Gräddkola (Swedish Toffee)

I'm on a Swedish Christmas foods kick recently, and one of the things I distinctly remember eating way too much of as a kid is what we call gräddkola, or cream toffee. This recipe was handed down from generation to...eh, not really, but it's from my mom's recipe book and it came out really well.

I can think of healthier things to eat, but it's pretty spectacular as far as candy goes.

Gräddkola

1 1/4 cup heavy whipping cream
3/4 cup half-and-half
2 1/3 cups sugar
1 cup golden syrup (or a mix of 1/3 cup molasses and 2/3 cup light corn syrup)
3 tbsp unsalted butter
1 1/2 tbsp cocoa
1/2 tbsp vanilla extract
chopped almonds (optional)

Mix all ingredients apart from the vanilla extract in a large, heavy-bottomed pot. Turn to low heat (I used 2 on a scale of 1-10) and stir occasionally, about every 10-15 minutes. Stir with either a heavy wooden spoon or a plastic spoon - note that the residue on the spoon will be very sticky after a couple of hours. That's right, you'll be letting this simmer over low temperature for about 4 hours. Add the vanilla after 3 hours and 45 minutes.

Once 4 hours have passed, pour cold water into a drinking glass. Place about a teaspoon of the toffee in the water, then pull the toffee out and try to shape it into a ball. If you are unable to, the toffee needs to cook longer. The softer the ball is, the softer the toffee will be (which means it will be harder to handle). The longer you cook, the harder the candy, so if you do go past the 4 hours, make sure you check it every 15 minutes or so. Mine was done after almost exactly 4 hours and came out a little on the soft side.

Butter a 9x13 inch glass baking pan. Once the toffee is ready, pour it into the pan and leave until completely cooled. Next cut the toffee into bite-sized pieces, using a knife or scissors (I used scissors and it worked perfectly). Wrap the toffee in wax paper. Try not to eat all of them before you've let at least someone else try one!

The toffee will last for about a month if kept in a cool and dark place (but not in the fridge).

Hot Chocolate with a Kick

It's cold out there, and what better remedy is there than hot chocolate? I decided to make some the other night, with a slight kick added: whiskey cream liqueur (or Bailey's, as most people would call it, no matter the brand).

Hot Chocolate with a Kick

1 serving of hot chocolate (I use Swiss Miss milk chocolate)
3 tbsp heavy whipping cream
2 oz Bailey's cream liqueur (or similar)
cocoa for sprinkling

Mix the hot chocolate according to the instructions on the package. Whip the cream until soft peaks form. Pour the hot chocolate into a cup, add the Bailey's and stir. Top with the whipped cream and sprinkle cocoa on top.

Super simple, extremely healthy (not!), and so very, very good.

Gingerbread Cookies

It's finally getting close to Christmas, and I decided to celebrate this fact by baking gingerbread cookies - Swedish style. The ones you can find in the U.S. seem to be a bit darker and heavier than what I'm used to, the main reason being that a lot of color comes from molasses. This traditional recipe uses golden syrup instead, but if you are unable to find this, mix 1/3 molasses and 2/3 light corn syrup for the same effect (I did find some, in the third store I checked).

I remember being (much) younger, helping my mom bake these cookies. As a child, you end up eating about as much of it as you finally end up baking, but I managed to exercise some restraint and had just a small taste of the dough while I was making it to make sure the spices came out the way they're supposed to. The dough won't take long to make, but plan on spending at least a couple of hours shaping the cookies with various cookie cutters if you end up making the full batch at once (I decided to make half the batch today and the rest in a few days; it will last in the fridge for about a week). The cookies themselves will last over a month if kept in a cookie jar or tin and up to six months if you freeze them. Depending on thickness, this recipe will make over 200 cookies.

Those are my fiancée's hands in the picture, not mine. Just saying.

Swedish Gingerbread Cookies

10.5 oz/300g/2.65 sticks unsalted butter
2 cups plus 1 tablespoon sugar
1/2 cup golden syrup
1 tbsp ground ginger
1 tbsp ground cloves
2 tbsp cinnamon
2 tsp ground cardamom
1 tbsp baking powder
3/4 cups water
6 1/3 cups all purpose flour

In a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment (or in a large bowl, using an electric mixer), combine the butter (at room temperature), sugar and golden syrup. Mix well, until completely blended into a smooth batter.

Add spices and baking powder and mix well. Add the water and mix well. Next, add the flour, one cup at the time, and make sure the flour is completely incorporated before you add the next cup. However, if you're not using a stand mixer, add all the flour at once and turn onto a baking board and knead by hand.

