China Crumpet

So Christmas is over and your fridge and freezer, if they are anything like ours, are stuffed with leftovers. Here is my favorite things to do with the mess that’s left:

Munch Munch...

What do you do with your holiday leftovers?

I have been up to my ears in cooking over the past few days, getting ready for a Swedish Christmas spread is no easy feat when you have to do everything the old school way. Little did I know though that making mustard from scratch was the easiest thing I have ever done! And it tastes amazing.

So there are 2 ways to do it. The first uses whole mustard seeds and the second uses mustard powder. They are both delicious and you can serve them together so that your guests get a little texture diversity!

This baby is just waiting to be spread on a ham sandwich!

For a whole seed grainy version (from Skane!) you will need:

• 1 1/2 dl yellow mustard seeds
• 1/2 dl black mustard seeds
• 2 dl boiling water
• 1 1/2 tbs honey
• Vinegar to taste (2-3 tbs)
• 3-4 tbs oil

Put the seeds in boiling water and leave them for a while (up to a day for best results) to soften them up and plump them a bit. Put the seeds and the water in a food processor with the blade attachment and run it full speed for a minute or so until the yellow seeds have become creamy and the mixture looks mustard-like in consistency. You will have whole black seeds in the mixture which makes the texture amazingly grainy and delicious. Add vinegar honey and oil gradually, tasting as you go. I like my mustard not so sweet and pretty firm but if you like it runnier and sweeter just add water and honey to taste. When you are done, put your mustard in a lovely old fashioned jar with a lid and let it stand in the fridge for a day or two to mature.

By the way, in the olden days when they didn’t have food processors, they used a bowl and a cannon ball and rolled the ball over the seeds to crush them, adding the rest of the ingredients drip by drip. If anyone gives this method a go, please let me know how it worked out!

When making mustard from powder you will need:

• 3/4 dl mustard powder (like Coleman’s, see note)
• 2-3 tbs oil
• 3 tbs white wine vinegar
• 2-3 tbs honey
• 3 tbs brown sugar
• 1/2 tsp salt
• some tepid water
• 2-3 tbs brandy or 1-2 tbs black currant jelly

Mix all the ingredients except the water and the jelly. Add the water gradually until you have a texture you are happy with. Let the mustard stand for a few minutes and check the texture again. If it is too dry add a drop or two more of water. Add the brandy or jelly to get a fuller taste. Jar the mustard and let it stand for a day or two to mature.

Note: there are 2 kinds, a fine, very yellow kind which is made entirely from yellow seeds and a coarser darker kind which is made from both kinds of seeds, they will both do. You will get a yellow, very smooth mustard with the first kind and a coarser mustard with the second kind.

Happy mustard making! Let me know how you get on.

I am loving my Indian food right now. Somehow, it feels luxurious and exotic to be having curry and pratha in December, it sort of fills up the space between the goose and the ham really nicely. The nice thing about Indian food as well is that there are so many vegetarian recipes (and this one is vegan even!) that don’t leave you feeling like you’ve missed something.

This is a sturdy Daal (lentil or chickpea based mixture) that will feed 4 with a but of rice or naan bread to go with it. It can also be eaten as a dip or together with other Indian classics such as Palak Paneer or Chicken Do Piaza.

You will need:

2 cans chickpeas
1/2 tsp cumin seeds
1 small onion; minced
1 tbs minced fresh ginger
1 tbs minced garlic
1/2 tsp ground turmeric
1 tbs ground coriander
1 tsp cayenne pepper
1 dl tomato paste
2 dl (3/4 cup) water or mild, brewed tea
1/2 teaspoon salt; or to taste
2 tablespoon fresh lime juice
Oil for frying

Coarsely chop about half the chickpeas. In a food processor or a blender, process the remaining chickpeas and half the water or tea until you get an even puree. Set aside.

Heat a large skillet over moderate heat. Add the cumin seeds and fry until they pop, about 10 seconds. Add onion, ginger & garlic and fry until onion is soft and slightly transparent. Add turmeric, coriander and cayenne. Cook for about 30 seconds or so, stirring to make sure nothing burns. Add tomato paste and remaining water/tea. Simmer for a minute or two and then add the chopped and pureed chickpeas. Simmer for a while longer, season with salt and add the lime juice right at the end. Serve with rice and/or pratha.

