it myself, you could soak the polenta in some of the milk beforehand, to make it softer and less crunchy. But you'll have to experiment on your own...

Blueberry Cornmeal Muffins
makes 15

250 ml all-purpose flour
250 ml cornmeal
1 tbsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
110 g butter, melted
1 egg
3-4 tbsp honey
75 g sugar
180 ml milk
200 g frozen (or fresh) blueberries

Mix flour, cornmeal, baking powder and salt in a bowl. In another bowl, beat the egg with the butter, honey, sugar and milk. Add this to the dry ingredients, and stir as little as possible to just combine the ingredients. Fold in the blueberries. Divide into normal-sized muffin cups, and bake at 200°C for 15-18 minutes. They should look golden, and feel springy to the touch. If you insert a toothpick into the middle of one, it should come out mostly clean. Cool on a rack, and enjoy!

Recipe in Swedish:
Blåbärsmuffins med majsgryn

A few new cookbooks on my shelves...

I bought three cookbooks at the end of last year, and they're really nice - I have to tell you about them. One is by Gordon Ramsay's wife, Tana Ramsay. I have some of Gordon's books but I have to tell you I vastly prefer Tana's. Gordon's are nice, but.. they just don't inspire me to get into the kitchen and cook! Tana does though - this book is called "Home Made" and is all about family food. This has the recipes she really uses for her kids - or at least it feels that way. I've tried several things already, including a fabulous chicken soup that I will tell you about soon.



Next, Jamie Oliver's new creation, "Jamie's Ministry of food". (I'm sure some of you have already seen the first few episodes of this as it's also a new tv-show.) The idea here is to get people to cook - people who generally don't, who buys take-out or frozen meals on a regular basis, and people who just never learned how to make things from scratch. Jamie wants you to learn a few recipes from each section of the book, and then teach your friends. Well, I probably won't follow his instructions to the letter, but it's a neat idea and as usual, I do love his recipes. I've tried two of his Indian curries so far and they both turned out really good. One, in fact, was so successful I'm aching to make it again!



Finally, a tiny thing I picked up... it's not available in English, unfortunately: "Drinks for when you're pregnant", or "Drinkar för gravida" is the title, and it's all about exciting and fancy cocktails and drinks. Sans alcohol, of course. Sweden has a very strict recommendation of drinking absolutely zero alcohol while pregnant, so a book like this can really become popular here. I love it for the fun ideas, and the beautiful photos. And when you're pregnant - well, you don't really want to be sipping boring soft drinks or mineral water all the time, especially not if you socialize a lot. Much better to have "mamatinis" or "baby bellinis"!

Potato Lentil Soup

It's been ages since I cooked anything that can't be described as quick and simple, and well, this soup is another one of those weekday winners. I'm always dead tired when I get home nowadays, and this is about at much cooking energy as I can muster. But hey, it's not too bad, because there's a lot of good things that can be made with a few ingredients and a little time. This soup takes no more than 30 minutes - or less if you're handy with a peeler and knife - and it can easily be scaled up to feed more people.

I don't give any measurements for the spices, because there's just no way of knowing what you prefer - start with a little bit of each, taste it and go from there. Trust your own palate - that's really the only way to cook, because who's to say what's right or wrong when it comes to taste..?

Potato Lentil Soup
Serves 2, generously

2 medium potatoes, diced
1 onion, finely diced
2 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
150 ml red lentils
750 ml water
Salt
lemon juice
cayenne pepper
Garam masala
cumin
dried chili
sugar

Topping
50 g bacon, diced
1 small yellow bellpepper, diced

Start by prepping everything. Combine potatoes, onion, garlic, red lentils and water in a saucepan, bring to boil and let simmer, covered, until the potatoes and lentils are soft. It'll take about 15-20 minutes.

At this point, you can mash some of the potato against the side of the saucepan for a mushier soup, or even use a blender to make it completely smooth. (In which case you're going to need to add some water.)

Season with salt, some squeezed lemon juice, cayenne pepper, garam masala, cumin, chili and a pinch of sugar. Add more if you want a spicier soup, or use a light touch if you prefer.