Once the dough comes together, divide into two halves and wrap each with tin foil. Refrigerate at least overnight or up to a week.

Once it's time to bake, turn the oven to 400 degrees F. Arrange parchment paper (not wax paper!) on a baking sheet or lightly coat the sheet with vegetable oil (I strongly prefer the parchment paper). If you have multiple baking sheets, I suggest using all of them, one at a time. Next, cut off a chunk of dough - I cut mine into about a tenth of the total amount of the dough in one of the two foil packages, but it's down to how big of a work area you have to work with. I wouldn't recommend working with huge pieces of dough, though. Next, sprinkle some flour on the work area/baking board, add the dough and sprinkle some flour on top of it. Using a rolling pin, roll the dough thinly, to about 1/4 inch thickness (about half a centimeter).

Now comes the fun part: punch out shapes with cookie cutters. I used Christmas trees, Father Christmas heads, stars, hearts, etc. Once you're unable to fit any more cookies, remove whatever dough is left outside the shaped cookies. Next, using a thin metal spatula, transfer the cookies to the cookie sheet. These cookies will barely grow, so you can place them relatively close to each other.

Bake for 6-7 minutes or until lightly browned around the edges. Transfer to a cooling rack and bake the next batch. I prepared the second batch while the first was in the oven and basically didn't have an empty oven for an hour or so. Once the cookies are cooled, transfer to a storing vessel and store at room temperature.

If you wish, you can add colored sugar crystals to the cookies before you put them in the oven. You can also add a glaze and draw patterns on the cookies. Simply mix 1 tablespoon hot water, 1 egg white and 2 - 2.5 cups sifted confectioner's sugar. Place the glaze in a plastic bag, cut a very small hole in a corner and you're good to go. Just make sure you let the glaze dry before storing the cookies.

Serve the cookies with a hot beverage. While some may enjoy them with coffee, tea or hot chocolate, nothing beats Glögg, traditional Swedish mulled wine. I will be posting my recipe for Glögg in the coming days. Stay tuned.

Shrimp Gumbo

I've been meaning to try to make some gumbo for a while now, and when a buddy requested it on Facebook, I decided it was time. For those not in the know, gumbo is traditional Louisiana fare, based on a roux, stock, some form of meat and/or seafood and thickened using either okra or filé powder. I was unable to find okra, so I went with the filé powder for the recipe below.

If you are unable to find okra and/or filé powder, it is possible to just use the roux as the thickener. Traditionally, you'll slave over the stove for an hour, stirring the roux, but the recipe below uses Alton Brown's genius technique of letting the roux bake in the oven instead. Saves a lot of work!

Shrimp Gumbo

4 oz all purpose flour (1/2 cup by volume)
4 oz vegetable oil (1/2 cup by volume)
1.5 lb shrimp, unpeeled, head-on
0.5 lb andouille sausage
1 green bell pepper
3 stalks celery
1 large yellow onion
3 cloves garlic
2 tomatoes
2 bay leaves
1 tbsp filé powder
salt
pepper
cayenne pepper
rice

Set the oven to 350 degrees F. In a large dutch oven (I actually used a stainless steel stock pot and it worked fine, nothing burned), stir together the oil and flour. Place in the oven for 1.5 hours, whisking every 30 minutes. Next, peel and devein the shrimp, and place the shrimp in a bowl in the fridge. Place the heads and shells in a large pot along with 2 quarts (roughly 2 liters) of water. Bring to a boil over high heat, then lower to a simmer and reduce to half, which will take about an hour. I was unable to find head-on shrimp, so instead I replaced two cups of water with two cups of store-bought seafood stock. If you can't find either head-on shrimp or seafood stock, two cups of chicken stock together with the shells will do in a bind. Once reduced, strain with a fine mesh strainer and discard the shells and heads.

At this point, slice the andouille sausage into 1/2 inch slices and brown in a frying pan over medium heat. Move to a plate lined with paper towels. Note: if you are unable to find andouille sausage, the closest would be hot Italian sausage. If you can't find that, any form of pork sausage will do, and if it's not spicy at all, you can add a clove or two of garlic and a teaspoon of cayenne pepper later. Dice the onion, pepper and celery. Mince the garlic. Remove the skin from the tomatoes (cut a small, shallow cross at the bottom, boil in water for 15 seconds, move to an ice bath - skin should come right off), remove the seeds and cut up the flesh. Once the roux is ready, remove from the oven (you can turn the oven off at this point) and place over medium high heat. Add the pepper, onion, celery and garlic and cook, stirring frequently, until onion is fragrant and translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the tomato, bay leaves, about a teaspoon of salt and pepper, and about half a teaspoon of cayenne pepper (to taste - you like heat, add more cayenne pepper, but remember that the andouille sausage is spicy as well). Add the stock, about a third at the time, while stirring frequently. Stir, cover and let cook for about 30 minutes.