When I lived in Singapore, I developed a real tooth for Indian food since the really good, authentic stuff was available all over the place. Here in Beijing, we have some pretty decent Indian places too, which makes it so much easier to go out and get it when you want it instead of slaving over the pots and pans at home.

But then I think of the future, possibly sitting in a Swedish suburb somewhere, and craving nothing more than a simple roti or curry… with none to be found. The horror!

So this week I have decided to start learning how to make a decent Indian meal at home once and for all before the tragedy becomes reality.

This curry was super simple and really tasty. It comes from the South of India where they do not go in for the creamy, buttery tastes of the north but that suits me just fine. The end result was delicious and left me longing for the left overs that I will have for lunch tomorrow. Always a good sign!

This will feed 4 and takes about 40 minutes:

1 1/2 kg chicken, cut into bite size chunks
6 medium onions
4 fresh green chilies, seeded
4 teaspoons chopped garlic
1 1/2 tbs finely grated fresh ginger
1 tbs ground coriander
1 tbs ground cumin
2 tsp ground turmeric
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp ground cardamom
1/4 tsp ground cloves
3 tbs butter (or even better ghee, if you can get it)
3 tbs oil
3 ripe tomatoes, peeled and chopped
2 1/2 dl water
3 tsp salt

Cut half of the onions into thin slices and set aside. Roughly chop the rest of the onions and blend in a mixer with the chilies, garlic and ginger until you get a puree. Mix in the ground spices. Heat butter (or ghee) and oil in a large saucepan and fry the sliced onions, stirring frequently, until they become nice and golden. Get the onions out of the pan leaving as much fat as possible, and set aside. Add the blended onion puree mixture the remaining oil and fry on medium heat, stirring until it starts to brown and you see oil around the edges. Add the tomatoes, stir and cook until liquid from tomatoes is almost evaporated. Add the chicken pieces and stir well. Add water and salt, cover and cook for 35 minutes or until chicken is tender. Add the fried onions, cover and simmer for another 5 minutes.

Serve with rice or parathas, listening to your favorite Bollywood tune.

This Indian restaurant staple can be made at home just as easily. And if you are like me, the amount of time I have cravings for Indian totally justifies learning how to make the stuff at home.

You will need:

500 g fresh spinach
100 g Paneer diced
Oil for frying
1 medium minced onion
1 tbs minced ginger
1 tbs minced garlic
2 tbs butter
1 tsp garam masala or to taste
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp salt
1 tsp Cayenne pepper

Wash the spinach thoroughly and boil in a large saucepan until it wilts (about 3 minutes). Cool the spinach by dunking it in ice cold water or running it under cold tap water. When it is cool, put it in a mixer (or a bowl if, like me, you are using a hand mixer) and blend to a thick puree. Set aside. Heat a skillet and add some cooking oil. Fry the onion, garlic and ginger until golden. Add the garam masala, cumin and salt. Add the spinach and 1 tbs of the butter and cook for about 5 minutes on medium heat. Carefully stir in the Paneer. When everything has come together and you are ready to serve, heat another little skillet or saucepan and add the butter. When it is hot, take it off the heat, add the cayenne quickly and immediately pour the cayenne/butter mixture over the palak paneer. Serve with rice or naan.

Paneer is a kind of Indian milk cheese. My fave is to use it in Palak Paneer, where the cheese is stewed for a little while in a spinach gravy. There are tones of other uses too though and it really is the easiest thing in the world to make.

All you need is:

1 litre milk
1 1/2 tsp vinegar or lemon juice

Boil the milk. When it is boiling, add the vinegar/lemon juice. The mixture will curdle straight away. Turn off the heat and leave it for 5 minutes. Strain the curdled milk into a clean cheese cloth (or cotton kitchen towel) and leave it to drip. You can save the liquid to make bread if you like. When it is dry, tie a knot in the towel (or tie it with a sturdy bit of string) so the cheese is nice and secure in the towel and mould it into a rectangle. Put a heavy weight on top of the whole thing and leave it for a couple of hours to set.

