Food Drinks Desserts

A presentation of Norwegian food and beverages and in which county they are consider a speciality. Norway is divided into 19 countys. Each County is divided into different municipality (430 for the whole country).

From Authentic Norwegian Cooking by Astrid Karlsen Scott. Photo by Per Eide and Bengt Wilson

BERGEN RUMBALLS

Pastry:

3 1/2 T. sugar

2 dl (3/4 cup) flour

75 g (2 2/3 ounces, 1/3 cup) margarine

Cream Puffs:

1 1/2 dl (2/3 cup) water

3 T. margarine

1 1/4 dl (1/2 cup) flour

2 eggs

Filling:

2 egg yolks or 1 egg

1 1/2 T. sugar

1 3/4 T cornstarch

2 1/2 dl (1 cup) full fat milk

2-3 T rum

1 dl (scant 1/2 cup) whipping cream

12-14 cocktail cherries

Pastry:

Combine sugar and flour and cut in the margarine. Knead lightly. Form into a ball, wrap in plastic. Chill 1 hour. Preheat the oven to 210 degrees C (425 degrees F).

Cream Puffs:

Bring water and margarine to a boil. Add the flour and stir until the mixture forms a ball. Remove from the heat. Cool slightly, then beat in the eggs, one at a time. The mixture should be thick enough to just keep its shape. Make 12-14 balls with a spoon and place far apart on a greased baking sheet.

Roll out the pastry. Cut out round cookies with a 6-7 cm (2 1/2") cutter. Drape them over the balls and press carefully against the baking sheet. Bake until golden, 25-30 minutes.

Filling:

Whisk together eggs, sugar, cornstarch, and milk in a saucepan. Heat to boiling, stirring constantly, but do not allow to boil. Cool, stirring occasionally. Stir in rum. Whip the cream and fold into the rum cream.

Puncture the balls. Fill a pastry tube with rum cream and pipe the mixture into the balls. Top each with a cherry. (Serves 4)

CARAMEL PUDDING

Step 1

1 liter (quart) full fat milk

1 vanilla bean, split lengthwise

10 eggs

3 T sugar

Caramel to glaze the molds:

500 g (1 pound, 5 3/4 dl, 2 1/2 cups) sugar

2 1/2 dl (1 cup water)

Preheat the oven to 150 degrees C (300 degrees F). Bring the milk and vanilla bean to a boil. Whisk the eggs and sugar carefully. Whisk the eggs into the boiling milk. Caramelize the sugar in a frying pan until golden. Add the water and cook until golden brown. Line 3 1-liter molds with the caramel. Strain the milk mixture, then divide among the molds. Place a cloth towel in the bottom of an oven tray. Place the molds on the towel (to keep them from moving). Add hot water to reach halfway up the molds. Bake 90 minutes. Refrigerate until completely cold, then unmold.

Step 2

4 dl (1 3/4 cups) sugar

1 liter (quart) whipping cream

3/4 dl (1/3 cup) sugar

1 vanilla bean, split lengthwise

15 egg yolks

Preheat the oven to 150 degrees C (300 degrees F). Caramelize the sugar in a frying pan until golden. Glaze the bottom and sides of a rectangular 2-liter loaf pan. Heat the cream, half the remaining sugar and the tiny seeds scraped from the inside of the vanilla bean, along with the bean itself to the boiling point. Beat the egg yolks with the remaining sugar. Carefully whisk in the hot cream. Strain into the prepared pan. Bake in a water bath for about 90 minutes. Refrigerate until completely cold, then unfold and decorate as desired. (Serves 8)

CLAUDBERRY CREAM, WHIPPING CREAM, SWEETENED CLOUDBERRIES

Lightly whip the cream. Fold in the berries, which should be a little too sweet. Add additional sugar, if necessary.

Serve in individual bowls. Top with fresh or sugared cloudberries and serve with almond cookies or rosettes.

COOKIE CONES W/ COCNAC CREAM ON MIXED BERRIES

by Arne Brimi, Norway´s renowned Nature Chef

Most of us would call these cones krumkaker. However, Brimi says, in the district of Otta these would be called skryllo. There, krumkaker typically are made with eggs, and skryllo are made with cream. Both cookies are baked in a krumkake iron.

Cookie Cones

2 cups whipping cream

1/4 cup sugar

1 2/3 cups flour

1/2 tsp. vanilla extract

Lightly whip the cream. Stir in the remaining ingredients. Bake in krumkake and form into cones while still warm.

