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Archive for the ‘Christmas’ Category

Æbleskiver With Egg Whites

Posted in Christmas, Danish, tagged , , , , , , , on November 16, 2018| 6 Comments »

Making Æbleskiver pour batter, rotate 1/4 turn, backfill with more batter, rotate last 1/4 turn and finish frying until baked through.

It’s that time of year again and although it’s a little early, I just had to make some delicious danish Æbleskiver. They are wonderful served warm with a little jam and perhaps some warm red or white Gløgg (mulled wine). By the way, they can also be made ahead of time, tossed in the freezer and quickly reheated in the oven. Here’s a slightly different recipe with egg whites which makes them a little lighter. Also the technique is different than my previous Æbleskive post, in that I backfill each Æbleskive with a little more dough which helps get a rounder Æbleskive. If you want to see the previous post or want to read more about the traditions surrounding Æbleskiver click the above link. I hope you enjoy these super delicious Æbleskiver.

Æbleskiver (makes 40-45)

Ingredients:

500 g all-purpose flour (17.6 oz)

2 tsp salt

2 tsp baking soda

3 tsp vanilla sugar

3 tbsp sugar

4 egg yolks

8 dl buttermilk (27 fluid oz)

zest from 1 lemon

4 egg whites

Canola oil for frying

Directions:

Combine flour, salt, baking soda, vanilla sugar and sugar, set aside. Stir egg yolks and buttermilk together and beat into dry ingredients. Zest lemon into batter and beat to combine. In a separate bowl, beat egg whites stiff and fold into batter.

Preheat æbleskive pan to medium high. Brush pan with canola oil and pour batter. Using a knitting needle (sound odd, but works really well) or a skewer, turn æbleskiver 1/4 turn and fry a little more. Backfill each with a little more batter and turn the last 1/4 turn. Finish frying, turning æbleskiver until baked through. Serve warm with jam and/or sugar, smiles and a heavy dose of hygge. Enjoy!

Source: My Danish Kitchen

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Waldorfsalat – Waldorf Salad

Posted in Appetizers, Christmas, Salad, Side dish, tagged , , , , , , , , , on December 1, 2017| 4 Comments »

Waldorfsalat

Waldorf salad was invented around 1893 – 1896 at the Hotel Waldorf in Manhattan NY. Danes have since then taken this wonderful salad to heart. It’s enjoyed mostly during the fall and winter months and in some families it may also be found on the Christmas table. There are of course many variations of this salad. It can be made with mayonnaise or yogurt and in Denmark some may also add a little whipped cream to the dressing. It can be served as an appetizer or as a side dish to game. This recipe comes from my sister Jonna who makes a “knaldgod” or fabulous Waldorf salad. Enjoy!

Waldorf Salad

Ingredients: 

2 1/2 deciliter Creme Fraiche (212 g or 7.5 oz)

1 1/2 tablespoon sugar

1/4 teaspoon salt

juice from a small 1/2 lemon

3 celery stalks

400 gram grapes (14 oz)

100 gram walnuts (5.3 oz)

2 apples (I use Honeycrisp apples)

Directions:

Combine Creme Fraiche, sugar, salt and lemon juice, set aside. Clean and cut celery into small pieces. Cut grapes into halves. Chop walnuts into small pieces. Leaving the peel on the apples, dice them into bite size pieces. Add celery, grapes, walnuts and apples to Creme Fraiche. Store in refrigerator until ready to serve. Serve on a bed of Boston lettuce or decorate with celery leaves, top with walnuts. Enjoy!

Source: slightly adapted from my sister Jonna Pedersen

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Honningkage Med Smørcreme – Honey Cake With Buttercream

Posted in Cake, Christmas, Danish, tagged , , , , , , , , , on December 1, 2016| 3 Comments »

Honningkage Med Smørcreme

Honningkage Med Smørcreme

Honningkager are thought to be from Christiansfeld in the southern of Denmark and started gaining popularity around 1783. For many, they are associated with Christmas but I would be perfectly happy eating them year round. A Honningkage is firm in texture, yet airy and filled with Christmas spices. I have made different versions of honey cakes here on my blog before, like Honninghjerter which was quite an adventure and the short-cut Honningkage which was very flavorful but more like a regular soft cake. For this particular Honey Cake with Buttercream I decided to add a thin layer of Apricot jam which is not traditional but I think it pairs really well with the spices in the cake. I know it is a little early but since it’s December 1st I want to wish all of you a very Merry Christmas. 🎄

