Cod mac’n cheese or as we call it in Norway fish au gratin

 

This dish is one of the childrens favorite dishes, “Fiske grateng” as it is called  in Norwegian comes in many different varieties, some with macaroni, some without, some with cheese and some without. I make it with macaroni and cheese, so it is more like a mac’n cheese.

Dinner for 4

5 dl cooked macaroni
4 tbsp butter
6 tbsp flour
6 dl milk
1 grated carrots
3-4 stalks shallots
3 dl grated cheese, use the cheese you like
1 tsp ground pepper
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
500 g cod filet
2 eggs
1 dl bread crumbs or panko crumbs

Preheat the oven to 180 C. Grease a baking dish with butter.

Boil water and cook the pasta, drain and reserve.

Heat the milk in a small saucepan, but don’t boil it.

 

In a large pot, melt butter and add the flour. Cook over low heat for 2 minutes, stirring with a whisk. Still whisking, add the hot milk and cook until thick and smooth. take the pan off the heat, add the cooked macaroni, carrots, shallots, cheese, salt, pepper, and nutmeg. Add the cooked macaroni and cod and lightly beaten eggs and stir well. Place the mixture in a baking dish or individual dishes.

Sprinkle the breadcrumbs on top with a handful of grated cheese.

Bake in the middle of the oven for 30 to 35 minutes or until golden.

Serve this with a coleslaw or salad.

I made aslaw with

1 part grated apple
1 part grated carrot
1 part finely cut red cabbage
2 parts chopped kale

1 part creme fraishe/sourcream
1 part mayonese
1 tsp garlic powder
pinch salt
ground pepper

 

Fastelavn buns 2016

Christmas wasn’t that long ago and it is already time to fatten up again, this time as “tradition” goes fatten up before Lent.

Do you know of any christians that still fast during Lent? I don’t, but it is nice to keep some traditions.

This years Fastelavn (Scandinavian Mardi Gras) is on Sunday the 7th of February, and I am making traditional buns but heart-shaped and filling them with strawberries and cream as I usually do.

Here are links to other buns I have made, last years(2015) Fastelavn buns  and the year before(2014).

I have used my regular bun recipe.

DOUGH

1 package  active dry yeast

300 ml warm  milk

75 ml  warm water

100 g butter, melted

100 ml granulated sugar

2 large eggs

1 teaspoon salt

1200 ml flour

1/2 tsp ground cardamom

In a large mixing bowl, dissolve yeast in warm water and some of the sugar., stir and let it sit for a few minutes. Add the milk, melted butter, sugar, eggs, salt, and 3/4 of the flour. Mix and add enough of the remaining flour to form a firm dough.

Turn the dough onto a floured surface. Knead until smooth and elastic, about 5 minutes. Do not over-knead, which will yield a tough, chewy bread. The dough is ready when it is smooth and when you can poke it with a finger and it springs back. Form dough into a smooth ball and place into a large greased bowl, turning once to grease the top. Cover with plastic wrap or aluminum foil and let it rise to double size.

Roll the ready dough flat about 1-1,5 cm thick and cut out heart shapes or make the shape you want.

Put the buns on a bakingpaper lined baking tray, cover them and let them rice to double their size.

Bake the buns in a pre heated oven on 180 C for 10 minutes or until golden brown.

You can also brush the buns with a little eggwash before you bake them to give them a glossy look.

Serve with whipped cream and freshly crushed strawberries.

Rice porrige

One of the must haves during Christmas in Norway is Rice porridge and as tradition goes you hide a blanched almond in it. The person who gets the almond wins a price and the price is usually a marzipan pig.

A small portion for 4

4 dl water

2 dl porridge rice, sushi rice is nice for this purpose

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 l whole milk

1 tsp salt

Butter

sugar

Cinnamon

Boil the rice in water untill the rice is almost cooked and the water is evaporated, reduce the heat to medium and add milk little by little till it becomes thick in consistency. Add the vanilla extract and keep cooking on low heat stirring occasionally making sure the porridge wont burn, lastly add the salt.

Serve the porridge with a click of butter and sprinkle sugar and cinnamon on top.

Fastelavnboller

Fastelavnboller are buns filled with wipped cream and other goodnesses that are eaten to celebrate the coming days of fasting, even though the tradition of fasting is long forgotten.

Fastelavn comes from the low german word vastel-avent, evening before Lent and it is the name commonly used for Carnival in the scandinavian countries. Fastelavn evolved from the Roman Catholic tradition of celebrating the days before Lent, but since the scandinavian countries became Protestant, the holiday became less specifically religious. This holiday occurs seven weeks before Easter Sunday and is sometimes described as a Nordic Halloween, children dressing up in costumes and gather treats for the Fastelavn feast. The holiday is generally considered to be a time for children’s fun and family games. The Cat in the Sac is often played and is a nordic version of a Piñata.

 

2 cups milk, I got a tip to boil the milk and let it cool to make the fluffiest buns

1/2 cup butter

1/2 cup sugar

1,5 tps active dry yeast

1/2 tps salt

4 cups all purpose flour

1 tsp finly ground cardamom

Strawberry purée

1 cup whipping cream

Fresh strawberries

Boil milk, sugar and butter and let it cool to bodytemperature, add the rest of the ingredients and knead the dough till it is soft and plyable. Coover the dough and let it rise to atleast double the size.

This dough gave me about 24 buns

I placed them om trays lined with baking paper and let them rice again for about 20 minutes.

Baked them in the middle of the oven between 10-15 minutes, until golden on 200 degrees Celsius about 400 F. Let the buns cool on a wire rack.

Whip the cream, cut the buns in half and add some whipped cream,

cut strawberries and purée, then put the top back on and dust with icing sugar.

My youngest daughter made this one

and it was yummy:)

Enjoy:)