Scandinavian Today Cooking Show: 2013

Friday, August 16, 2013

Strawberry Rhubarb Ice Tea a Summer Classic!

Perfect drink to serve during a barbeque.

The other day, one of our YouTube subscribers asked if we had any suggestions for something to cool to drink. It made me think about what is a classic summer time drink? Ice Tea is sooo classic.

Have to have lots of ice!

Then, I thought about what is classic Scandinavian during the summer time. A couple of ingredients that came to mind was strawberries and rhubarb. In June, we get sooooo excited to see rhubarb start coming out of the ground and flowers blooming on the strawberry plant. Summer time is a great time of the year to enjoy different strawberry and rhubarb dishes and drinks.

So, I thought to do a YouTube video on how to make Strawberry Rhubarb Ice Tea. How much more summer time classic can it get! You will want to showcase this fruity ice tea drink in a clear glass pitcher. This drink really is about color, color, color! Beautiful ruby red, sunset orange and a hint of yellow. Your family and friends will be impressed if you serve them this drink!

This pretty ice tea drink is delicious to drink too. What is great about this drink is you can make the tea as strong as you like. I like strong tea. But with this drink I enjoy tasting the rhubarb and the strawberry too. Plus, it is fun to see if you can scoop out a sliced strawberry from the glass too. So, I try to use only 3 tea bags so it does not dominate the pitcher of ice tea.

Click on our YouTube video

to see how to prepare this refreshing drink!

For the Iced Tea

2 quarts water or 8 cups of water
3 bags English Breakfast Tea
1 cup of red ripe strawberries (rinse off strawberries, cut off top and slice in half)
lemon slices
Fresh mint sprigs, for garnish
lots of ice

Kitchen Tools

large sauce pot with lid
mesh strainer (- a colander with big holes won’t work!)
Spoon
cutting board
knife
measuring cup
a clear glass pitcher

Instructions

First Step: Make the Syrup

Clean the ruby red rhubarb under cold running water, cut into 1/2 inch pieces. Keep slicing until you get 3 cups of sliced rhubarb.
To make the rhubarb syrup, combine chopped rhubarb, water, and sugar in a heavy-bottomed pot.
Cook over medium-low heat, stirring often, until rhubarb has broken into shreds. It takes about 15 to 20 minutes. Keep an eye on the syrup. If it gets too hot, turn the temp down a little more.
Let the rhubarb.
Strain the syrup using a mesh colander. A colander with big holes won't work because a lot of the rhubarb pieces might fall into the syrup. A cheesecloth is another helpful way to strain the syrup too. Otherwise, you might have to strain it a couple of times. I don’t mind the yummy rhubarb that might go through into the syrup but to get a clear syrup that is what you might want to do
Allow to cool. Set the syrup aside in the refrigerator

Second Step Make the Tea

Boil water and pour over the 3 tea bags into a teapot
Let brew for 5 minutes, then remove tea bags.
Cool and refrigerate until chilled.

Cooking Tip: To avoid the tea bags falling into the container tie the strings together.

Third Step: Combined all of the ingredients

To serve, add all the rhubarb syrup to chilled tea in a large glass pitcher. Stir the mixture.
You probably won't need more sugar. If yes, add to taste and stir to dissolve
Slice strawberries and layer with ice in the pitcher. This layered colorful look is gorgeous to look at.
It is optional to add lemon slices. If you like lemon, it really is looks fabulous with this drink too.
Garnish the glass pitcher with a sliced lemon and a sprig of mint.

When you are ready to serve to your guests, serve over ice with a sprig of mint in a glass. Garnish with a strawberry or a slice of lemon on the rim of the glass.

Cooking Tip: Make sure your pitcher holds 10 cups of water. If your pitcher is smaller, you may want to reduce the quantities.

Our channel has videos including

These recipes are perfect for the holiday season. Please let us know what you think! Glædelig Jul and Merry Christmas♥ ! Our Scandinavian recipes including Danish, Norwegian, Swedish and Finnish are on http://scandinavtoday.blogspot.com/ Follow us either on Twitter @scandinavtoday, Blogger, Google+, Google Pages, Pinterest and Subscribe to our YouTube Chanel Scandinavian Today! Let's get cooking Scandinavian foods!