Trim edges off cake if hard, cut cake horizontally into two, spread buttercream and apricot and fold layers together, top with melted chocolate

Trim edges off cake if hard, cut cake horizontally into two, spread buttercream and apricot and fold layers together, top with melted chocolate

Honey Cake with Buttercream and Apricot (makes 15 servings)

Ingredients

For the cake:

500 gram honey (17.5 oz)

125 gram sugar (4.5 0z)

3 eggs, room temperature

1 teaspoon ground ginger

2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon ground cloves

1 organic orange, zested

1 dl heavy whipping creme (3.4 fl oz)

2 tablespoon plain greek yogurt

2 teaspoon Ammonium Bicarbonate (called Hjortetaksalt in Danish)

500 gram all-purpose flour (17.5 oz)

For the Buttercream:

130 gram butter, room temperature

130 gram confectioners sugar

Additional:

145 g Apricot jam (5 oz)

120 gram semi-sweet chocolate (4.2 oz)

Directions:

To make cake:

Lightly grease a 9 x 9 inch (23 x 23 centimeter) baking pan and line with parchment paper so the paper is overhanging the sides. Preheat oven to 320 degrees F (160 degrees C).

Combine honey and sugar in a small saucepan and heat until sugar is dissolved. Remove from heat and allow to cool until “finger warm”.

Beat eggs, ginger, cinnamon, cloves, orange zest, whipping cream and yogurt until combined. Add cooled honey mixture and beat until combined. Sift together flour and Ammonium Bicarbonate, then add flour to egg mixture and stir until fully incorporated and smooth. Pour batter into prepared pan and bake for 60 minutes or until done, careful not to over bake. Check for doneness by using a toothpick, it should come out clean when cake is done. Allow cake to cool completely before assembling.

To make buttercream:

Make sure butter is at room temperature. Cream butter and confectioners sugar together until smooth and creamy.

Assembly:

If cake edges feel hard, trim them off using a serrated knife. Cut cake horizontally into two layers and place them both cut-side-up, side-by-side. Stir apricot jam to loosen it up and spread jam out over bottom cake layer evenly. Spread buttercream out over top cake layer, flip it over and place top cake layer on top of bottom cake layer so buttercream and apricot are now together in the middle.

Chop chocolate coarsely and place in a microwave safe bowl. Melt chocolate in microwave, stopping every 10 seconds to stir and check to see if chocolate is melted completely. Spread melted chocolate out over top of cake and allow to set before cutting cake. If desired, trim edges off cake using a serrated knife. Enjoy!

Source: adapted from Alletiders Kogebog

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Hvid Gløgg – White Mulled Wine

Posted in Christmas, Danish, Drinks, tagged , , , , , , , , , on December 20, 2015| 3 Comments »

White Gløgg

Hvid Gløgg

It is the time of year, my most favorite, when you cozy up with a warm glass of Gløgg and munch on some delicious Danish Æbleskiver. Gløgg made with red wine is traditional in Denmark and taste wonderful but this Gløgg made with white wine and elderflower concentrate is fantastic. So if you can get your hands on some elderflower concentrate, which is sold by IKEA and a couple of online stores, you simply must try this white wine Gløgg. I used 100 grams of sugar in the recipe but it can probably be cut back to 50 grams, taste as you go along and see how much sugar you like. Enjoy and Merry Christmas to everyone.

Hvid Gløgg

Ingredients:

1 bottle white wine (Chardonnay)

2 deciliter rum(Bacardi) (200 ml or 6.7 fl oz)

2 deciliter Elderflower concentrate (200 ml or 6.7 fl oz)

4 whole cinnamon sticks

8 cardamon pods

50-100 gram sugar (1.8-3.5 oz)

1 organic lemon, sliced

Directions:

Combine all ingredients into a saucepan and warm over low heat. Do not boil or simmer. Serve warm and Enjoy!

Hvid Gløgg

Hvid Gløgg

Source: adapted from politiken.dk

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Brunkager Cut-Out Cookies

Posted in Christmas, Cookies, Danish, tagged , , , , , , , on November 23, 2015| 12 Comments »

Brunkager

Brunkager

Last year I was all ready to make my favorite round Brunkager when Joe requested for them to be cut out into anvil shapes for his Blacksmith Christmas party. Now, I had already made up the dough with whole blanched almonds in it, so I had to shift gear for this un-traditional request. I let the dough come to room temperature and I removed the whole almonds from the dough. There were still smaller pieces of almonds mixed in, but that turned out OK for rolling out the dough. So after I made the anvil cookies for him I remembered that I have some cute animal cookie cutters and I decided just to continue on making my Brunkager into cut-out cookies instead of the traditional round. I think they turned out really kinda cute, especially the squirrels.

