Romaine Lettuce with Peanut Dressing

I know, this is a not so great photo, but don't let that deter you from making this salad. Because it's special. It really, really is. In that I could eat a truckload of this. And nothing else. It's just so very tasty. If that's not enough, how about this - it takes about two minutes to make. I promise.

This one is also from Pink - definitely one of my favorite books this season.

Romaine Lettuce with Peanut Dressing
Serves 2

1 head of romaine lettuce
1/2 clove of garlic, minced
1/2 tsp freshly squeezed lemon juice
1,5 tbsp brown sugar
1/2 tsp salt
3-4 tbsp peanut butter
2-4 tbsp water

Whisk all the ingredients for the dressing. Rinse the lettuce and tear it into nice chunks. Drizzle with the dressing. And if you're feeling spicy, add some finely chopped fresh chile!

Recipe in Swedish:
Romansallad med jordnötsdressing

Chanterelle risotto

It's that time of year again! Chanterelles are everywhere, although it's apparently not a great mushroom year. I do my picking at the grocery store rather than in the woods, and my favorite thing to make is this chanterelle risotto. I've told you about it before, but it's been a while! Here's the recipe as I made it last time, slightly different, but not much, from the old one.

Chanterelle Risotto
Serves two, generously

olive oil
butter
150 g arborio rice
125 ml white wine
1 litre of chicken stock (or vegetable stock)
1 yellow onion, diced
1 clove of garlic, minced
200 g golden chanterelles
handful of parmesan

Fry the golden chanterelles in a pat of butter until some of the moisture is evaporated. Set aside. Start the actual risotto by frying the onion and garlic in a little bit of oil (or butter, if you prefer). Bring the stock to a boil. Add the rice to the onion, and let fry for a couple of minutes, until lightly browned. Add the wine, and stir while it all evaporates.

Then proceed as usual, adding the stock one ladle at a time. Stir more or less constantly, and let the stock slowly melt into the rice. As soon as it looks dry, add more stock. Keep tasting - it'll take about 20 minutes. You might not use all the stock, and you might need more (just use hot water). It's impossible to tell in a recipe, really.

When it's pretty much done, add the golden chanterelles. Finally, stir in the parmesan, and if needed add salt, pepper, honey or lemon juice if you want it more salty, peppery, sweet or sour. All up to you!

Recipe in Swedish:
Kantarellrisotto

Broad Bean Bacon Pasta

I know, I know. Broad beans again? Well, since this is really the only bean I enjoy, I have to say.. yes. Broad beans. Again. Really. It's too bad that the season is pretty much over. I have some frozen ones still in the freezer, but other than that, it's looking a bit grim.

Anyway. This pasta is another delicious way to eat broad beans. You could substitute some bright green peas if you'd like - that's be really good too. I wouldn't use any other beans though - or hey, possibly some edamame.

Broad Bean Bacon Pasta
Serves 4

300 g tagliatelle pasta
70 g bacon, diced
1 onion, diced
800 g fresh broad beans (unpodded weight)
100 g mangetout or sugar snap peas
70 g blue cheese
200 ml crème fraîche
black pepper

Boil the pasta in plenty of salted water. Fry the bacon and the onion. Pod and peel the broad beans, and either add directly to the bacon, or blanch briefly in boiling water. (Some people get tummy aches from uncooked beans.) Sliver the mangetouts and add them as well. Crumble in the blue cheese, and stir in the crème fraîche. Finish with plenty of black pepper, and stir in the cooked pasta. Enjoy!

Recipe in Swedish:
Pasta med bondbönor och bacon

Broad Beans & Serrano

Not exactly cooking - but mix lightly cooked broad beans, podded and peeled, with some shallots, and garlic in some olive oil and sherry vinegar. Add strips of serrano ham. Eat with some great bread, and it'll be one of the best quick meals you'll ever have. At least that's my opinion.

Cooksister Jeanne has more detailed instructions. I added the sherry vinegar to her recipe, and used a little less oil, but otherwise, pretty much the same thing. Very delicious!

Weekend Cat Blogging - Gisele

I don't show photos of Gisele very often. She's Glinda's full sister, and while we still technically own her, she lives with my aunt. And, she is, hopefully hopefully hopefully pregnant! We're not completely sure - but with some luck, she'll give beautiful babies in a few weeks time.

We're hoping for a mini-Edith.

