Friday, November 20, 2009

The Swedish Chef

by Beth

No, I don't mean the famous Muppets' character with his bushy eyebrows and mustache and bork, bork, bork - although he is one of my favorite characters *g*. The chef I'm referring to is my own mother.

Okay, so maybe my mom was born in America but her grandparents hailed from Sweden, resulting in her not only getting to lead the procession on Saint Lucia's day when she was a young girl (complete with a wreath of lit candles on her head, no less) but her heritage also helped shape the meals and traditions she passed down to her own family. No, we never celebrated St. Lucia's day when I was growing up, but we did have three dishes I consider very much a part of my mom's heritage. I also consider them very...unique...if only because I've never met another person who has ever heard of them, let alone eaten them :-)


Korv. We only had Korv (otherwise known as Swedish Christmas sausage) at the holidays. As a matter of fact, my mom still cooks and serves Korv for Thanksgiving. It's a sausage made of beef, pork, potatoes and spices. My mother boils it then browns it in the oven. We've never eaten it on a bun (although I'm sure you could) but just plain. Actually, though it's a mild sausage, I don't eat it at all *g* But my husband likes it.


Lutefisk. Now this...delicacy...(and believe me, I use that term loosely *g*) is one my husband does not like. To be honest, I can't think of anyone who does like it except my dad. My husband first tried it when we all traveled over to my mom's hometown for lutefisk dinner at my uncle's restaurant. I told him not to eat it but as this was early in our marriage, he wanted to impress his in-laws and ignored my advice.


Let's just say he regretted it *g*


Lutefisk is dried cod prepared with lye. Basically, the fish is soaked in water for a few days then the saturated fish is soaked in a mixture of water and lye which gives it a jelly-like consistency. Then, to make it edible again, it's soaked in water a few more days before it's cooked. My mom always made lutefisk in a white gravy served over mashed potatoes. But believe me, there isn't enough gravy in the world to make it any less nasty. She stopped making it years ago. A fact for which we're all thankful for ;-)


Pepparkakor cookies. Yes! Finally, a recipe I do like *g* These cookies are still a staple at my mom's at Christmas time. My son loves them even more than I do. They're sort of like gingersnaps but my mom's are darker, rolled paper thin then cut into shapes. I don't have the recipe at the moment but I'll see if I can find it to post. They're labor intensive because of how thin you have to roll the dough but if you like a crisp, sweet, ginger/molasses-like cookie, the effort will be worth it!


Have you heard of (or tasted) any of the items I've listed? Cooked them yourself? What are some of the recipes handed down in your family?

74 comments:

Helen said...

Is he coming to my place

Have Fun
Helen

Anonymous said...

I admit I don't know anything about sweddish food !! The closest thing to swedish food I've tried is the IKEA cafeteria. It's not bad, but it's probably nothing like what you mentioned.
I'll have to check the internet for a few recipes ;-)
Thanks !

Helen said...

Beth

I hope the GR enjoys hot weather it reached 42c here today and is going to be the same tomorrow and we don't have a pool but I have AC.

I like the sound of the sausauge but I don't think I could eat the Lutefisk but the cookies sound really nice.
I posted the caramel biscuit slice receipe the other day and that was a receipe given to me by one of my Aunts and I still have a cookbook from my Mum that a lot of her favourite receipes in it that I use here and there. And of course they always bring back memories when I make them.

Have Fun
Helen

hrdwrkdmom aka Dianna said...

I have never even heard of anything like that to eat. What recipies we had in the family are all gone like my aunt's brownie/cookies.

pjpuppymom said...

I've never tried any of those foods, Beth. We don't have any ethnic recipes that have been passed down in my family - just family favorites. There's my Grandma C's meatloaf, her fudge, my mom's toffee candy (like a Heath Bar) and her potato salad.

Beth Andrews said...

Good morning! Congrats on nabbing the rooster, Helen. What are your plans with him today?

Beth Andrews said...

