Coconut Ice Cream with Saffron

It’s been a while since I’ve made Ice Cream, and yes I know it’s in the dead of winter, but I just really had a desire to make Ice Cream. I wanted it be a coconut flavor since that is one of Joe’s (my husband) favorite flavors. Then I came across this exotic Coconut with Saffron Ice Cream on David Lebovitz’s food blog. I literally heard it calling my name and I could hardly wait to get started on making it.

To make the Ice cream was a breeze. Throw the ingredients together, simmer and then cool. The following day, into the ice cream maker and it was done within 10 minutes. The color is a brilliant yellow color with beautiful tiny stands of red saffron (I am not sure my photos did the saffron stands justice). And the taste…well the taste is very interesting. Joe and I kept tasting it over and over again to try to fully comprehend the flavor. Joe was disappointed because the coconut flavor was lost against the saffron. I kinda like the saffron flavor. Who knew that saffron had so much flavor in it? I’ve had saffron before but I have never tasted it like this. So when David Lebovitz says “a scant” 1/2 teaspoon saffron (which is difficult to measure out), don’t get carried away with the saffron because it is intense, in this beautiful yellow Ice Cream.

Ingredients:

2/3 cup heavy cream (160 ml)

1 cup coconut milk (250 ml)

1/4 cup sugar

scant 1/2 teaspoon saffron threads

Directions:

Add all ingredients to a small sauce pan and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer gently for another 10 minutes stirring occasionally. Pour mixture into a sealed Tupperware and allow to cool completely.

Once chilled, pour mixture into your ice cream maker and run according to the manufacturer’s directions. Once churned, serve immediately or place in a sealed container and freeze. Enjoy!

Source: David Lebovitz

Penne Pasta with Shrimp

I had a craving for pasta and shrimp but didn’t want Shrimp Scampi since we had that not too long ago. Then i remembered this pasta dish which I have been meaning to try out. I made some adjustment to fit my likings and it turned out really good. The flavors are mild, a little sweet and creamy. I think I might add a little red pepper flakes next time I make this just to give it a kick.

Ingredients:

1/2 pound penne pasta

1 pound shrimp, peeled and deveined

2 tbsp butter

2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

1 small onion, diced

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 cup white wine

2 tbsp tomato paste

14.5 oz canned diced tomatoes

1/4 cup half and half

1/4 cup flat-leaf parsley, chopped

8-10 basil leaves, chiffonade

Salt and pepper, to taste

Directions:

Bring salted pasta water to a boil, add pasta and cook until al dente.

Peel and devein shrimp, season with salt and pepper and set aside. In a large pan, melt 1 tbsp butter and 1 tbsp olive oil over medium high heat. Add shrimp and cook for two minutes, turning shrimp over half-way through cooking time. Remove shrimp from pan and set aside.

Add 1 tbsp butter and 1 tbsp olive oil to pan and lower heat to medium. Cook diced onions until tender and translucent. Add minced garlic and cook one minute longer, add wine and reduce for 2-3 minutes.  Add tomato paste and stir to blend. Add canned tomatoes and continue to simmer covered until pasta is ready.

Add pasta, parsley, basil and half/half. Bring to a simmer and turn off heat. Add shrimp back into pasta dish and arrange on serving dish. Top with Parmigiano Reggiano cheese. Enjoy!

Source: adapted from Pioneer Woman Cooks Book

Chicken and Roasted Red Pepper Quisadilla

I love a really good Chicken Quisadilla and when you make them yourself at home, your completely in charge of the outcome. I don’t particularly like a lot of cheese on my food and when asking for light cheese in a restaurant, it still comes loaded on. In this write-up I have not written any amounts, simply just make it to your own liking.

Makes 1 Quisadilla

Ingredients:

2 flour tortillas (6 inch)

russian dressing for spreading

cooked chicken, sliced

Cabot extra sharp cheese

feta cheese

roasted red pepper, diced

fresh cilantro, chopped

Directions:

Preheat pan or grill to medium heat. Spread russian dressing on one side of each of the two tortillas. Top first tortilla with chicken, Cabot and feta cheese, red pepper and cilantro. Top off with second tortilla. Place on grill or pan, cook until cheese is melted. Flip over and continue cooking until light browned. Remove from heat and cut into quarters. Enjoy!