You will be left with a soft bit of white cheese, lovely for cooking with or having with a drizzle of honey. Fried, it turns golden brown and crisp on the outside and soft and mild on the inside. Heaven.

Christmas at the Mauritzon’s this year will be celebrated in Beijing.

This means new challenges in bringing together the traditional Swedish Christmas smorgasbord of delicacies such as pickled herring and smoked eel. In order to seek out some of these Swedish must haves, we went to IKEA yesterday, to look at our fellow Beijinger’s sleeping in the bedding section and picnicing in the kitchen section, but also to purchase some of those Christmas essentials such as herring, tubed caviar spread for the egg platter and anchovies for the classic, Jansson’s temptation.

Unfortunately, we were out of luck. While we managed to buy a new salad bowl and cutting board and stock up on tea lights, IKEA seemed to have forgotten what Swedes eat for Christmas and had stocked up on candy and beer instead of herring and anchovies. We left with a bag of dill chips, some crisp bread, Swedish cheese and, luckily, the famous caviar spread. Now however, a new game plan must be devised. I have set my mind to making a couple of soft cheeses, curing my own ham and dry curing salmon so hopefully things will be ok despite the huge gap on the fishy side of the table this year.

But for those of you who want to join me in my ham curing, I am following this recipe by Jens Linder for a traditional Swedish ham:

1 ham (4-6 kg)

For the dry cure:
4 tbs salt (without iodine, it colors the ham)
2 tbs sugar
1/2 tbs saltpeter

For the brine:
5 liters water
9 dl (3 3/4 cups) salt (again, without iodine)
2 tbs sugar
1/2 tbs saltpeter

Mix the ingredients for the dry cure and rub it into the ham with clean hands. Put the dry cured ham into a plastic or ceramic bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Leave in the fridge over night.

The next day, mix the ingredients for your brine in a saucepan and bring to a boil, skimming off anything that floats to the surface. Let cool.

When the brine is completely cool, pour it over the ham, cover and leave in a cool, dark place (like your fridge or a food cellar) for 15 days afterwhich it is (finally) ready to boil and mustard-glaze.

Good luck my friends, may your hams and mine come out brilliantly!

Breakfast is one of those things that you always miss when you are not at home, isn’t it? I consider myself pretty adventurous when it comes to eating but nothing for me beats a good old Swedish breakfast of warm rolls, a selection of hard and soft cheeses, deli-meats, some sliced veggies, home made jam, a soft boiled egg and a glass of orange juice. And the paper of course.

Here in Beijing, breakfast has been a particular challenge. We quickly ruled out you tiao, baozi, tea soaked eggs and warm soy milk. Although they are all delicious and it is nice to once in a while experience a true Beijing breakfast experience, the taste profile of that particular breakfast is not what I get out of bed for.

Lining up for some delicious shaobing and soy milk

For a while now, we have settled the matter by making oatmeal porridge with chopped dried fruits, fresh milk and cashew nuts. It has been a good healthy start to the day and yummy enough to have lasted a while.

Our usual brekkie

On the weekends however, when there are a few extra minutes to spare, I have recently found out that baking breakfast rolls is not as hard as it seems. Plus, with home made butter and jam, it’s almost like home!

To try your very own Swedish breakfast experience at home, boil an egg, buy some oranges and squeeze them for some lovely, fresh juice, get some cheese, jam and butter, brew your favorite tea and make a load of Källarfranska (Swedish breakfast rolls).

I usually cheat a bit and make the batter and roll them out the night before I want to eat them and then bake them in the morning. That way I can sleep in instead of having to spend the morning kneading dough and the house will still be filled with the gorgeous smell of newly baked bread while I enjoy the latest copy of the Economist.

Hot rolls on a smoggy morning

For 16 rolls you will need:

14 g instant dry yeast (swedes, this is the equivalent to a 50 g package of fresh yeast)
1/2 litre (2 cups) water, room temperature or slightly tepid
1 tbs sugar
1 1/2 tsp salt
3 tbs oil
13 dl all purpose flour

Mix the flour and salt in a large bowl. Make a well in the middle.

Mix a couple of tablespoons of the water, the sugar and the yeast in a small bowl until everything is dissolved and leave it until you see tiny bubbles forming on the surface of the yeast mixture.