Caramel Threads:

4 ounces sugar cubes

Mixed Berries:

2 cups water

2 T. honey

6p;8 mint leaves

Approximately 2 cups mixed berries (or lingonberries, black currants, raspberries, or others)

Cognac Cream:

3/8 cup and 1 T. water

1/2 cup sugar

1 vanilla bean, split lengthwise

5 sheets (or 5 tsp. powdered) gelatin

2 cups whipping cream

4 egg yolks

1/2 cup cognac, scant

Prepare the cookie cones and set aside. Melt sugar in a wide, low pan. Cook until light brown. Cool slightly. Make sure the sugar does not burn after it is taken off the burner. Stir carefully with a wooden spoon. When the sugar begins to make threads when the spoon is lifted, the temperature is correct. Place cookie cones on parchment paper and drip caramel on top. If the caramel cools, reheat.

Bring the water, honey, and mint to a boil. Add thick-skinned berries, such as lingonberries and currants, in the warm syrup. Cool, then add soft berries. Soak the berries overnight.

For the cognac cream, bring the water, sugar, and vanilla bean to a boil. Simmer 10 minutes, remove from the heat and steep one hour. Remove the vanilla bean and save for later use. Soak the gelatin sheets in cold water (sprinkle the powered gelatin over 2 tablespoons of the cream) to soften, about five minutes. Reheat the syrup.

Whisk the egg yolks in a small bowl, then whisk in the syrup. Place the bowl in a saucepan filled with simmering water and beat until light and creamy. Squeeze excess water from the gelatin sheets (disregard for powdered gelatin) and melt. Stir the gelatin into the egg mixture. Whip the cream, add the cognac, and add to the egg mixture. Fill the cones with the cognac cream. Serve on top of mixed berries.

FESTIVE CREAM CAKE

5 eggs

3/4 cup sugar (180 ml)

1 tsp. baking powder (5 ml)

1/2 cup corn starch (125 ml)

1 cup all-purpose flour (250 ml)

Cut wax paper to fit an 8" (20cm) round spring form pan. Have eggs at room temperature. Beat eggs until light, about 5 minutes. Gradually add sugar and continue beating until very light and fluffy. Sift flour, baking powder, and corn starch and gently fold into eggs. Pour into prepared pan and bake at 375 F (190 C) for 20 minutes, or until the cake springs back when lightly touched in the center. Cool in pan for 10 minutes. Finish cooling on cake rack.

Filling:

2 cups pureed sweetened apricots (500 ml)

2 cups whipping cream (500 ml)

1 tbsp. sugar (15 ml)

1 tsp. vanilla (5 ml)

Whip cream with sugar and vanilla. Split cake in two layers. Spread half of the apricot puree on the bottom layer, and spread half of the whipped cream on top, repeat for second layer. Roll out marzipan, cover the top of the cake. Use an icing bag fitted with star tip and decorate top and sides with remaining whipped cream. Garnish with apricot halves.

Marzipan:

1 package, 100 g, ground almonds, sifted. Measure ground almonds after it has been sifted andadd an equal amount of sifted icing sugar. Moisten with 1 tbsp. wine or water to make a stiff dough. Add a few more drops of liquid if it is too hard. Dust working surface with sifted icing sugar and roll out very thing. Transfer the marzipan onto the cake, trim edges and remove any dry icing sugar with a brush dipped in cold water.

Decorate with red frosted grapes. Dip grapes in fork-beaten egg whites, roll in sugar and dry on wax paper. This cake is best the next day. (Makes 8 to 10 servings)

KRANSEKAKE (Almond Wreath Cake)

Wreath cake can be temperamental. Even if we make it in "exactly the same way" each time we bake it, the results may vary from absolute perfection to complete failure.

250 g (9 ounces, 6 dl, 2 1/2 cups) finely ground blanched almonds)

250 g (9 ounces, 6 dl, 2 1/2 cups finely gound unblanched almonds)

500 g (18 ounces, 10 dl, 4 1/3 cups) sifted confectioner´s sugar (sift first, then measure)

3 egg white

Icing:

2 dl (scant 1 cup) sifted confectioner´s sugar

1 egg

Preheat the oven to 200 degrees C (400 degrees F).

