Cardamom meringues

Everyone seems to love these cookies, and they are incredibly easy to make. This recipe produces cookies that I would call "medium-rare" in the meringue world: they are brittle on the outside and very chewy on the inside. For a slightly firmer cookie, leave the baking sheets in the oven until cool so that the residual heat continues to cook the meringues. For a crisp meringue, bump the temperature up another 15-20 degrees and leave in the oven until cool.*

From Swedish Cakes and Cookies (2008)

Ingredients:

• 3 egg whites
• 1/3 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup powdered sugar
• 2 tablespoons cornstarch
• 3/4 teaspoon ground cardamom

Directions:

• Preheat oven to 210 degrees F (100 degrees C)
• Beat the egg whites with half the regular sugar until stiff, preferably with an electric mixer.
• Add the remaining sugar, beating until thick and glossy, with no granules left.
• Combine the powdered sugar, cornstarch, and cardamom and fold into the egg white mixture.
• Spoon into a piping bag with a star tip and pipe small kisses or other shapes onto a parchment-lined baking sheet. (MG - You can just as easily drop heaping teaspoonfuls of batter onto the baking sheet. Not as pretty, but also not as messy.)
• Bake on the center oven rack for 45-60 minutes, or until they are very dry and light.

Store in a dry place. Makes approximately 35 cookies.

* Of course, it could also be that my oven runs cool. If you give this recipe a try, let me know how they turned out for you.

Knäckebröd (Swedish crisp bread)

Knäckebröd is a staple at the table for every meal. We encountered it everywhere in Sweden, along with another kind of flatbread called tunnbröd. There are many different recipes for knäckebröd, though it is essentially a rye hardtack. Ever seen Wasa crackers at the supermarket? That's the mass produced stuff. Homemade knäckebröd has a slight but not unpleasant chewiness that makes it more bread-like than cracker-like.

The knäckebröd we had was almost always served with butter and some kind of jam, usually lingonberry, though it is also eaten with sandwich toppings like sliced cheese and pickles.

From The Swedish Table by Helene Henderson

Ingredients:

• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 2 cups warm water, divided
• 2 packages dry yeast (1/4 oz. each or 4-1/2 teaspoons total)
• 1-1/2 teaspoons salt
• 3-1/2 cups rye flour
• 1-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• olive oil spray

Directions:

• In the bowl of an electric mixer add sugar, 1/4 cup warm water, and yeast. Let sit for 10 minutes or until yeast begins to bubble and foam.
• Stir in remaining water, salt, rye flour, and all-purpose flour. Beat with dough hook until well combined, about 5 minutes.
  
• Transfer dough to a lightly oiled (or buttered) bowl, sprinkle with flour, and cover with plastic food wrap. Let rise in refrigerator overnight.

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Divide dough into 16 pieces.
• On a floured surface, roll each piece into a thin, 8-inch round. Poke out a small, 1/4-inch center hold and poke the round all over with a fork.
• Brush off excess flour, spray with olive oil on both sides, and transfer to a baking sheet covered with a Silpat liner or parchment paper.
• Bake 10-15 minutes. Let cool before serving.

Makes 16 knäckebröd.

Lemongrass and lime cucumber salad

A simple cucumber salad dressed in vinegar is a common side dish in Sweden. This recipe gives the dish a southeast Asian twist with the addition of lemongrass, lime, and cilantro.

It's a great workout for your mandoline, as the salad is best when the cucumbers are sliced paper thin. If you don't own a mandoline, I strongly suggest investing in one. It doesn't have to be a fancy one that also does crinkle-cuts and juliennes, but it should have an adjustable blade so you can control the thickness of your cuts. It will make your prep work so much easier and give your dishes a professional look. Definitely money well spent!

From The Swedish Table by Helene Henderson

Ingredients:

• 1 cucumber, preferably European seedless, sliced very thin
• 1/4 cup red onion, peeled and sliced thin
• 1/4 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
• 1/2 lime, sliced very thin
• 1 stalk lemongrass, light green center only, sliced thin
• 1/4 cup white wine vinegar
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon red hot peppers

Directions:

• Place cucumber, onion, cilantro, and lime in a medium-size bowl.
  
• Combine lemongrass in a medium-heavy saucepan with vinegar, sugar, and salt. Cook over low heat for 3 minutes. Let cool, stir in red hot peppers, and pour over cucumbers.
• Marinate for a minimum of 1 hour before serving

Serves 4-6

Note: I didn't have white-wine vinegar, so I used white balsamic vinegar and cut back a little on the sugar. That seemed to work just fine.

Dandelion greens with Bosc pears and shallots

Dandelion greens aren't the easiest thing to come by year round, so arugula (which is what I used) works in a pinch. The bite of the greens and the sweetness of the pears and shallots make for a great combination in this easy, anytime side dish. Wilting the greens mellows their bitterness.

From The Swedish Table, by Helene Henderson.

Ingredients:

• 1 tablespoon butter
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 2 large Bosc pears, peeled, cored and chopped
• 1 small shallot, peeled and minced
• 4 cups dandelion greens (or other tangy greens), chopped
• salt and pepper
• 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar

Directions:

• In a medium skillet, melt butter with olive oil. Add pears and cook until soft, about 2-3 minutes.
• Add shallots and cook 1 minute more.
  
• Stir in dandelion greens and cook 2 minutes more.
• Season lightly with salt and pepper, and sprinkle with vinegar

Serves 4-6

Layered three-cheese russet and sweet potato gratin

This recipe probably has the most going on it, of all the things I made for our Scandinavian dinner. The list of ingredients may make you skeptical, but trust me, they combine to make a lovely flavor that is more than the sum of its parts.

From The Swedish Table, by Helene Henderson

Ingredients:

• 2 tablespoons butter, divided
• 2 pounds baking potatoes (about 2 large), such as russet, peeled and sliced 1/8" thin
• 3 cloves garlic, peeled and grated
• fresh ground nutmeg to taste
• 3 teaspoons thyme, minced fine, divided
• 1 pound sweet potato (1 large), peeled and sliced 1/8" thin
• 3 tablespoons orange juice concentrate, thawed and divided
• 3 teaspoons adobo sauce from canned chipotle peppers, divided
• 1 cup cheese, such as Gruyere, mozzarella, or Parmesan, or any combination, freshly grated
• 1-1/2 cups heavy cream, divided
• salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.
• Rub botton of a 9 x 13-inch glass baking dish with 1 tablespoon butter.
• Add a third of the russet potatoes and season with salt and pepper to taste. Top with a third of the garlic, a third of the thyme, and a small sprinkling of nutmeg.
• Add a third of the sweet potatoes, season with salt and pepper, and brush with 1 tablespoon of orange juice concentrate and a third of the adobo sauce. Spread a third of the cheese on top and add a third of the cream.
• Repeat twice, creating three layers of potatoes, each ending with the cheese and cream. Dot top layer with remaining butter.
• Bake until potatoes are fork-tender, crisp, and golden on top, about 45-60 minutes. Cover dish with aluminum foil if the top begins to burn.

Serves 6-8.