Emmanuelle, I'll try to sneak over to my mom's today for that Pepparkakor recipe. It's a good one :-)

A local town hosts a Swedish festival every year but I've yet to make it over to it. I usually stick to my own town's Italian festival instead *g* But it would be fun to see what other Swedish foods are out there!

Beth Andrews said...

Helen, enjoy that hot weather! We've been lucky here that temps are still above freezing. Better yet, no snow *g*

Your caramel biscuit slice recipe is on my To-Try list! They sound sooo good :-)

I think the best part about recipes that have been handed down are the memories eating or making them bring back. My sisters and I used to love helping make the pepparkakors. It was the only cookie we used our cookie cutters for and we had the best time picking which cutter to use next
:-)

Beth Andrews said...

Dianna, my mom's grandparents owned a bakery and she still talks about a certain cookie her grandmother made. Unfortunately, she doesn't have any of her grandmother's recipes.

Both my mom and my MIL have TONS of recipes saved. I should go through them now and get the ones I want. That way I'd already have the pepparkakor recipe with me ;-)

Beth Andrews said...

Morning, PJ! Your family favorites sound delicious *g*

I'm hoping some of the recipes I make stay favorites of my kids for years to come. And I'm trying to teach my son (he'll be off to college next year) how to make some simple, inexpensive meals but he insists all he needs are a couple cases of Ramen noodles
:-)

Eva S said...

Hi Beth,
greetings from the Swedish neighbour, Finland! This Korv sounds funny, never heard of it although we eat all the same food over here. We have Lutefisk (not so great) and Pepparkakor and many more dishes on our Christmas table, too many to mention...No special recipes in family.

Deb said...

Hi, Beth. HEY! I know these foods! Not only am I a little bit Swedish, I'm Danish! (My grandpa came to the States when he was 19.)
We also do many Christmas traditions and foods from Denmark in my family. One is Pebbernodder (teeny-tiny cookie), klejner, aebleskivers, etc. I also follow Grandpa Nielsen's tradition of making and hanging the woven heart-shaped baskets on the bottom branches of the Christmas tree.
I have never tried lutefisk, but have too many Norwegian friends that also say to pass on it. I got a giggle about your gravy comment.
I enjoyed your post. Glaedelig Jul!

Susan Sey said...

Hey, Beth--

LUTEFISK! Oh, lord. I had never heard of this particular...delicacy until I moved to MN. I don't know who eats it but people do discuss it as there's a huge Swedish/Norwegian contingent hanging around up here. I think probably people find it on their holiday tables with disheartening frequency. But since Minnesotans (the ones who are Minnesotan enough to find lutefisk on their holiday tables, anyway) don't mix much with imports (like me) I haven't run across it yet. But I've only been here ten years. It takes longer than that to get in with the natives around here.

Maybe in another ten years I'll finally be accepted. I'll let you know if/when I witness lutefisk in person. :-)

Minna said...

I eat and make every year Pepparkakor or piparkakku as we call them here. Lutefisk: I haven't eaten it, but I know that some people eat it here in Finland, too. I prefer freshly salted salmon, though.

http://finland.fi//xmas/4.html

http://finland.fi/public/default.aspx?nodeid=41801&contentlan=2&culture=en-US

Karen Olson said...

This is a trip down memory lane! My parents are both first generation, and our holidays were full of meatballs, Korv, herring, and of course the pepperkaka cookies.

My grandparents used to sing a really funny song about lutefisk, which I had for the first time when we were in Sweden for Christmas when I was 11. It tasted like fish jello. Totally gross.

I'm afraid that I'm an IKEA meatball convert. Their taste is so close to my grandmother's that I buy bags of them and keep them in the freezer to have with a little lingonberry sauce.

Christie Kelley said...

Beth, I've never heard of any of these foods. And personally, I think I'll avoid the lutefisk. The idea of soaking a fish in lye turned my stomach this morning.

The cookies sound good, though. I love a spicy ginger cookie any time.

Minna said...