How To Make Red Currant Sparkling Lemonade

When I was a child, I used help pick the red currants off either my parents or my grand parents red currant shrubs. Then, we would go inside and make something delicious to eat with the red currants such as rødgrød med fløde.

This Red Currant Sparkling Lemonade combines all things summer time delicious. My recipe below is a quick way to make a homemade lemonade and add red currant juice to kick the lemonade up a notch. Plus, adding the sparkling water is as if you are creating your own homemade soda.

First Step: Make the simple syrup
Ingredients:

2 cups of water
2 cups of sugar
tablespoon of lemon zest (optional)

Kitchen Tools:

heavy pot
measuring cup
spoon

Directions:
Make the simple syrup by boiling the 2 cups of water and 2 cups of sugar in a heavy pot. When the the sugar water starts to boil, mix it until the sugar is dissolved. Add lemon zest to the sugar water (optional). Set the syrup aside to cool down.

Cooking Tip: Make sure your pitcher holds 10 cups of water. If your pitcher is smaller, you may want to reduce the quantities.

Second Step: Make the red currant juice

Ingredients:

1 cup of red currants
1/2 cup of sugar

Kitchen Tools:

2 bowls
fork
mesh strainer

Directions:
Sprinkle a 1/2 cup of sugar over a cup of red currants and mix it around in a bowl. Then, set aside the red currants with sugar in the refrigerator for about an hour.

An hour later, start pressing a fork on to the red currants. Keep pressing until juice are pressed out of all the currants. Once there is no more to press, pour the red currant mixture onto a mesh strainer. You will need to move the red currants mixture around until there is no more red currant juice running through the mesh strainer.

Cooking Tip: A colander with big holes won't work. A cheesecloth is another helpful way to strain the syrup too. Otherwise, you might have to strain it a couple of times.
Final Step: combine the ingredients to make the red currant lemonade.

Ingredients

fresh squeezed lemon juice (about 6 lemons)
sparkling water, soda water or water
red currant juice
simple syrup
slices of lemons
plenty of ice
one cup of fresh red currants

Kitchen Tools:

glass pitcher that holds 10 cups of water
spoon
cutting board
knife

Directions:

Mix simple syrup, red currant juice and fresh squeezed lemon juice in the glass pitcher. Fill the rest of the glass pitcher with sparkling water.

Slice fresh slices of lemons on a cutting board. Clean the fresh red currants.

Add ice cubes, sliced lemons and one cup of red currants. This layered colorful look is gorgeous to look at. Stir the mixture.

Fun Drink ideas:

add either fresh raspberries or strawberries into the lemonade too
garnish the glass pitcher with a sliced lemon and a sprig of mint

Our channel has videos including

Thursday, August 8, 2013

Black Cherry Strawberry Smoothie

I like to use certain Scandinavian ingredients when I make my smoothies. Here is an easy smoothie recipe that is delicious to have anytime of the year. Black cherries and strawberries are delicious classic summer berries. Both berries brings back many happy summer time memories. If you can't get either fresh fruit during the winter, I usually go to the frozen section of the supermarket. That way I can have this delicious smoothie anytime of the year.

I love to use Icelandic yogurt for my smoothies. The Icelandic yogurt tastes so fresh and creamy. I love the consistency of the Icelandic yogurt too.

I am adding the black cherry preserves as a sweetener with this smoothie recipe too. Black cherry preserves gives a nice kick. If you prefer to use sugar or another sweetener that is fine too. But, the black cherry preserves gives a richer taste to the smoothie.

Ingredients

1 teaspoon of vanilla
2 teaspoons of black cherry preserves
1 cup of frozen dark cherries
2 cups of fresh strawberries
1 container of regular or vanilla Icelandic yogurt
ice cubes(optional)
mint leaves or lemon balm (optional garnish)
whipped cream (optional)

Kitchen Utensils

measuring cup
teaspoon
blender
bowl
2 to 3 drinking glasses

Directions

1, Place all ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth.
2. If the blender has room, add some ice. Blend it all
2. Pour into 2 to 3 drinking glasses, add some whipped cream and garnish with mint leaves.