Source: My Danish Kitchen

Sloppy Joes

Sloppy Joes! I completely forgot about Sloppy Joes! That was until we were visiting my sister in-law Linda, and her husband John was making Sloppy Joes for a football party and the aroma filling the house was simply amazing. I have not had this dish for many, many years. Probably not since Nicholas was a very little boy and at that time it was probably not made from scratch either. But John’s cooking got me inspired to make Sloppy Joes again and what better crowd to make it for than Joe’s Blacksmithing buddies, aka the Burleymen

Just a little note about this recipe. Next time around I would go easy on the sugar. The full amount of 2 tablespoons of brown sugar may be a bit much in my opinion so I would add it in small increments, tasting as I go. Other than that, I thought it was a really flavorful recipe and everyone seemed to enjoy it.

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

2 1/2 pounds ground beef

1 medium onion, diced

1 large green bell pepper, diced

2 large garlic cloves, minced

1 1/2 cup ketchup

1 cup water

1-2 tablespoons brown sugar, or to taste

2 teaspoons chili powder

1 teaspoon dry mustard

1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes, or to taste

Worcestershire sauce, to taste

2 tablespoons tomato paste

salt and pepper, to taste

Kaiser Rolls

Butter, optional

Directions:

Add olive oil to large cooking pot and heat to medium-high. Add ground beef and brown, drain off fat. Add onions, bell peppers and garlic. Cook until onions are translucent. Add ketchup, water, brown sugar, chili powder, dry mustard, red pepper flakes, Worcestershire sauce, tomato paste, salt and pepper. Stir and let simmer covered for 15-20 minutes. Adjust seasonings to taste.

Slice rolls in half, butter if desired and toast on pan grill or in oven under broiler. Load meat onto toasted rolls and have plenty of napkins on hand because this is a messy affair. Enjoy! 

Source: adapted from Pioneer Woman

Leverpostej - Danish Liver Pate

Making Danish Liver Pate probably got me more excited than any other recipe I have had the pleasure to blog about. You absolutely must experience a warm, home-made Liver Pate. Fresh out of the oven, served with fried mushrooms and bacon or topped with some wonderful pickled beets. This is actually the first time I have made it myself. I have been wanting to make it for the past 25 years but somehow the thought of making it by myself was always overwhelming. And  now that I have finally made my first-ever home-made Liver Pate, I can’t quite figure out what the fuzz was all about.

Leverpostej - Danish Liver Pate

Liver Pate is everywhere in Denmark. It can be found, dare I say, in all self-respecting grocery stores. It is a way of life, as natural as the air we breath. The store-bought Liver Pate is very good but there is something to be said about a home-made Liver Pate and I think it is definitely worth the effort! The Pate can be served cold or warm on an open-faced sandwich often topped with either pickled beets, crispy fried onions, mushrooms, cucumbers or Danish Sky which is basically a beef jello. It can be made plainly with just one topping or it can be quite an elaborate Smørrebrød creation.

Liver Pate is not the most pleasant food to prepare, truth be told, it’s really kinda gross. BUT, the end result is making me feel like I’m in heaven. Let me just say that there are hundreds of different ways you can make Liver Pate. I’ve heard of adding potatoes, apples, anchovies, Bechamel sauce – or not, a lot of spices – or not, high-fat – low-fat, animal fat (called Spæk in Danish) vs just margarine, so there are many, many variations out there. This recipe is the one my Mother and Father uses and I think it’s simply just wonderful. Thanks Mom and Dad for helping me make my first ever Liver Pate!

My Mom and Dad, Åse and Ove

Please note that when you go to look for the fat (spæk) used in this recipe, it’s not something you’ll typically find sitting in the freezer section at your grocery store. Simply just ask the butcher in the meat department if they can give you a couple of chunks of fat. Often times, they wont even charge you for it

Ingredients:

For the Bechamel Sauce:

1 deciliter milk (3.4 oz)

4 deciliter water (13.5 oz)

1 extra-large vegetable bouillon cube (10 grams, 3/8 oz)

50 grams margarine (1 3/4 oz)

4-5 tablespoons flour

1/2 teaspoon salt, or to taste

1/4 teaspoon pepper, or to taste

1/2 teaspoon allspice

1/4 teaspoon nutmeg

For the Liver mixture:

500 grams Liver ( 1 lb)