Here are some of the things that have been passed down in my family: Karelian pasties, blueberry pie, Tiger cake, liver casserole, sultsinat, potatoe rieska (cold mashed potatoes, salt and flour. make small breads and bake in an oven) mead and cinnamon buns (korvapuusti).

http://www.finnguide.fi/finnishrecipes/recipe.asp?c=6&t=&p=151

http://books.google.fi/books?id=y9z2sgGHWewC&pg=PA54&lpg=PA54&dq=sultsina+recipe&source=bl&ots=zd3-mfLJNu&sig=FxoYnDFlfLbXbkgkIPcOMAM3SkI&hl=fi&ei=fLUGS5CKM5TkmwOMmtSwCg&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=4&ved=0CBgQ6AEwAw#v=onepage&q=sultsina%20recipe&f=false

Miljoonasade: Marraskuu (November)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QxW6DeHJme4

Minna said...

By the way Art Lee has a book called The Lutefisk Ghetto: Life in a Norwegian American Town and Scandinavians Never Repeat Gossip . . . So Listen Carefully. I haven't read them,as I haven't managed to get them in my hands yet, but his book, Real Scandinavians Never Ask Directions was funny.

jo robertson said...

Great topic, Beth! Congrats on the rooster, Helen. It's been some time since he's been at your place, hasn't it?

Had to LOL at the first two delightful dishes, Beth! Like your newly married husband, I was game to try anything when I went to Scotland.

Haggis was the most gosh-awful thing I'd ever eaten -- made primarily from sheep's stomach, lungs, liver and heart.

Love the sound of the Pepparkokar cookies, though. I like the thin, crispy kind.

jo robertson said...

Great topic, Beth! Congrats on the rooster, Helen. It's been some time since he's been at your place, hasn't it?

Had to LOL at the first two delightful dishes, Beth! Like your newly married husband, I was game to try anything when I went to Scotland.

Haggis was the most gosh-awful thing I'd ever eaten -- made primarily from sheep's stomach, lungs, liver and heart.

Love the sound of the Pepparkokar cookies, though. I like the thin, crispy kind.

Beth Andrews said...

Hey, Eva! Korv isn't too bad (if you ever get the chance to try it *g*) I'm just not a sausage fan :-)

How do you prepare your lutefisk? Is my mom the only one who tries to hide it in gravy?

Thanks for stopping by!

Beth Andrews said...

Hi, Deb! So glad I found someone who's heard of all those dishes *g* Makes me feel less like an island!

What's your favorite recipe that's been handed down?

Beth Andrews said...

LOL, Susan! One evening, as my husband and I were watching Bizarre Foods with Andrew Zimmern, he went to MN and he ate...lutefisk! We couldn't believe it *g*

And of course my husband reminded me of the horror he experienced when he ate it at my uncle's restaurant (eye roll) I told him not to eat that stuff.

On the show, Andrew also had fish balls, ostrich on a stick (are there many ostrich in MN?) and boar brains. Yum.

Plan on having any of those for your holidays? ;-)

Beth Andrews said...

Minna, I prefer salmon, too. Actually, I prefer just about anything over lutefisk *g*

Do you roll your cookies paper-thin?

Now I'm really getting hungry for some pepparkakors!

Louisa Cornell said...

Congrats, Helen! You and the babies have lured him back for some fun!

I have eaten lutefisk and your description is ... shall we say kind? One of the girls in the opera troupe in Salzburg was from Sweden and she invited us to dinner at her apartment. We all ate it to be polite and after we left made a pact NEVER to allow her to cook for us again!

The cookies sound divine though. I LOVE a good thin snap cookie and ginger is great for the digestion in addition to being a treat.

My Mom's chicken and dumplings are legendary. They are made completely from scratch, mixed in and old enamelware bowl that belonged to my great grandmother. The joke is that the only thing my Mom doesn't do from scratch is kill the chicken. She always makes them for holidays when she knows I am coming home and she always makes a double batch so I can bring some home with me. The contest every year is to see who gets to take them, my baby brother or myself. They are sealed in a big tupperware bowl after the meal and my brother and I take turns hiding them from each other. Whoever has them when it is time to go home gets them. The whole family picks sides and gets in on it. My niece and nephews are ALWAYS on my side so I usually win.

