From NL to SE
Swedish Kitchen
Cinnamon Buns - Kanelbullar

Yields:About 40 buns

  • 3 cubes fresh yeast or 3 packages active dry yeast
  • 1 teaspoon sugar
  • 7 Tablespoons unsalted butter
  • 2 and 1/4 cups milk
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 3/8 cup sugar
  • 5 to 6 cups unbleached all-purpose white flour
    Filling:
  • 2 to 3 Tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
  • 4 Tablespoons sugar
  • 1 to 3 teaspoons cinnamon or cardamom
  • 1 egg, beaten
  • Pearl sugar (optional garnish)
1. In the bottom of a large bowl, stir together the yeast and 1 teaspoon sugar. In a 2-quart pot, melt the butter over low heat. Let cool slightly, then pour in the cold milk. Warm or cool the butter-milk mixture until it is ?nger warm?r about 98 degrees Fahrenheit. Pour a little of the liquid onto the yeast, stir once and let rest 5 minutes.

2. Stir in the rest of the warm liquid, the salt, sugar and nearly all of the flour. Gather the dough into a ball and knead until smooth and shiny, about 5 to 10 minutes. Place the dough in the bottom of a bowl, cover with a clean dry dishtowel, and set in a warm draft-free place to rise until nearly double in size, about 30 minutes.

3. Turn the dough out onto a floured surface and knead again until smooth and shiny. Divide the dough into two parts. Roll each part out into a rectangle about 1/4-inch thick.

4. Spread half of the softened butter over each rectangle. Stir together the 4 Tablespoons sugar and the cinnamon or cardamom and spread half of the mixture on each rectangle. Roll the rectangle up and cut into 1/2-inch thick slices. Place the slices on a cookie sheet (greased or covered in parchment paper), cover with a clean dry dishtowel and let rise in a warm draft-free place for about 30 minutes.

5. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit. Brush the tops of the buns with the beaten egg and sprinkle with pearl sugar. Bake buns in the center of the oven until golden brown, about 5 to 10 minutes. Cool on a rack.

Gravlax (Swedish Sugar and Salt Cured Salmon)

This may be Sweden's best know culinary export. Serve this delicacy sliced paper thin with brown bread and Mustard Dill sauce, or make it part of a Smorgasbord.

    Ingridients are for 4 persons
  • 600 g center cut salmon fillets (approximately 1 pound each, with skin left on)
  • 100 ml sugar
  • 50 ml coarse salt
  • 10 coarsely crushed white peppercorns
  • 1 bunch dill
1. Remove any small bones from the fillets with a pair of tweezers or needle-nosed pliers.
2. Mix the sugar, salt and pepper in a bowl.
3. Cover the bottom of a baking dish with 1/3 the dill and rub half of the sugar-salt mixture into the first fillet, on both sides, and lay it skin side down on top of the dill.
4. Cover with 1/3 of dill.
5. Prepare the other salmon fillet in the same way, and cover with the remaining fillet, skin side up, with the remaining dill on top.
6. Cover in plastic wrap, place a cutting board with some heavy weights on top and marinate in the refrigerator for 24 hours.
7. Remove from plastic wrap and discard accumulated juices.
8. Rewrap and refrigerate another 24- 48 hours.
9. Scrape off the marinade and slice paper thin.

Salted herring - "Inlagd sill"

  • 4 to 6 fillets of salt herring
  • 1½ dl(3/4 cup) sugar
  • 1 dl (½ cup) Swedish spirit vinegar
  • 2 dl (about 1 cup) water
  • 5 tsp. allspice
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 1 to 2 red onions
  • sliced dill sprigs

Soak the herring in cold water for 10 to 12 hours, or follow the directions on the package. Drain them. Mix the sugar, vinegar and water in a separate bowl. Add the allspice, bay leaf and onion. Pour the dressing over the herring and refrigerate for 2 hours. Cut the herring in 1 cm- thick slices, cover with dressing and garnish with red onion rings and dill sprigs.

Variation: Instead of allspice, add 1 teaspoon whole cloves and 5 crushed white peppercorns to the dressing. Bring to a boil, let cool and pour over the herring reserving about ½ dl. Refrigerate for at least two hours. Slice the herring and place in serving dish. Add the remaining dressing and garnish with red onion rings, cloves and dill.