Combine almonds and confectioner´s sugar in a large saucepan. Add the unbeaten egg white and mix to a firm dough. Place the pan over low heat and knead until the dough is so hot that it is almost impossible to handle. Grease the ring pans for a 16-18 ring cake. Spoon the dough into a cookie press or pastry tube with a wide round tip. Press the dough into the rings, pressing the ends together to look as seamless as possible.

Bake 12-15 minutes, until dry and firm outside, but still slightly soft inside. Cool slightly, then remove from the pans and cool completely. For the icing, sift the confectioner´s sugar and combine with egg white to make a thick icing. Make a small cone of paper and cut off the tip. Pipe on garlands of icing and stack. Decorate with flags, bonbons or candy.

LINGONBERRY CAKE

4 1/2 dl (scant 2 cups) flour

1 1/2 dl (2/3) cup sugar

1 tablespoon baking powder

150g (5 ounces, scant 2/3 cup)

unsalted butter

1 egg

2 dl (3/4 cup) oatmeal

3 tablespoons butter

1 dl (1/2 cup) sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla sugar (1/2 teaspoon extract)

Preheat the oven to 200 C (400 F). Combine flour, sugar, and baking powder, and cut in the butter with a pastry blender. Add the egg and mix well. Spread into a greased 20 x 30 (8 x 12-inch) pan. Spread the preserves over the batter. Combine all ingredients for the topping and sprinkle over the batter. Bake 25?30 minutes, until golden. Cool in the pan.

MADEIRA CREAM

2 1/2 dl (1 cup) whipping cream

2-3 egg yolks

3/4 dl (1/3 cup) sugar

1 dl (scant 1/2 cup) Madeira

Whip the cream. Beat the egg yolks with the sugar until light and lemon-colored. Beat in the Madeira, a little at a time. Fold the cream into the egg yolk mixture. Serve immediately with cookies. (Serves 4 to 5)

NORWAY´S GRAND FRUIT PIE

Pie Dough:

1/2 to 5/8 cup (120 to 160 g) margarine

1 1/2 to 2 T. sugar

1 1/8 to 1 1/2 cup (150 to 200 g) flour

3 to 5 T. water, cold

Be sure to use only chilled utensils as this pie dough must not get warm; use your hands as little as possible. Cut chilled margarine into 1-inch (2 1/2 cm) squares. Place margarine, sugar, and flour in a medium sized bowl and cut margarine in with a pastry blender. Then gather it all quickly together with fingertips. Add the cold water, a little at a time using your fingers to form the dough. It should be pliant and smooth, not grainy and moist.

Divide dough in fourths. Take one piece and place on counter. Place heel of your hand on dough and with one stoke, press and stretch out dough. Scrape dough up with scraper and set aside. Repeat with remaining pieces. Gather up all dough, sprinkling a little flour on top. Wrap in plastic wrap and cool in refrigerator for at least on hour.

Remove dough and gently press into 9 x 12-inch (23-30 dm) tart pan with removable bottom. Dough should be about 3/16-inch (8 mm) thick. Make edges even, by cutting off excess dough with a knife.

To prevent dough from rising, prick with fork. Let rest 15 minutes. Bake at 395 degrees F (220 degrees C) in middle of the oven for 10 to 12 minutes. It is ready when it begins to leave edge and has a light, golden color. Air circulation makes pie crust crisp. Cool on rack. If finished pie will stand more than two hours before eaten, "seal" bottom with currant or apricot glaze. If you want to keep it longer, brush with melted chocolate. (The glaze recipe makes enough to seal the crust and to brush on the berries.) Before berries are added, cover bottom of pie shell with vanilla cream.

Vanilla Cream:

4 egg yolks

2/3 cup (1 1/2 dl) sugar

1 1/2 T. vanilla sugar

1 3/4 cup (4 dl) whole milk, boiling

1/2 cup (50 g) flour

Beat egg yolks, sugar, and vanilla sugar until light and fluffy. It should be stiff enough that when it falls back into itself, the drips lay on top. Beat in the flour. While beating add the boiling milk, drop by drop at first, then in a thin stream. Pour mixture into a heavy bottomed pan and place over medium heat. Stir vigorously while it is being brought to a boil. Lower heat and simmer 2 to 3 minutes after boiling has begun. Remove from heat and cool. Add berries of your choice. Quickly rinse berries and remove all foreign objects. Drain well on a paper towel while you prepare glaze.