Mom also does a Lane cake and a Japanese fruit cake every year.

I lived in Mississippi for six years and have many friends in Louisiana. They still send me king cakes during Mardi Gras and they also send me homemade boudin sausage. Heaven in a sausage casing. Cook that chopped up in some dirty rice? SIGH!

I've eaten everything from cockroaches to locusts to snake to alligator to crawfish to monkey brains. This being polite gig can really wreck a girl's stomach!

Beth Andrews said...

Karen! Yay, another sister in Swedish delicacies *g*

We never had herring. My mom is sort of a picky eater and doesn't like seafood all that much (come to think of it, I'm not even sure she ate the lutefisk or just made it to torture the rest of us *g*)

But of course she made meatballs quite often. I can honestly say I don't think I've had them since I got married. Hmm...maybe I'll ask her how to make them. I bet my kids would love them :-)

Beth Andrews said...

Christie, sorry about the turned stomach. Just imagine how awful it was for me to actually have to be around the lutefisk *g* Thankfully, enough time has passed since my family has had it that we can all laugh about it now :-)

Okay, as soon as I finish up my writing, I'll go get that cookie recipe. Maybe I can talk my daughter into making a batch this weekend *g*

Beth Andrews said...

Minna, thanks for the great recipes and the book suggestion! My mom makes delicious cinnamon buns. And I bought her a cookbook of Swedish recipes one year for Christmas. I'll have to look through it to see what other tasty items I can find :-)

Minna said...

I don't roll my cookies quite paper-thin.

Lingonberry cake
Puolukkakakku

1 egg
3/4 cup (2 dl) sugar
1 cup (2 1 /2 dl) flour
1/3 cup (1 dl) lingonberry
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/3 cup (1 dl)milk

Beat the eggs and sugar, add milk, flour and baking soda and mix all together. Add lingonberry and mix carefully into a dough. Bake at 345ºF (175 ºC) for about 1 hour.

Korvapuustit
Rising time: 11/2 + 11/2 hours
Baking time: about 10-15 minutes/batch.
Oven temperature: 400°F (200°C)
Suitable for freezing

2 eggs
3/4 cup (2 dl) sugar
2 cups (1/21) milk
2 oz (50g) yeast or 2 pkgs dry yeast
3 teaspoons salt
1 tablespoon crushed cardamom
1/2 lb. (250 g) butter or margarine or 3/4 cup (2 dl) cooking oil
about 2 1/4 lb. (1 kg) white flour
1/3 cup (1 dl) raisins
egg yolk for glazing almonds for decorating cinnamon

1. Put the ingredients for the dough ready in the kitchen the previous evening. If they are cold the dough will take too long to rise.
2. Heat the milk to hand temperature so as to enhance the action of the yeast.
3. Beat up the eggs and sugar, add the milk, yeast, salt and cardamom. If oil is to be used, add it at this stage.
4. Add enough flour to get a thick, elastic mixture. Beat it vigorously to put air into the dough. This will enhance the glutination of the flour and make the dough rise well.
5. Mix in the rest of the flour and finally the butter or margarine. Knead the dough until it separates completely from your hands and the sides of the bowl.
6. If you make the dough with an electric dough mixer, follow closely the instructions for preparing dough.
7. Cover the dough with a cloth and leave to rise in a warm place. When the dough has doubled in bulk, place it on a lightly floured surface and knead well. Add the raisins.
8. Roll the dough into a sheet about 1 cm thick.
9. Spread the dough with a thick layer of melted or very soft butter. Sprinkle with sugar and cinnamon. If you like, you can add a layer of chopped or ground almonds or other nuts.
10. Roll and cut into slices c. 3 cm thick.
11. Arrange the slices on a baking sheet covered with baking paper. Let rise.
12. With a finger or the handle of a knife, make a vertical depression down each bun so that the spirallike filling bulges out on both sides.
13. Let the buns rise. Brush with beaten egg and bake.