Baked Apple

I feel that sometimes we forget the simple things in life. And in cooking. Often, there's a rush, a strain to always experience new things, exciting things, unusual things. But let's not forget that sometimes, simple and old-fashioned can be just as good. Or even better.

This simple baked apple makes a wonderful dessert on a cold day. Serve it with cold vanilla sauce, or ice cream.

Baked Apple

1 apple, peeled and cored
1-2 tsp butter
1-2 tbsp almonds, chopped
2-3 tsp spice sugar (or use a mix of cinnamon and sugar if you don't have any spice sugar at hand. But you *should* make some!)

Place the apple in a small oven-proof dish. (I use ramekins from Le Creuset.) Push butter and almonds into the hole. Top with the rest of the almonds, if you like me can't fit them all inside. Sprinkle with spice sugar. Bake at 175°C for about 30 minutes, or until the apple is soft.

Recipe in Swedish:
Ugnsbakat äpple

Cookbook Watch - a little bit of this, a little bit of that...

I have four very different books to tell you about. Very, very, very different. From each other, that is. And, from the rest of the market, too. First, a book by Swedish food enthusiast (and blogger!) Lisa Förare Winbladh. It's called Ditt Nya Skafferi (="Your new cupboard")and it's published by Damm.

This is a truly beautiful book for those who love food, but it's not for the faint of heart. It contains tons of ingredients you've never heard of before (well, at least new to me!), and wonderful southeast asian-inspired recipes. And, what makes this truly different is Lisa's insightful advice and knowledge about all of this. She searches for the genuinely best, and gives you advice on what dates to use and why, what goji berries really are and why you should use them, and that dried shrimps can be kept in the freezer, to keep the scary smell away until you want to use them.

I was lucky enough to be invited to the release party, and thus lucky enough to taste some of the wonderful food. Well, I was also a recipe tester (albeit a not very good one, as I have a hard time sticking to a recipe without making modifications!) and have posted pictures of some of the food that I've made here here and here. So what's the first thing I'll make? Well, I think it'll have to be Bak Kut Te - a brothy, spicy, warming soup. And for dessert, brownies with orange blossom water and pistachios!



Enough with the books in Swedish, please! Yes, I know - many of you don't speak Swedish and are not so interested in the Swedish cookbook scene. Sorry. Well, this one is for you then! It's called The New Art of Japanese Cooking by Chef Masaharu Morimoto (published by Dorling Kindersley). Japanese food? Ah, sushi? And tempura? That's it, right? No. It's not. It's so much more. And this book really showcases that. It's playful, it's inspiring and it's fun. And it's, I'm sure, delicious.

Me, I'm dying to make gyozas with bacon-cream reduction. How tasty is that?! Or frozen lettuce with a caesar salad dressing?! Well, it's something I've definitely not thought about before, and that's why this book is so interesting. Chef Morimoto is well known as a celebrity chef, as he is Japanese Iron Chef on Iron Chef America. And he has restaurants all over the world. And now, a cookbook. That you should have, if you're at all interested in Japanese food, or at least in modern, playful cooking.



Not feeling up to all that complicated cooking? Well, that's ok. This little book is called Köp Hem Fem (="Buy Five") and it's a book from Allt Om Mat which is also one of Sweden's largest food magazines. (Published by Prisma.) Each and every recipe here contains no more than five ingredients (apart from certain cupboard staples) and everything is easy to find in your local supermarket. No need for specialty shopping here!

This book is certainly not a great read, like the others I've mentioned. It's nothing to leisurely leaf through and dream about all the food - but it's practical, and that's nice too. It has fast, simple every day recipes and that can be very good when you're not particularly inspired to "play in the kitchen" and just want something good to eat.

I also really appriciate that Allt Om Mat has a test kitchen, and really works through each and every recipe to make sure it can be replicated at home. That's good, because it means you can be confident about cooking. I'd say that this is the perfect book if you want to venture into more cooking, and adding a few easy dishes to your repertoire.



Finally, a book that I've mentioned briefly. It's written by my friend Kinna Jonsson and her mother, and the graphic design is made by Kinna's sister. The recipes are from five generations of women in their family, and I love that this is a real family project. But more than that, I love that it's a great book. It has all kinds of bread, cookies and cakes - each one sounding more delicious than the next! I haven't baked from it yet, but I've tasted some of the goodies from it and they're all super. So - this book is the perfect christmas present for someone who enjoys baking, and who's excited about traditional Swedish recipes. You can order it here, or find it in select bookstores.