When the 30 minutes are almost up, start making the rice according to the instructions on the package - I find that 1 cup of rice to 2 cups of water works well. Turn off the heat on the gumbo, add the shrimp and sausage and stir. Next, add the filé powder and stir. Cover, and leave for ten minutes. Remove the bay leaves, then serve over the rice and enjoy with a glass of red wine, white wine, beer or whatever else tickles your fancy.

Baked Chicken and Macaroni

It's getting "cold" out there (it's mid-70's in Austin these days, but I hear it's snowing in Sweden so it's getting cold out there somewhere...) - time to make some hearty meals. We had slow cooker chili last night, and tonight I decided to make a chicken and macaroni bake. Simple, filling, and really good. We washed it down with a bottle of 2004 Jacob's Creek Reserve Merlot that my good friend Craig gave me for my 30th birthday. I still can't believe I'm 30. Oh well.

Baked Chicken and Macaroni

1.5 cups elbow macaroni
1 large or 2 medium chicken breast fillets
1/2 medium yellow onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1.5 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
1/2 cup "Italian" flat-leaf parsley
1 can crushed tomatoes
1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese
1/2 cup white bread crumbs
1 tbsp butter
salt
pepper
olive oil

Turn the oven to 400 degrees F. Boil the macaroni until al dente (generally, if the package says 8-10 minutes, 8 means al dente, 10 means way overcooked). Cut the chicken breast(s) into half-inch pieces. Put a couple of tablespoons of olive oil to a saute pan and add the chicken. Cook for a few minutes, then add the onion and garlic. Cook until fragrant, about 5 minutes. Drain the macaroni and place in a large bowl. Add the chicken, onions and garlic. Coarsely chop the parsely and add, together with the tomatoes. Sprinkle about a half teaspoon of salt and half a teaspoon of pepper into the mixture, then stir thoroughly.

Place the mixture in a baking dish (I used my trusty 9x9x2 inch Le Creuset baking dish). Mix the parmesan and bread crumbs, then sprinkle over the macaroni mixture. Dot small pieces of the butter on the dish, then bake in the oven for about 30 minutes.

I served it with oven roasted vegetables (tossed with some olive oil, kosher salt and black pepper, in the oven at 400 degrees F for about 15 minutes) and it was great.

Apple & Raspberry Crumble

There's a saying where I come from: a good crumble is better than two...in...th...uh...actually, I don't know of any sayings that involve crumbles, but they're really awesome so I decided to make one and post the recipe here. You can obviously try various fruit combinations, but this one is pretty fantastic.

Apple & Raspberry Crumble

1 stick + 1 tbsp unsalted, chilled butter (9 tbsp)
1.25 cups all purpose flour
0.75 cups granulated sugar, divided
2 medium apples (I like Gala, but pretty much any apple will be fine)
12 oz raspberries (about 1.5 cups)
ground cinnamon
salt

Turn your oven to 425 degrees F. Next, peel and core the apples. Cut them into small chunks, about half an inch. Wash the raspberries. Place the fruit in a 9 inch tart pan (preferably made of glass, but metal will work as well). Sprinkle about 1/4 cup sugar over the fruit.

In a bowl, stir together the flour, sugar, a small pinch of salt and about half a teaspoon of cinnamon. Next, cut the butter into the flour in chunks. Now, it's time to get dirty: mix the flour mixture with the butter with your fingertips. You're looking to divide the butter enough that there are no large chunks left, but you're not looking to form a uniform dough, like you would when making a pie or quiche.

Sprinkle the mixture over the fruit, making sure to cover as evenly as possible. Bake in the middle of the oven for about 20-25 minutes, or until the fruit is bubbling and the crust is golden. Serve warm or at room temperature with vanilla ice cream.

This will keep, covered, for about 4 days if left in room temperature and about a week in the fridge. If you keep it in the fridge, I suggest reheating it in the microwave for half a minute on high before eating.

Mountain of Cookies

I just had to share my mountain of cookies. Now I want one, and I'm all out :(