Beth Andrews said...

LOL, Jo. I've heard of haggis - I don't think I could even force myself to try it. Maybe if I didn't know what was in it, I could take a bite...as long as no one told me later what I'd just eaten *g*

Claudia Dain said...

Beth! We share a history. My mom's parents were born in Sweden as well, and I grew up on all the dishes you mention, and in addition:

~~pickled herring on limpa (Swedish rye bread) with butter

~~lingonberry jam on Swedish pancakes

~~Swedish meatballs

~~Swedish shortbread cookies, a quarter of a maraschino cherry dabbed in the center

~~pepparkakor cookies are my favorite; love that sharp, spicy taste

Beth Andrews said...

Oh, Louisa, I'm so sorry you had to eat lutefisk! Seriously, I feel for you. It's something you never forget, isn't it? *g*

I would love to learn how to make homemade chicken and dumplings! And I was LOL as I pictured you and your brother hiding the leftovers from each other. Now that's a great tradition :-)

I could handle crawfish but I'd have to draw the line at snake and monkey brains *g*

Beth Andrews said...

Claudia, that is so cool! Although, I have to admit, we never had lingonberries. I'll have to ask my mom if she had them when she was growing up.

~~Swedish shortbread cookies, a quarter of a maraschino cherry dabbed in the center

Yep, these are my husband's favorite except we use jam in the center *g*

And I can't believe I forgot my favorite cookies - Spritz! We were the only family who made them that I knew of growing up and I just love them. We would cut red maraschino cherries in half to put at the top with a quarter of green maraschino cherry on each side to complete the wreath *g*

Anyone else getting hungry for cookies? :-)

Pat Cochran said...

Haven't ever tried any of the items
you mentioned, but I certainly have
heard of them.

With a Hispanic ancestry, of course for us occasionally it was tamales, enchiladas, tacos, and frijoles. Mother was a great cook, but it was not all Mexican foods. In fact, my favorite of her dishes was Chicken Cacciatori.

Pat Cochran

Jeanne (AKA The Duchesse) said...

Heeey! Helen! The Chook stays down under. I really think he's avoiding the States because of our Thanksgiving next week. Have fun with him today!

Beth, reading your post and everyone elses, I'm now craving ginger cookies. :>

Louisa, you are a better woman than I am. I'd have had to say, "gee, I think I'm allergic to monkey brains." hahah!

Lutefisk = disgusting. There's just no other way to describe it. I experienced this in MN, Susan, and won't go there (foodwise) again. Fish jello. yeah, that about describes it and Christie, I'm with you on the Lye thing.

Beth, my hubby's grandmother was Swedish, came over to the US at 15. She evidently made killer cookies, so I'd love to have both those cookie recipes. My mother-in-law, FIL, and Uncles/Aunts in law are all passed, so no one has the recipes. MY DH adores Swedish pancakes and pizelles because Gramma Adams used to make them.

In my family, it's fried chicken, chicken and dumplings, fried pies, apple jelly and pear preserves that are the "fought over" foods. Oh, and Mama's cinnamon rolls.

I also make a filled bread from a Bon Appetite recipe tht my sibs ask for every year. I'm also the only one who seems to have a knack for our mother's soft ginger drop cookies. (Think ginger cookies that are chewy and soft and irresistable)

Louisa, I'm still a bit green over the whole monkey brains thing...oh, and whoever mentioned boar brains? *verp* Ewwwww.

Jeanne (AKA The Duchesse) said...

BTW, Beth? HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!!

Jeanne (AKA The Duchesse) said...

Oh, and I adore the Swedish Chef.

Grins.

Eva S said...

Here in Finland we have milksauce with the lutefish, and many likes the sauce better than the fish, LOL

Jeanne (AKA The Duchesse) said...