Brunkager cut-outs

Brunkager cut-outs

Note: In the traditional round Brunkager there are blanched almonds in the dough. If you want, you can still leave add almonds but they need to be finely chopped in order for you to roll the dough out. And I wouldn’t add too many, start with 40-50 grams and see what you think.

Anvil Brunkager

Anvil Brunkager

Brunkager

Ingredients:

200 grams butter (7 ounces), at room temperature

200 grams sugar (7 ounces)

1 deciliter syrup (0.4 cup) (100 milliliter)

1 teaspoon ground ginger

3 teaspoons ground cinnamon

2 teaspoons ground cloves

325 – 350 grams flour (11.4 – 12.3 ounces)

1 teaspoon baking soda

a pinch of salt

50 grams blanched almonds, finely chopped (1.7 ounces), Optional

For the icing:

1 cup powdered sugar (110 grams)

1 tablespoon meringue powder

about 1/4 cup warm water (60 ml)

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, salt and almonds (optional). 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 wrap in plastic wrap. Place dough in a zip-lock bag and let dough rest in refrigerator overnight.

Remove dough from refrigerator and let dough rest on your counter for 30-40 minutes. Preheat oven to 176 degrees C (350 degrees F) and line baking sheets with parchment paper. On a lightly floured work surface roll out dough to approximately 4-5 mm (0.2 inch) thickness. Using your favorite cookie cutters, press out the cookies and using a small spatula gently lift dough onto cookie sheet. Bake in the middle of oven for 9-12 minutes. Cool on baking sheet for 2-3 minutes before moving to cooling rack. Once cookies are completely cooled, decorate 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 warm water in increments, while mixing with your electrical mixer. 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. Merry Christmas

Source: My Danish Kitchen

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Romkugler – Danish Rum Balls

Posted in Cake, Chocolate, Christmas, Danish, Dessert, tagged , , , , , , , on September 21, 2015| 4 Comments »

Romkugler

Romkugler

Romkugler is a classic Danish dessert which is always on my “to indulge in” list when I go back home for a visit. I love these little balls. They used to be made from left-over cake in the bakery to avoid waste, but I imagine nowadays cakes are probably made specifically for this purpose. So next time you have some left-over cake (yeah right, who has left-over chocolate cake) toss it into the freezer, and then when your ready, make Rum Balls. Your family will love you for it.

It took me a little while to figure out the best process for making the sprinkles stick. The original recipe did not use chocolate to make the sprinkles stick, and without the chocolate, they just don’t stick very well. First I tried dipping the ball into the melted chocolate, but it was too much chocolate and it took way too many sprinkles to cover the ball. Then I simply just dipped the ball into the chocolate halfway, and used my fingers to smir a thin chocolate coating all over the ball. Then I tossed it into the sprinkles, and the sprinkles stuck perfectly to the ball. Traditionally the sprinkles are chocolate sprinkles, but it can be any kind, any color sprinkles, coconut or chopped nuts, whatever you like. You can also use real rum instead of imitation rum but I think the flavor is much better with the imitation rum.

Romkugler

Romkugler

Romkugler – Danish Rum Balls (makes approx 25)

Ingredients:

200 g (7 oz) left-over chocolate cake

50 g (1.75 oz) marzipan

1 1/2 teaspoon unsweetened cocoa

100 g (3.5 oz) semi-sweet chocolate, divided

1 tablespoon raspberry preserves, seedless

1 tablespoon imitation rum

100 g (3.5 oz) sprinkles

Directions:

Give chocolate a quick chop, divide into half (two 50 gram portions) and set aside.

Using a food processor or a hand-mixer, process left-over cake, marzipan and cocoa until crumbly. Melt the first half portion of chocolate in microwave or over a water-bath until smooth. Add melted chocolate, raspberry preserve and imitation rum to cake crumbs, mix until combined. Roll into small balls and refrigerate for 30 minutes.

Melt the second half of chocolate in microwave or over a water-bath until smooth. Take one ball at the time, dip halfway into melted chocolate and using your fingers, smear chocolate around ball to make it sticky. Toss ball into sprinkles and turn to cover with sprinkles. Repeat with remaining balls. Place balls onto a cookie sheet and refrigerate. Store in covered Tupperware container, keep refrigerated. Enjoy!