Our channel has videos including

Thursday, July 25, 2013

Danish Pancake (pandekage) with Nutella and Bananas

Danish pancakes traditionally are eaten with either sugar or jam. In the last few years, my family has started to eat Danish pancakes with nutella with bananas. YUM!

It is very simple to make this yet it tastes sooo good. First check out our recipe on How to Make Classic Danish Pancakes Once you have made several large Danish pancakes spread a thin or better yet thick layer of the chocolate hazelnut spread onto your Danish pancake. Be sure the Nutella has not been in the refrigerator for at least a few minutes. Otherwise, it will be really hard to scoop a large spoonful of Nutella.

Then slice bananas down the center. Here are some other great choices to fill inside the Danish pancake too!

fresh strawberries
fresh red raspberries
apple slices
kiwi slices

Roll or fold the Danish pancake (pandekage). If you want to jazz up the Danish pancake you can either

sprinkle powder sugar or
dust on cinnamon
drizzle chocolate syrup or Nutella over the pancake
sprinkle nuts

Then, just before serving top with whipped cream. Can't get any better. Enjoy!

Our YouTube channel has videos including

Monday, July 22, 2013

How To Make Rhubarb Syrup For Your Summer Drinks and Cocktails

Rhubarb is a classic Scandinavian fruit served during the summer season. What I love about Rhubarb Syrup is that you can make it for your cocktails, ice tea and even make rhubarb ice cubes. It a fabulous syrup to make the night before you have a pool party. That way when your guest arrive for your pool party or Sunday brunch, all you have to do is combine the ingredients. No worries making it the day of a party!

This recipe is just to make ice cubes and should make about 2 cups of rhubarb syrup. If you need more liquid, you can add more water. If you like the syrup to be less sweet, use less sugar.

Ingredients

For the Rhubarb Syrup

1 to 1 1/2 cup of chopped ruby red rhubarb (about 5 stalks rhubarb, cut into 1/2 inch thick)
1 cups water
1 cup of sugar or to taste
1 teaspoon of vanilla
cinnamon stick (optional)

Kitchen Tools

large sauce pot with lid
mesh strainer (- a colander with big holes won’t work!)
Spoon
cutting board
knife
measuring cup

Instructions

First Step: Make the Syrup

Clean the ruby red rhubarb under cold running water, cut into 1/2 inch pieces. Keep slicing until you get 1 cups of sliced rhubarb.
To make the rhubarb syrup, combine chopped rhubarb, water, and sugar in a heavy-bottomed pot.
Cook over medium-low heat, stirring often, until rhubarb has broken into shreds. It takes about 15 to 20 minutes. Keep an eye on the syrup. If it gets too hot, turn the temp down a little more.
Let rhubarb cool for a few minutes before straining.
Then, strain the syrup using a mesh colander. A colander with big holes won't work because alot of the rhubarb pieces might fall into the syrup. A cheesecloth is another helpful way to strain the syrup too. Otherwise, you might have to strain it a couple of times. I don’t mind the yummy rhubarb that might go through into the syrup but to get a clear syrup that is what you might want to do.
Move the solids with a spoon around to extract more syrup. Just don't press the rhubarb mush because it might get into the syrup.
Allow to cool so more. Set the syrup aside in the refrigerator

If you want to make ice cubes, pour the rhubarb syrup into an ice cube tray. Wait until the rhubarb ice cubes are frozen. When you are ready to serve to your guests, serve with a sprig of mint in a glass with clear soda. Garnish with a slice of lemon on the rim of the clear glass. It is really pretty to see the rhubarb ice cubes dissolve in the clear glass.

Other fun ideas

Drizzle rhubarb syrup over plain or vanilla yogurt or vanilla ice cream.

Rhubarb Syrup is great for ice tea.

Top Icelandic yogurt with the rhubarb mush.