80 grams fat (2 7/8 oz)

65 grams smoked bacon (2 1/2 oz)

50 grams onion (2 oz)

3 whole large eggs

Directions:

To make Bechamel sauce: In a saucepan add water and milk. Break-up vegetable bouillon cube into liquid and bring up to warm temperature, turn heat off. In a pan, melt margarine. Add flour and whisk until smooth, continue to cook for 2-3 minutes. Add warm milk/water in 1 cup increments while whisking. Mixture should be like a thick gravy. Add salt, pepper, allspice and nutmeg to taste. If you get lumps in this gravy simply just run it through a sieve. Pour gravy into a covered Tupperware container and allow to cool in refrigerator.

Cut Liver, fat, bacon and onion into 1 inch pieces. Starting with the fat, bacon and onion, either run them through a meat grinder twice or process in a food processor until you have a slightly lumpy mixture. Liver should only go through meat grinder once or add Liver to food processor and blend until pretty smooth. Mix together Liver and fat mixture. Add the 3 whole eggs and cooled Bechamel sauce, stir to combine. Pour into small aluminum forms (I got 4 small forms full) and if freezing cover top tightly with aluminum foil and store in freezer safe bags. When ready to cook Liver Pate, fill an oven-proof dish with warm water 1/2 way up the side of aluminum form. Bake uncovered in oven at 200 degree C (390 degrees F) for 1 hour 30 minutes. Enjoy!

Source: my parents Ove and Åse Frandsen

Pebernødder

This year I am trying out a different version of Pebernødder. There is of course numerous different recipes floating around out there but I came across this one which had some very high praises attached to it. Evidently it is from Lagkagehuset in Denmark which is a renowned bakery with several locations in Denmark.

Pebernødder

This recipe is very good indeed, really it is! However, I had forgotten why I choose my original Pebernødder recipe and it was because I am not a big fan of pepper. It’s not that you can taste the pepper per se but it does leave a slight heat on your tongue, which I don’t particularly care for, but that’s just me. But the Pebernød really is very tasty in itself and it bakes perfectly. So if your like me, I suppose we can simply just leave out the pepper

Ingredients:

125 grams butter, at room temperature (4 3/8 ounces)

125 grams dark brown sugar (4 1/4 ounces)

1/2 deciliter heavy whipping cream (1.7 ounces)

250 grams all-purpose flour (8 3/4 ounces)

1/2 teaspoon ground ginger

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon white pepper

1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

Directions:

Line two large baking sheets with parchment paper. Preheat oven to 200 degrees C (390 degrees F).

Beat together butter and sugar until smooth. Add cream and beat until combined. Sift together flour, spices, baking soda and baking powder. Add dry ingredients to wet ingredients and mix until combined. Place dough onto lightly floured working surface, knead dough briefly and divide into four smaller portions. Roll each portion out into logs the size of your middle finger. Cut logs into 1 centimeter (0.4 inch) pieces and place on baking sheets. Bake 10 minutes or until light browned in color. Let cool on baking sheets before storing in an airtight container. Glædelig Jul and Merry Christmas ♥

Source: Maden i mit Liv originally from Lagkagehuset

Brunkager

Here is another Cookie which I grew up with. You can buy a version of this in some grocery store, but why on earth do that, when you can fill your house with an intense aroma of cinnamon, cloves and ginger. The Brunkage cookie is crunchy and crisp and to me it’s filled with childhood Christmas memories from a long, long time ago….well, not that long ago

I’ve been searching for a Brunkage recipe which uses ingredients that I have relative easy access to. Again, there are numerous different ways to make this cookie. This recipe is really straight forward as far as ingredients go, it is easy and quick to make and the cookies are very flavorful. As far as the syrup goes, I did use a Danish dark syrup (mørk sirup, in Danish). However, I did some inquiring about a substitute syrup and the response I got was that Maple syrup will work just fine. So although I have not tried it myself, it should be no problem using Maple syrup. I hope you enjoy this cookies as much as I do!