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Varm Chokolade Med Amaretto – Hot Chocolate With Amaretto

Posted in Autumn, Chocolate, Christmas, Comfort food, Drinks, Quick and Easy, tagged , , , , , , , , , on January 12, 2015| 7 Comments »

Varm Chokolade Med Amaretto

Varm Chokolade Med Amaretto

When the weather turns cold there is nothing like a nice cup of hot chocolate to keep you warm. These days I like mine with a shot of Amaretto, just to warm my bones a little more. Adding Amaretto is of course completely optional, but chocolate and Amaretto is a pair made in heaven.

Homemade hot chocolate is not overly sweet, as the store-bought kind, and I love a dollop of whipped cream on top for extra creaminess. Or if you are serving it for children, marshmallows would be a lot more fun. 🙂 Stay warm out there.

Hot Chocolate With Amaretto (Makes 2 large servings)

Ingredients:

5 deciliter (or 16.9 fluid oz) milk

75 gram (or 2.6 oz) dark chocolate 60 %

2 shots Amaretto

whipping cream, optional, for topping

Directions:

If you want a dollop of whipped cream on top of your hot chocolate, whip then cream and set aside.

Chop chocolate finely. Heat milk to 85 degrees C (185 degrees F) which is hot, but not simmering. Remove from heat and add chopped chocolate. Stir until chocolate is dissolved. Add Amaretto and stir. Pour into serving glass and top with a dollop of whipped cream if desired, serve immediately or store hot chocolate in a thermos for later. Enjoy

Hot Chocolate With Amaretto

Hot Chocolate With Amaretto

Source: My Danish Kitchen

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Vaniljekranse a la Blomsterberg

Posted in Christmas, Cookies, Danish, tagged , , , , , , , , , on December 22, 2014| 20 Comments »

Vaniljekranse a la Blomsterberg

Vaniljekranse a la Blomsterberg

This year I wanted to try a different Vaniljekranse recipe for Christmas, although my Mom’s recipe still remains my favorite. When I saw Mette Blomsterberg’s recipe I wanted to try it because, #1 she is a very talented Danish pastry chef and #2 this recipe says you can use a pastry bag with a star shaped decorating tip to press out the cookies. This is of particular interest for those of you who don’t have the traditional star attachment for a KitchenAid machine (which I know is a great fustration to many Danes living outside Denmark). And so I tried it out and it is possible to press the cookies out using a pastry bag fitted with a star tip, however, I didn’t have the muscle to continue on with it. So unless you have a very strong and preferably handsome mountain man handy to help you out, I think you might have a hard time.

Making Vaniljekranse using a pastry bag with a star decorating tip.

Making Vaniljekranse using a pastry bag with a star decorating tip.

Lets talk a little bit about butter. This year I was lucky enough to find real Danish Lurpak butter at a local high-end grocery store. It is expensive, but the result is a wonderful, very creamy buttery taste to your cookies. Is it worth the extra cost? To most people, probably not, but it sure is a fantastic creamy butter. Also, I want to point out that when you bake in Denmark it is a given that you use salted butter, whereas in the US you typically bake with unsalted butter, unless otherwise stated, and then a little salt is built into the recipe on the side. Just worth noting (it actually took me 28 years to realize this, ha).

Creamy Danish Lurpak butter

Creamy Danish Lurpak butter

Vaniljekranse (makes about 35 cookies)

Ingredients:

1 whole vanilla bean

180 grams sugar

200 grams salted butter, room temperature

1 egg, room temperature

75 grams almond meal/flour

250 grams all-purpose flour

Directions:

Scrape the seeds from the vanilla bean and press the seeds into a tablespoon of the sugar. Beat butter, sugar and vanilla seeds until smooth and creamy (4-5 minutes). Add the egg and continue mixing until fully incorporated. In small increments, add almond meal and flour, mix until dough comes together.

If you plan on using a piping bag with a star tip to press out dough and form into circles, roll up your sleeves and use dough immediately.

If you plan on using a star attachment for you KitchenAid mixer, wrap dough in plastic wrap and place in refrigeator for at least 1 hour.