Meanwhile, fry the bacon until crispy and the pepper for just a minute or two. Serve the soup with the toppings.

Recipe in Swedish:
Potatis- och linssoppa

Dinner at Smak på Restaurangen

Ignore my coffee cup, but do look at the very pretty tables with all kinds of spices, berries and nuts.

We finally managed to go for dinner at "Smak på Restaurangen", one of Stockholm's most talked-about restaurants. Their idea is quite unique. They have a menu of 20 dishes (5 of them are desserts), and you get to choose three, five or seven to make your own tasting menu. We chose seven courses, which is about the same amount as a normal three-course dinner. The dishes are all named after just one flavor, and built around that. At least in theory - we felt that some of the flavors were a bit mis-named. Everything was pretty good, but I can't say that anything really stood out and was all that memorable. The whole experience was good though, and we had a fun night out. The lighting is pretty dim so some of the photos are really blurry - sorry about that.


My first flavour: "Citron" (lemon) - a fluffy blini with lemon cream and bleak roe.


Per's first flavour: "Dill" - shrimp in some kind of emulsion with foam and a crispy bread slice


My second flavour: "Koriander" - a flavorful coriander broth with an avocado terrine and very tasty chorizo.


Per's second flavour: "Getost" (Goat's Cheese) - a goat cheese cream with crispy brioche, pecan nuts and I think some crispy ham was involved too.


My third flavour: "Pimiento" - fried fluffy crab balls with mojo rojo (and something that looked like half a yellow cherry tomato but was very strongly tasting of lime)


Per's third flavour: "Kapris" (capers) - foie gras with beets


My fourth flavour: "ras al hanout" - lamb in fried phyllo dough packages with a spicy dipping sauce and minty cucumber yogurt



Per's fourth flavour "salvia" (sage) - lamb saltimbocca


Our fifth flavour: "sesam" - delicious beef with a sesame dipping sauce


Our sixth flavour: "stjärnanis" (star anise) - a yummy infused crème brulée and a citrus salad (didn't go well together but both were good)


My seventh flavour: "kaffe" (coffee) - chocolate cake with marinated cherries, chocolate sauce and a lovely coffee ice cream


Per's seventh flavour: "kardemumma" (cardamom) - baked apple, cake crumbs, calvados sorbet and crème anglaise

Smak på Restaurangen
Oxtorgsgatan 14
Stockholm

Water Fountain at National Palace Museum

This week we perused the National Palace Museum for our Sunday afternoon activity. It contained documents and other items from the royal family. As you can see, we were among the few people there: I loved the water machines with the paper cup dispensers:

The "cup" was actually a two dimensional envelope that can be filled with water. Trouble is, I had to refill it ten times to satisfy myself!

My Valentine's Day

Sweets for... me.

I had a wonderful Valentine's Day. We mostly stayed in, cuddled up on the sofa, and watched very many episodes of Veronica Mars. Excellent! And of course we had great food, too...


Starter was a toast with avocado, Skagen salad with fresh shrimp and lemon


Main course: beef with Mascarpone Pine Nut risotto and sherry-vinegared sugar snap peas


And finally raspberries marinated in cherry syrup with vanilla ice cream and crushed meringues

Lost Cakes

I love Lost. And cake. So a Lost cake is all kinds of awesome, even if no one invited me to the party.

I don't know if I could munch on a mini Hurley or Sayid, though.

Via Dispatches from the Island.

Pork and mushroom

Another super-improvised dish for which I can't remember exactly what I did. I'm sure it was something like this:

Fry a bunch of sliced mushrooms. Set aside. Fry thin slices of pork tenderloin until lightly browned, and combine with the mushrooms. Add a carton (250 ml) of single cream (or go for full-fat if you're in the mood) and any flavorings you might think of - say, some minced garlic, a few spoonfuls of barbecue sauce, maybe some soy sauce... And serve with rice, and a nice salad. Nothing complicated about it - just quick and easy food that'll do you good.