Meatballs - "Köttbullar"

  • 1 dl (½ cup) fine dry bread crumbs
  • 1 dl (½ cup) light cream
  • 1 dl (½ cup) water
  • 200 g (7 oz.) ground beef
  • 200 g (7 oz.) ground lean pork
  • 1½ tsp. salt
  • ½ tsp. ground allspice
  • 2 tbl grated yellow onion
  • (and/or 2 crushed garlic cloves)
  • 1 egg, beaten
  • 3 tbl margarine or butter

Mix the bread crumbs, cream and water; set aside for 5 minutes. Work together the beef, pork, salt, allspice and onion. Gradually add the bread crumbs, then the egg. Blend well and fry a sample to test the seasoning. Shape into balls. Make large meatballs to be served for dinner or small meatballs for the smörgåsbord. Heat part of the margarine or butter in a skillet. Add 10 to 15 meatballs. Fry over moderate heat until the meatballs are beautifully brown and cooked through. Transfer to a serving dish and keep hot while frying the remaining meatballs. Serve with boiled potatoes, lingonberry preserve and a tossed salad.

Swedish Meatballs - Köttbullar
Unlike the large meatballs in sweet and sour sauce genuine köttbullar are small meatballs served with alone or with a thin pan gravy and traditionally accompanied by tart, red lingonberries or lingonberry preserves.

Serves 4 to 6; Yields two to three dozen meatballs

  • 1/3 cup finely-ground plain breadcrumbs
  • 1/3 cup milk (skim, okay)
  • 1 small yellow onion
  • 1 egg (or egg white)
  • 1 and 1/3 pounds lean ground beef
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/8 teaspoon pepper
  • 1/4 teaspoon allspice
  • 1 tablespoon butter and 1 tablespoon canola oil or cooking oil spray
    For pan gravy:
  • Butter as needed, up to 1 tablespoon
  • 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
  • 1 cup beef stock
Lingonberry preserves, optional (Red currant preserves or whole-berry cranberry sauce can be substituted)

1. Soak bread crumbs in milk for 5 to10 minutes until the liquid is absorbed. Peel and quarter onion. Finely dice onion in a food processor. Add the egg, meat, soaked bread crumbs and seasonings. Pulse until thoroughly blended.

2. Shape meat mixture into small balls, less than an inch in diameter; if the mixture sticks to your hands, wet them with cold water. Heat the frying pan and add butter and oil. Saute meatballs in 2 or 3 batches, shaking pan frequently to keep meatballs from sticking. Drain on paper towels and keep warm.

3. Alternatively, meatballs can be placed on a greased or non-stick broiler pan or rimmed cookie sheet. Broil for several minutes, then drain on paper towels. Use another, deeper pan for gravy.

4. To make the pan gravy, scrape off and discard any browned bits of meat that may be sticking to pan after the meatballs are done. (If less than 1 Tablespoon fat remaining in pan, add butter to compensate.) Add the flour, stirring with a fork until brown. Quickly add stock and bring to a boil, stirring constantly with a fork or whisk, until gravy thickens. Remove from heat and serve immediately with the meatballs.

Ginger Snaps - "Pepparkakor"

Makes about 50 cookies
  • 3 dl (1½ cups) syrup
  • 4 dl (1 & 3/4 cups) sugar
  • 1½ tablespoons ginger
  • 1½ tablespoons cinnamon
  • 1 tablespoon cloves
  • 350 g (12 oz.) margarine or butter
  • 3 dl (1½ cups) whipped cream
  • about 2½ litre or 1½ kg (3lb. 5 oz.) flour
  • 1 tablespoon baking soda

Stir the syrup with sugar, spices and margarine until well mixed. Whip the cream till frothy and stir into the batter, a little at a time. Dissolve the baking soda in a little water and add together with part of the flour. Cover the dough which should be quite firm, let stand until the following day. Knead the dough, adding the remaining flour. Roll out a small part and bake a test cookie in a 175 to 200 C oven. If the cookie spreads, add a little more flour to the dough. Roll out the dough and cut with cookie cutters into hearts, stars, pigs etc. Let the cookies cool on the cookie sheet after baking. The cookies may be decorated with white frosting made of sifted powdered sugar stirred with egg white and a few drops vinegar or lemon juice to a thick smooth paste.

More information

Swedish culinary classics – recipes with history and originality
www.swedishkitchen.com
Recipezaar - Swedish Recipes
zweedse-keuken.nl
recipesource swedish
Swedish Restaurants
Antwerpen: Absoluut Zweeds
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Malin & Guido