Eva, milksauce or Beth's mashed potatoes solution - either way, I'm skipping this "delicacy"

Fish jello. Ick.

Karen Olson said...

Beth, the key to the meatballs is the allspice and white pepper. My grandmother always added mashed potatoes to the mix, too, which makes them a little fluffy.

My dad still has to have herring for Christmas. I don't care for it. My mother makes sylta, which is a sort of jellied meatloaf with pork and veal. I do like that. I think sylta is a specialty on the island where my grandparents came from: Oland.

Minna said...

Karen, that sounds like syltty that my mom likes.

Deb said...

What's your favorite recipe that's been handed down?

I like Danish Puff and Pebbernodder. Germans call them peppernuts, but northern Danes don't put anise and a very scant amount of pepper in the dough. (1/4 tsp. pepper to the 12 c flour proportions).
You roll the dough into a little log, just a bit larger than a pencil, and cut pieces about the size of the tip of your little finger. The dough also uses lard and not butter. The best way to eat them is to grab a handful and toss 'em in your mouth where they seem to melt. Mmmmm!
It takes forever to make a lot of them. My mother probably makes 6 or 7 batches...maybe more.
Aebleskivers are little round pancakes with applesauce in the middle and then rolled in sugar. I bought a pan in Denmark and lugged the dumb thing home and then found out that a gourmet store near me sells them.

Deb said...

Has anyone ever had frikadeller meatballs? They are ground pork, not sausage, with nutmeg as the seasoning. You roll them and then fry them in a skillet. You can serve them with boiled potatoes.

Minna said...

Bork, bork:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sY_Yf4zz-yo&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mbs64GvGgPU&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jc_UCc8EQcQ

Tomas Ledin-Du kan lita på mig
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mbs64GvGgPU&feature=related

Herreys - Diggiloo Diggiley
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UTFec_mrD-c

Roxette - The Look
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UFgCLJE9QPw&feature=fvst

Ace of Base - The Sign
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=96jFtzVa80A

Ace of base life is a flower
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wtIuPApOP-E

Deb said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Deb said...

Minna, thank you for the recipes and links. My family chooses a different country every year for a Christmas meal and we haven't "done" Finland yet... So, hmmm, who knows?

Unknown said...

Congrats Helen on getting the GR today! I will bet he's happy to be there.

I have never heard of these dishes, the cookies sound wonderful but not sure about the others.

The only thing I can think us that we make thats been handed down is my grandmas dumplings. We usually have them at Thanksgiving and Christmas with turkey. They are really good. Made with just flour, turkey broth salt, pepper, egg also put chicken base in the broth. Make dough out of flour, salt, pepper egg and broth. Roll out real thin and cut up and put into boiling broth and cook until tinder. My nephew calls them Nanny noodles and he can eat his weight in them.

Minna said...

Speaking Saint Lucia... In my high school we had every year some girl leading the procession on Saint Lucia's day thanks to our Swedish teacher.

Blaire said...

Hi Aunt Beth! I looooveeee Grandma's pepparkakor cookies. I made them for Nate last year and he's a new fan :) Mine are never as good as Grandma's, though. Not much longer until we get to eat them!

Tawny said...

Mmmmm cookies.

Those sound delicious, Beth. And since I'm a lazy cookie maker, I don't supposed those are going out in holiday boxes, are they? Hmmmmmmm? (batting eyelashes and looking cute).

I'd heard of the fish, but not the sausage. I've never had either, but then I don't do the meat thing so thats not surprising.

I have quite a few German recipes passed down from my gramma that we love. Blinna (thin yeasty pancakes) is one, Groutburic was another favorite until I became vegetarian. I'm still trying to find a way to make it without the meat LOL. I can't spell it, but there is a dumpling dish Gramma makes that is amazing.

hmmm, now I'm hungry.

Tracy Garrett said...