Glaze:

2 T. sugar

1/4 cup, scant (1 dl) currant jelly or apricot marmalade

Stir sugar and jelly or marmalade together in sauce pan. Place over medium heat and warm 2 to 3 minutes. Glaze should thicken to the point that drippings from a spoon are viscous. Do not simmer too long, it may turn to caramel. Brush the glaze over the pie crust to prevent it from becoming soggy.

Spread vanilla cream in bottom of pie crust. Place berries closely together, forming a decorative pattern. Brush a thin layer of glaze over berries. Serve as is with vanilla ice cream or whipped cream. (Serves 10 to 12)

SOUR CREAM DESSERT OMELET

2 1/2 dl (1 cup) whipping cream

2 1/2 dl (1 cup) sour heavy cream

2 T sugar

6 eggs separated

1 3/4 dl (2/3 cup) flour

Preheat the oven to 180 C (350 F). Whip the cream and sour cream with half the sugar. Beat the egg yolks with the remaining sugar until light and lemon-colored. Fold into the cream. Fold in the flour. Beat the egg whites until stiff but not dry and fold into the cream mixture. Pour into a greased ovenproof dish and bake until puffed, golden and set, about 15-20 minutes. (Serves 5)

STRAWBERRY CAKE ROLL

2 eggs

1 dl (1/3 cup) full fat milk

1 tsp. sugar

1/2 dl (3 1/2 T) flour

melted butter

3 dl (1 1/4 cups) strawberries

sugar

confectioner´s sugar

Beat egg yolks, milk, sugar, and flour until smooth. Beat the egg whites until stiff but not dry and fold in. Brush a large, nonstick frying pan with melted butter. Pour in the batter, cover, and cook slowly over low heat for about 10 minutes. Slice the berries. Sprinkle with sugar. Spoon over the cake, then roll up. Sprinkle the roll with confectioner´s sugar and serve with berries, whipped cream, or ice cream.

STRAWBERRY OR RASBERRY CREAM

5 dl (2 cups) whipping cream

1/2 - 3/4 cups strawberry or raspberry jam

1 3/4 dl (3/4 cup) sugar

1 tablespoon sherry

500g (1 pound, 4 cups) fresh berries

Whip the cream. Fold in the jam, sugar, and sherry. Carefully fold the berries into the cream. Pour into a 2-liter (quart) ice cream mold with a lid and freeze. (Serves 8)

TROLL CREAM I

Today, of course, we use electric mixers to make the magical troll cream. You may substitute cranberries for the lingonberries, but be sure they are very ripe, and adjust sugar accordingly.

2 cups (5 dl) lingonberries, or

1/2 cup (1 1/4 dl) lingonberry jam

2/3 cup (1 1/2 dl) sugar

2 egg whites, from large eggs

Wash berries and remove all unripe berries and foreign objects. Combine all ingredients in a mixing bowl and beat until the volumes quadruples. about 15 minutes. If you are using lingonberry jam, omit sugar. Serve in a crystal dessert bowl sprinkled with a few lingonberries. If available, add a few mint leaves. Cookies are a great accompaniment, or serve in Crisp Wafer Cups (Krumkakeskåler). (Serves 8)

TROLL CREAM II

A different kind of troll cream combining the lingonberries with currants and strawberries, and topping it off with vanilla sauce.

1 1/2 cups (3-4 dl) lingonberries or

1 cup (2 1/2 dl) red currant plus 1/2 cup (1 1/4 dl) strawberries or raspberries

1 cup (2 1/2 dl) sugar

2 egg whites

Serve with Vanilla Sauce.

Everyday Vanilla Sauce

1 1/2 cups (3 1/2 dl) milk

1 1/2 tbsp. sugar

1 egg, large

1/2 tbsp. potato flour

1 1/2 tsp. vanilla sugar

In a heavy sauce pan combine milk, sugar, egg, and potato flour While stirring, bring to the boiling point over medium hear. It must not boil. Remove from heat. Stir the sauce from time to time as it coos. Serve chilled. Makes 1 3/4 cup.

KRANSEKAKE
(Almond Wreath Cake)

Wreath cake can be temperamental. Even if we make it in "exactly the same way" each time we bake it, the results may vary from absolute perfection to complete failure.

TROLL CREAM

Today, of course, we use electric mixers to make the magical troll cream. You may substitute cranberries for the lingonberries, but be sure they are very ripe, and adjust sugar accordingly.