Brunkage thickness

Ingredients:

200 grams butter (7 ounces), at room temperature

200 grams sugar (7 ounces)

1 deciliter syrup (0.4 cup) (100 milliliter)

1 teaspoon ginger

3 teaspoons cinnamon

2 teaspoons ground cloves

300 – 325 grams flour (10.6 – 11.5 ounces)

1 teaspoon baking soda

100 – 125 grams blanched sliced almonds (3.5 – 4.4 ounces)

Directions:

In the bowl of an stand-up mixer fitted with the paddle attachment or electrical mixer add butter and sugar and beat until smooth. Add syrup, ginger, cinnamon and cloves, mix until combined. Holding back a small amount of flour for kneading the dough, add the majority of the flour and all of the baking soda and almonds. Mix until combined, careful not to over-mix. Turn dough out onto working surface and using the remaining flour, knead the dough briefly until smooth.  Divide dough into two equal portions and form  two logs 5 centimeters in thickness. Wrap each log in plastic wrap and place in a zip lock bag. Let dough rest in refrigerator overnight.

Preheat oven to 200 degrees C (390 degrees F) and line baking sheets with parchment paper. Slice dough into approximately 4-5 mm (0.2 inch) thick slices and bake in the middle of oven for 4-5 minutes. Cool on baking sheet for 2-3 minutes before moving to cooling rack. Store cookies in a cookie tin with a tight-fitting lid. Glædelig Jul and Merry Christmas

Mørk Sirup

Source: Kirsten Hüttemeier via Connie Lauridsen Childs

World Peace Cookies

This is my second month of participating in The Secret Recipe Club and I was assigned to go sneak around Everyday Insanity’s food blog. Everyday Insanity is a very lovely blog run by Cindy who lives in Utah and who has grown children as well as grandchildren. The blog has an even mix of wonderful savory foods and delicious sweets. Since Christmas is quickly approaching I really wanted to stick with the Christmas theme. When I came across Cindy’s World Peace Cookies I immediately knew what I was making. What could possibly be more appropriate for the Christmas season than World Peace Cookies?

I had already heard wild rumors about how delicious these cookies are and I am here to tell you that the rumors are true. The cookies are fairly simple and quick to make. I did read a piece of good advice which was to remove one tablespoon of flour and it worked out really well. So I measured out 1 1/4 cups flour and then removed 1 tablespoon. The final dough appears a little bit crumbly but simply just press the dough together gently. After the cookies are done baking they may look undercooked to you, but they really are fully cooked so don’t be tempted to over-bake them.

The cookies are slightly crumbly yet a little chewy and wonderful chocolaty with a hint of sea salt. I believe they will become a stable Christmas cookie here at our house. Thank you so much for sharing this recipe Cindy

World Peace Cookies

Ingredients:

1 stick plus 3 tablespoons unsalted butter (11 tablespoons), at room temperature

2/3 cup packed light brown sugar

1/4 cup sugar

a small 1/2 teaspoon sea salt

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour – minus 1 tablespoon

1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

5 ounces bittersweet chocolate (use chips or chocolate that’s chopped into small chocolate chip size)

Directions:

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter until soft and creamy. Add  brown sugar, sugar, salt and vanilla extract. Continue to beat for two minutes more, scraping sides of bowl and paddle as needed.

Sift together flour, cocoa powder and baking soda. With the mixer off, add dry ingredients to butter mixture. Pulse the mixer on low about five times, one or two seconds each time. Continue to mix on low-speed just until the flour disappears into the dough, do not over-mix. The dough will look crumbly. Add the chocolate pieces and mix only to incorporate.

Turn dough out onto work surface, press it together and divide dough in half. Working with one half at a time, press and gently roll the dough into logs that are 1 1/2 inches in diameter. Wrap the logs in plastic wrap and refrigerate them for at least 3 hours.

Preheat oven to 325 degrees, making sure rack is placed in the center of oven. Line baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside.

Using a sharp knife, cut the cold logs into 1/2 inch slices. If the sliced dough cracks, simply just press them together again. Arrange cookies 1 inch apart on baking sheet and bake one sheet at a time for 12 minutes. Do not over-bake cookies even though they may not look done to you. Transfer baking sheet to a cooling rack and let cookies rest until room temperature.

Note: the dough can be refrigerated for up to 3 days or frozen for up to 2 months. If you are using frozen dough, you do not need to defrost it before baking (although it is a lot easier to slice if it’s defrosted) - just slice the logs into cookies and bake for 1 minute longer. Enjoy!

