Scalloped Hasselback Potatoes

Scalloped Hasselback Potatoes

My husband send me a link to a recipe for hasselback potato gratin. It looked to be the best of both worlds, a combination of the creamy potato gratin and the crisp hasselback potatoes. 

I thought it would be perfect with a ribeye steak. I changed it up a bit, to what was in my refrigerator.

This is my version.

Serves 4-6 people.

Ingredients:

• 2 pounds russet potatoes

• 6 fl oz (5 dl) heavy whipping cream

• parmesan cheese

• smoked gouda

• 2 garlic cloves

• 2 sprigs thyme leaves, leaves only

• salt

Direction:

Preheat the oven to 400℉ (200℃).

Grate the cheeses, and set about ¼ of it a side, and mix the rest with the cream, garlic, thyme.

Peel the potatoes and slice them thinly on a mandolin. Toss the potato slices in the cream/cheese mixture, making sure to cover each slice. 

Stack the potato slices and lay them in ovenproof dish with their edges aligned vertically. Continue to fill the dish with the potatoes until the dish is filled. Pour excess cream/cheese mixture evenly over potatoes.

Cover dish with tin foil, and bake the potatoes for about 30 minutes. Take off the foil and spread the rest of the cheese on top, and continue to bake for 30 minutes.

When the potatoes is done, take the dish out of the oven and let the potatoes rest for a few minutes.

Curry Salad - Karrysalat

Curry Salad on pickled herring

Curry Salad is another traditional side for the Danish open faced sandwiches. Danes like fish, danes like pickled herring, but danes, for the most part, don't know how to make pickled herring, and this includes me. But I know how to make the curry salad to go with the herring, and it's so yummy. 

In Denmark you can buy pickled herring in a curry sauce, but sometimes homemade is better, And when you can't figure out how to pickle the herring, you can always make the curry sauce or salad, to get the homemade feeling at your lunch.

At my family's christmas luncheons the seafood part was the most important, we all loved pickled herring, smoked Salmon and fried fish fillets. Normally a danish christmas luncheons is a feast on all thing pork, but fish is a plays a big part too. 

Ingredients:

• 2 pickled cucumbers/gherkins (you can use 5 small cornichons)

• 3 eggs, hardboiled

• 175 g mayonnaise

• ½ cup (1 dl) sour cream

• 3-5 teaspoons curry powder (I use madras curry)

• 1 teaspoon Worcestershire Sauce (Lea & Perrins)

• a splash HP sauce

• ½ teaspoon turmeric

• salt & pepper to taste.

Directions:

Mix mayonnaise, sour cream, curry powder, Worcestershire sauce, HP sauce and turmeric. Dice the cucumber/gherkins and the hardboiled eggs in small pieces, fold it into the sauce. season with curry, salt and pepper.

Refrigerate the curry salad for an hour or so for the favors to blend better. This salad will keep for 5-6 days in the refrigerator. 

You can add diced apples for a sweeter taste, or diced red onions for a sharper taste.

Citrus Salad with Liquorice Vinaigrette

Citrus Salad with Liquorice Vinaigrette

I decided to make a new dish for the christmas dinner. I know that the Danes are really set the their ways, especially when it comes to their christmas dinner. But I love trying new things, so I hope my husband's family will love this citrus salad inspired from "Lakrids i Maden".

When I read that the salad called for a liquorice vinaigrette, my first thought was "how would the salty liquorice syrup taste with the dark espresso balsamic from The Olive bar?" I can only say "faaaantastic" - and on a slice of orange it tastes even better.

Here is my take on the citrus salad.

Ingredients:

Dressing:

• 1 tablespoon salty liquorice syrup
• 2 tablespoons dark espresso balsamic

Salad:

• 3 oranges
• 2 pink grapefruits
• 2 pink lemons
• Tunisian blood orange olive oil
• 1 handful Italian parsley, chopped
• 2 tablespoons shallots, finely chopped

Directions:

Whisk the the liquorice syrup with the balsamic, set aside.

Peel oranges, lemons and grapefruits and slice them thinly. Arrange the slices in a platter and sprinkle with olive oil and salt.

Drizzle the dressing un top, and sprinkle with onion and parsley.

Havregrynskugler - Oat "truffles" with Marzipan and Cognac

Oat "truffles" with Marzipan and Cognac

Just another version of Havregrynskugler aka oat truffles.

Ingredients:

• 180 g oat
• 75 g butter
• 75 g sugar
• 10 g unsweetened cocoa (I use Valrhona)
• 1 tablespoon espresso, cold
• 100 g marzipan (almond paste)
• 2 tablespoons cognac

Directions:

In a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment mix butter, oats, sugar, cocoa, marzipan, coffee and cognac until you have a uniform texture. Add more cognac if needed.

Form small bite-size ball of the dough in your hands, and roll them in multicolored sprinkles.

Store the truffles in an airtight tin in the refrigerator.

Happy Holidays - Glædelig jul

We made it, we made it to the December 24. - And we it made to Christmas. Even though I live in the US, the 24th will always be Christmas for me.

In Denmark we have our celebration on Christmas Eve. We start by eating dinner, dance around the christmas tree singing carols, and then we get our christmas gifts.  Christmas Day and the day after, we go visit the relatives we didn't get to see on Christmas Eve. Normally it would be around lunch time and we will have open faced sandwiches beer and snaps. 

I want to thank you for visiting my blog and I wish you and your family a happy holiday.

Cheers