Pour the yeast mixture, oil and the rest of the water into the well you made in your flour and work the liquids into the flour with your hands. Knead the dough on a floured surface until you have a smooth, springy dough which isn’t too dry or too sticky. Add a little more flour if you need to.

Form the dough into a 50cm long sausage and cut it into 16 parts. Roll the balls slightly and then flatten them so you get 16 roundish dough lumps. Give them a flour coating by gently turning them in a bit of the flour you have on your work space. Put them, well spaced out, on a well oiled or buttered oven tray.

Now you can either put the tray in the fridge with some cling film over it and bake them (without the cling film) straight out of the fridge in the morning or you can let them rise for 40 minutes under a clean kitchen towel.

40 minutes later or the next morning, set your oven to 250°c and bake for 15 minutes or until golden. When they are finished, they should sound hollow when you tap them.

Enjoy with all your different spreads and toppings (if you really want to be Swedish, enjoy your bread with butter, a sharp hard cheese and a thin layer of apricot or orange marmalade) while reading your favorite mag or the paper.

What’s your favorite breakfast?

This sounds so unbelievably pretentious that even I almost gag. I know. But what if I told you that home churned butter tastes a million times better than the store bought kind and only takes about 5 minutes to make? Are you still with me? Wouldn’t you like to try as well??

This whole crazy idea comes from a fellow foodie and blogger “kryddburken“. She writes in Swedish so I felt it was my sacred duty to share in English also. But to those of you who read Swedish, check out her stuff!

So to the butter. All you need for 100 g of pure, home made butter is:

• 3 dl (a bit more than a cup) fresh cream
  (NOT homogenized, processed, or any kind of long lasting cream, it’s gotta be fresh cream or it won’t work. Trust me. In Beijing I get it in a ziplock bag at the xinyuanli market. You Swedes can use vispgrädde.)
• about a teaspoon of good quality salt

THAT’S IT! Then you just whip the cream with an electric whisk until it goes stiff, then really stiff and then starts to separate.

NOTE: If you have been whipping for like 6,7,8 minutes and it just keeps being all shiny and whipped creamy, you have the wrong kind of cream. Enjoy it with hot chocolate or a piece of chocolate red wine cake and forget about the whole butter idea until your next trip to the market.

When you think you’ve ruined the whole thing and have lumps of butter swimming around in milky looking watery liquid you are done. Dump the whole thing through a fine-mesh sieve and squeeze the liquid out with clean, cold hands. You should also run it under some cold water to wash off all the separated liquid, this means it will keep longer. When you have your finished lump of butter, add salt to taste and enjoy.

If you have cream that has gone slightly sour, the butter will be better still. In theory, the butter keeps for a while. In practice, it will be eaten long before it comes close to going bad.

Serving suggestion: We had it today for breakfast with breakfast rolls right out of the oven and freshly squeezed orange juice. A breakfast fit for a king.

As usual when I am trying to cut back on the calories, I suddenly have an irresistible urge to bake sweets. So I figure, forget the calories, life is too short to care.

Here is my easiest and fastest recipe for from scratch cookies. They are marvelously independent, take a couple of minutes to whip up, need almost no ingredients and taste like a lazy afternoon with a good book under a sun-umbrella with the sea lapping a few feet away. If you want that bounty-bar (but better) effect, melt some good quality chocolate in a bowl set over a hot water bath and cover them with a luscious layer of chocolate or two once they’ve cooled.

For about 16 cookies you will need:

50 g butter, softened
2 eggs
1 dl (3/4 cup) sugar
5.5 dl (2 1/4 cup) grated, unsweetened coconut

NOTE: If you like you can also add the zest of one lime and a tablespoon or so of dark rum. But they are fine without these add-ons.

Set the oven to 200°C. Mix together all the ingredients in a large bowl, you should have a fairly firm batter. Butter an oven tray thoroughly or line with greaseproof paper (they seriously stick so this step is crucial!). Taking about a tablespoon of the mixture at a time, distribute the batter evenly on the tray and bake for about 15 minutes or until golden and crispy looking. They need some attention in the oven as they are a little burn prone.

Enjoy while listening to Bob Marley.

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