Beth,

Being (nearly) half Norwegian, I've heard many stories of lutefisk and I love Pepparkakor; and I've had Korv at a Church holiday buffet - more than half that congregation was Scandinavian. lol

Sticking with my Norwegian & German family traditions, we'll be making lefse and rosettes this Christmas, as well as Molasses cookies and perhaps Springerle, if I can get it together in time.

Gannon Carr said...

Beth, I've never tried any of the aforementioned Swedish dishes, but I have heard of them. I believe it was in a Lavyrle Spencer book.

I grew up in the South, so we are all about food! LOL My great-grandma's fresh apple cake, pecan pie, cornbread, chicken and dumplings, chicken pot pie and other assorted cakes and cookies.

Food has been the subject of so many blogs lately, I feel like I've already gained 5 pounds and it's not even Thanksgiving yet. :)

Becke Davis said...

My mom is not Swedish, but wishes she was. I'm not kidding. Her house is filled with Swedish decor, and she is addicted to anything Carl Larssen.

As for me, your post made me think of The Swedish Shop in Lake Geneva, WI, and thy fabulous Christmas dinner scene in the Denis Leary's The Ref.

Anna Campbell said...

Hey, Helen, whoo hoooo to the chook!

Beth, I loved your post. And those cookies sound absolutely delish. There's a German ginger and cinnamon cookie that I've tried that sounds very similar. It's sort of sweet and peppery at the same time, yum!

My mum was a wonderful cook and she tried to teach me to do a stack of her specialties and I never got the hang of them. Especially her gravy. As those of you who have followed my blog tour would know, I LOVE gravy! Something I did learn to make off her with success though was her salad dressing. It's still the dressing I always use. She always called it French dressing but a true French dressing is just vinegar and olive oil. This has garlic and a few other secret ingredients so I think it's really Dagmar's dressing!

Anna Campbell said...

By the way, lutefisk sounds ABSOLUTELY REVOLTING!!!!!! The sausage is probably OK.

Anna Campbell said...

Hey, great to see all the Scandinavian connections coming out. Mum's family were all Danish and I definitely look like I belong to that branch of the family. When I visited Copenhagen, I went absolutely mad on the pattisseries. This buttery light pastry with delicious custard inside. Oh, yum! There was one you could buy at the main railway station in Copenhagen which was like a plaited loaf with almonds and icing to go with the custard. YUM!!!!!

Beth Andrews said...

Sorry I disappeared! I had to take my girls to the salon for haircuts then I stopped at my Mom's on the way home (because she assured me she'd be there) to get the recipes but she wasn't home (sigh)

Good gravy that woman has a lot of recipes! But I did manage to find the pepparkakor one *g* Here it is:

Pepparkakor Cookies

1 1/2 cups sugar
1 cup butter
3/4 cup dark corn syrup
1/4 cup molasses
2 eggs beaten
1 heaping tsp cloves
1 heaping tsp ginger
1 heaping tsp cinnamon
5 cups flour
2 Tbsp baking soda

Mix and boil sugar, butter, syrup and molasses for a few minutes. Cool. Add eggs. Combine dry ingredients in a separate bowl and stir into wet ingredients. Mix well and refrigerate overnight. Roll out thin and cut into desired shapes. Bake at 350 degrees for 10 min.

This recipe makes a lot of cookies so you may want to cut it in half *g*

Beth Andrews said...

Pat, all of those dishes sound so great! My paternal grandmother made chicken cacciatore that was delicious. I'd make it more often but my husband (a man who really will eat just about anything) has a thing against tomato sauce on his chicken :-)

Beth Andrews said...

Jeanne, I would love a soft ginger cookie! I do love ginger and molasses cookies. That's another thing my mom made that was so good - molasses sugar cookies. Yum!

All of the items in your family, sound delicious. I have a few recipes for fried pies that I've been wanting to make - especially the chocolate one. Maybe I'll try them out this weekend :-)

Beth Andrews said...

BTW, Beth? HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!!

Thank you! I'm debating on whether to celebrate with a glass of wine or a trip to Dairy Queen ;-)

Beth Andrews said...