Source: Cookbookhabit via Everyday Insanity

Anvil Cookies

My husband Joe asked me if I could make cookies in the shape of an anvil. I said “sure, but I don’t think you’ll find an anvil cookie cutter in the stores”. Of course I should have known that it wouldn’t stop him on his quest for anvil cookies. And so he proceeded to make an anvil cookie cutter…is there anything that man cannot make?

Gentile Forge Cookies

The cookie cutter is nice and sharp and it worked like a charm. I choose a delicious chocolate sugar cookie and to make sure the dough does not spread out during baking it’s important to let the cut-out cookies chill in the refrigerator for 15 minutes before baking.

Anvil Cookies

Ingredients:

For the cookies:

2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour (355 grams)

3/4 cup unsweetened Dutch processed cocoa powder (75 grams)

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 cup unsalted butter (226 grams), at room temperature

1 3/4 cups granulated sugar (350 grams)

2 large eggs, at room temperature

2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

For the Icing:

2 cups powdered sugar (220 grams)

1 1/2 tablespoons meringue powder (15 grams)

1/4 teaspoon almond extract (can use other extract flavors if desired)

1/4 – 1/2 cup warm water (60 – 120 ml)

food color, if desired

Directions:

To make Cookies: In a large bowl sift together flour, cocoa, salt and baking powder and set aside. In the bowl of an electrical mixer, beat butter and sugar until creamy and smooth (about 3-4 minutes). Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add vanilla extract, mix until combined. With the mixer on low, add the dry ingredients. As dry ingredients becomes incorporated you can increase speed. Mix only until it forms a homogeneous dough. Divide dough into two portions, wrap each in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.

Line baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (177 degrees C).

Remove one half of dough from refrigerator. Lightly flour your work surface and roll dough out to a thickness of 1/4 inch (1 cm). Keep turning the dough so it does not stick to counter. Cut out desired shapes using a lightly floured cookie cutter. Transfer cookies to baking sheets. Place baking sheets in refrigerator for 15 minutes (to prevent cookies from loosing their shape during baking). Bake cookies for 10-12 minutes or until firm around edges. Remove from oven and let cookies cool on baking sheet for a few minutes before transferring them to a cooling rack. Frost with Icing if desired.

To make Icing: Note – for these particular cookies I only iced along the edges of cookies. If you plan on filling in cookies with icing, I would recommend doubling the icing recipe.

In a medium bowl sift together powdered sugar and meringue powder. Add almond extract. Add warm water in increments, while mixing with your electrical mixer. Add food color if desired. Beat on medium speed until smooth and glossy. Proper consistency is when a ribbon of icing falls into bowl and remain on surface for a few seconds. Add more confectioners sugar if icing becomes too thin. Use icing immediately or store in an airtight container covered with plastic wrap directly on the surface.

Be sure icing in completely set before storing cookies in an airtight container. It could take several hours for icing to set.

Source: adapted from Joy of Baking

Havregrynskugler

Havregrynskugler is a Danish Christmas treat that children of almost all ages can really get involved in making. They are a fun activity and super easy to make and also no-bake.

There are numerous different recipes for Havregrynskugler varying from low-fat to much richer, lower sugar to sweeter as well as adult versions containing alcohol and coffee. I like this version because it does not have a lot of butter, contains Marzipan which I love and it has a slight crunch from the sugar. If you don’t care for the sugar crunch you could substitute with confectioners sugar.

Havregrynskugler

Ingredients:

50 gram unsalted butter, at room temperature (4 tablespoons)

50 gram marzipan (1.75 ounces)

75 gram sugar (2.63 ounces)

125 gram oats (1 1/2 cups)

25 gram unsweetened cocoa (0.87 ounce or 4 tablespoons)

1 -2 teaspoon almond extract

1 -2 teaspoon rum

2 teaspoon seedless raspberry jam

about 100 gram coconut flakes, chopped finely (3.51 ounces)

Directions:

Optional: process oats in a food processor for a few pulses to break up oats a little.

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment add butter and break marzipan into small pieces, cream together until smooth. Add sugar and continue to beat for 1 or 2 minutes longer. Add oats, cocoa, almond extract, rum and raspberry jam, continue to mix until homogeneous.

Form into small balls by pressing the dough together and rolling in your hands. Immediately roll each ball in the coconut. Place covered in refrigerator. Serve cold. Enjoy!

Source: adapted from Kvalimad