Preheat oven to 390 degrees F (200 degrees C). Line baking sheets with parchment paper. Cut dough into small segments and load the dough into the meat grinder attachment on your KitchenAid machine. Run the dough through the star attachment into long strips, place dough onto baking sheet and cut dough into 4 inch long pieces and form into circle. Bake in the middle of oven for 10-14 minutes or until just turning golden. Cool on baking sheets for a couple of minutes before moving them to a cooling rack. Once cookies are completely cooled, store in an airtight cookie tin.

Merry Christmas and Enjoy.

Star attachment on KitchenAid meat grinder.

Star attachment on KitchenAid meat grinder.

Source: adapted from Mette Blomsterberg

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Julekonfekt – Marzipan With Nougat Confections

Posted in Chocolate, Christmas, Danish, tagged , , , , , , , , on December 15, 2014| 6 Comments »

Marzipan with Nougat balls

Marzipan with Nougat balls

Making confections is one of many Christmas activities that is popular in Denmark and it’s especially fun to make with your children, not to mention delicious to eat. To make the chocolate dipping less cumbersome I used a plastic fork and broke off the middle two digits to allow the chocolate to drip off more easily. I made half a batch with rainbow sprinkles and half without. The sprinkles add a crunch and a fun splash of color but you can use any kind of covering you like, for example, finely chopped nuts, freeze dried raspberries or coconut, just let your imagination run wild. Have fun making these.

Making Christmas confection

Making Christmas confection

Marzipan with Nougat Confections (makes 16 pieces)

Ingredients:

100 gram Marzipan (3.5 oz.)

50 gram Nougat (1.75 oz.)

200 gram chocolate (7 oz.) melted, milk or dark your choice

50 gram Rainbow Nonpareils (1.75 oz.) optional

Directions:

Melt chocolate over a water bath. Cut off small pieces of marzipan and flatten to a disc with your fingers. Place a small amount of nougat in the center of marzipan and close the marzipan around nougat to form a ball. Dip the ball into the melted chocolate, drip off excess and toss the chocolate covered ball in the rainbow sprinkles. Place on a baking sheet to cool and harden. Store in airtight tin. Enjoy!

Source: My Danish Kitchen

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Chokolade Specier – Chocolate Butter Cookies

Posted in Chocolate, Christmas, Cookies, Danish, tagged , , , , , , , , , on December 1, 2014| 8 Comments »

Chokolade Specier

Chokolade Specier

Chokolader Specier is a traditional Danish Butter Cookie loaded with chopped chocolate. Danish butter cookies have been around since 1933 and I am sure you are familar with the dark blue tins of Royal Dansk Butter cookies being sold in many stores today. Usually I am not a big fan of butter cookies, but add lots of chocolate and you can count me in. These chocolate butter cookies are not overly sweet and the crumb is soft and flaky. I guess, if you stretch your imagination, you could think of these Chokolade Specier as the Danish version of the American Chocolate Chip cookie.

Scrape seeds from Vanilla bean and press into a teaspoon sugar, this will separate the seeds.

Scrape seeds from Vanilla bean and press into 1 teaspoon sugar, this will separate the seeds. Add chocolate and mix to combine. Press dough into logs, chill. Slice and bake.

Chokolade Specier – Chocolate Butter Cookie (makes 60-70 cookies)

Ingredients:

300 gram butter (salted) , at room temperature (10.5 ounces)

125 gram confectioners sugar (4.4 ounces)

375 gram all-purpose flour (13.2 ounces)

seeds from 1 vanilla bean

1 teaspoon sugar

200 gram semi-sweet chocolate, chopped (7 ounces)

Directions:

Cut open the vanilla bean and scrape the seeds out. Press the seeds into 1 teaspoon sugar with the flat side of a knife, this is to separate the seeds, set aside.

Using your hands or a mixer, combine butter, confectioners sugar, vanilla bean seeds and flour. When the dough starts to come together add chocolate and mix until combined. Pour dough onto work surface, press the dough together with your hands and then roll into logs 4 centimeter (1.5 inch) wide. Try to work quickly so the warmth from your hands doesn’t alter the chocolate. Wrap logs tightly in plastic wrap and store in refrigerator for at least 4 hours before baking.

When ready to bake cookies, preheat oven to 200 degrees Celsius (390 degrees Fahrenheit). Line baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside. Slice dough into 5-10 millimeter (0.2-0.4 inch) thickness and bake for 8 minutes. Allow to cool completely before storing in an airtight cookie tin. Glædelig Jul and Merry Christmas!

Source: adapted from Kager til Kaffen

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