Here in Finland we have milksauce with the lutefish, and many likes the sauce better than the fish, LOL

LOL, Eva! Maybe that's what my mom made. It was a thick, white gravy. Hmm...I'd ask her but I'm afraid she'll think I want her to make it or something *g*

Beth Andrews said...

Beth, the key to the meatballs is the allspice and white pepper.

Karen, I grabbed my mom's Swedish cookbook when I was at her house and a few versions of the meatballs have mashed potatoes as an ingredient. I'm already looking forward to trying a few of them out *g*

Beth Andrews said...

The best way to eat them is to grab a handful and toss 'em in your mouth where they seem to melt. Mmmmm!

Deb, those sound great! And I love your idea of choosing a different country every year for a Christmas meal. We did that with New Year's Eve dinner a few years but got away from it. I think now's a good time to try it again :-)

Beth Andrews said...

Virginia, my husband would love those dumplings. My mom makes good dumplings but she never rolled her out, just plopped spoonfuls of dough into the broth *g* I make them anytime we have boiled dinner (ham, potatoes, cabbage, carrots, onion) or sauerkraut although I use a different recipe for my sauerkraut dumplings :-)

Beth Andrews said...

Hi Aunt Beth! I looooveeee Grandma's pepparkakor cookies. I made them for Nate last year and he's a new fan :) Mine are never as good as Grandma's, though. Not much longer until we get to eat them!

Hi, Blaire! I'm actually surprised Mom hasn't started her holiday baking already. You know how she likes to get an early start *g* I hope Nate liked the cookies! Can't wait to see you both next week :-)

Beth Andrews said...

I don't supposed those are going out in holiday boxes, are they? Hmmmmmmm? (batting eyelashes and looking cute).

LOL. Well, you are adorable when you give that look so...sure. I could be talked into sending you a gift box of cookies.

That gives me a reason to bake *g*

Are you sure I can't send some lutefisk, too?

Beth Andrews said...

Hey, Tracy! I've never heard of the dishes you plan to make...but now I'll look them up *g* I do love trying new things :-)

Beth Andrews said...

Food has been the subject of so many blogs lately, I feel like I've already gained 5 pounds and it's not even Thanksgiving yet. :)

LOL! That is so true, Gannon! And I've become even more obsessed with Food Network. I love all of their holiday cooking specials.

And I really think I should've been born in the South since I LOVE all of those dishes you mentioned (except pecan pie - I dont' like nuts...unless I'm related to them *g*)

Beth Andrews said...

Her house is filled with Swedish decor, and she is addicted to anything Carl Larssen

LOL, Becke. That is so funny because the first item I bought for our house after we built it was a Carl Larssen print! It's still hanging in my kitchen *g*

Beth Andrews said...

Oh, Anna, I love gravy, too! I've finally gotten the hang of it (after 18 years) but it's still not as good as my mother's. As a matter of fact, if I have my parents over for dinner and there's gravy involved, my son will insist I let grandma make it. She also handles that task every Thanksgiving even though she's not the main cook :-)

And those pattisseries sound DELICIOUS!

Deb said...

...a plaited loaf with almonds and icing to go with the custard. YUM!!!!!

Oh, Anna, that is yummy; it's to die for. To have kaffe and pastries and dessert every afternoon in Denmark was a sweets-lover's dream---and a weight gain's nigtmare!

Linda Henderson said...

I have never heard of any of these. I'm not sure I'd like them either.

Christine Wells said...

Lovely post, Beth! Those cookies sound divine. I think the closest I've come to Swedish food is a Norwegian platter of interesting tidbits--herring, smoked salmon and so on. Strangest food I've eaten was in South Africa--Waterbloomerkiss (sp?) stew with waterlillies and other interesting things, the names of which I can't remember now. Mind like a sieve!

Tawny said...

Are you sure I can't send some lutefisk, too?

Absolutely positive. Even if it didn't sound, well, revolting, can you imagine a box of it after it'd made its way across the country?

Gag me, like, totally.