The rhubarb mush or solids make a nice quick jam. It's great on toast!

Our channel has videos including

Thursday, July 11, 2013

Rhubarb Strawberry Smoothie! A Great Summer Drink With Typical Scandinavian Flavors

Smoothies are great! So fast to make and delicious healthy ingredients. One of my favorite smoothies is a Strawberry Rhubarb Smoothie. If you have never had a strawberry and a rhubarb combination, you might be pleasantly surprised how good this smoothie tastes!

Ingredients

1 cup fresh chopped rhubarb cut up (or use frozen)
1 cup fresh strawberries(or use frozen)
1 cup of Icelandic yogurt
2 tablespoons of sugar, honey or agave nectar
1/4 teaspoon vanilla

Kitchen Utensils

cutting board
kitchen knife
measuring cup
mixing spoon
blender

In blender, place all ingredients. Cover; blend with on-and-off pulses until pureed. Pour into 2 drinking glasses. Serve immediately.

If you have your own favorite yogurt it will work great too!

An alternative fruit is to substitute raspberries for the strawberries.

A bowl of summer strawberries for your smoothie!

In the winter time, this smoothie is great with frozen strawberries and frozen rhubarb. This makes a frothier smoothie.

In the summertime, sometimes I like to add a couple of ice to this delicious smoothie too!

Our channel has videos including

Wednesday, July 3, 2013

Debatt med Svenskt Kött i Almedalen 2013: Sveriges dyraste matkasse?

Cucumber and Lemon water with a hint of mint. A refresing summertime drink with Scandinavian flavors!

Cucumber water is soooo refreshing!

Are you tired of drinking plain water or having trouble hitting your eight glasses of water everyday? Try this fun recipe to make refreshing, zero-calorie cucumber lemon water with a hint of mint! What is terrific with this drink is that you can personalize to taste. The more slices of either cucumber or lemon you have in the pitcher the stronger it will taste. Also, the longer you leave both in the pitcher the taste will be stronger too. To start you might just want to have 2-3 slices of both the cucumber and lemon. Then, keep adding if you like the water to be a little stronger.

Click on our YouTube video

Ingredients

1 medium cucumber, scrubbed well
Lemon/Lime, (optional)
Warm water

Kitchen Utensils

kitchen knife

cutting board

pitcher of water(tap or mineral water)

Instructions
Trim and discard ends of both the cucumber and the lemon. Cut both the cucumber and lemon into into thin slices. You will probably only need half a cucumber for the pitcher of water. It really depends on the size of pitcher you like.

Fill a pitcher up of either tap water or your favorite mineral water. Combine cucumber and water in large pitcher; steep for 1 hour, and serve over ice. Many times I like to go to the grocery store and pick up my favorite Norwegian water.

Now you are ready to serve with ice! For a stronger taste, let the water sit in your refrigerator for an hour prior to serving. Many times I like to add mint leaves either right into the pitcher of cucumber and lemon water or in the glass. Mint makes the drink even more cooling and refreshing.

Other alternatives is to add fresh berries or orange slices too! Enjoy!

*how to make Danish Christmas rice pudding with cherry sauce dessert recipe (Risalamande med kirsebærsauce)

*how to make Swedish Glogg for Christmas & cold evenings! (glögg or mulled wine recipe)

*how to make aeblskiver (æbleskiver)

*how to make Danish Christmas Klejner

*how to make easy Danish cucumber salad (arguksalat)

*how to make Danish sugar browned potatoes (brunede kartofler)

*how to make Danish red cabbage (rødkaal)

Our Scandinavian recipes including Danish, Norwegian, Swedish and Finnish are on http://scandinavtoday.blogspot.com/

Follow us either on Twitter @scandinavtoday, Blogger, Google+, Google Pages, Pinterest and Subscribe to our YouTube Chanel Scandinavian Today! Let's get cooking Scandinavian foods!

Monday, July 1, 2013

Danish Ham with the Danish Italian Salad

The Danish Ham with the Danish Italian Salad is a very nice sandwich to have during the summer time! Really enjoy having for lunch cold ham with a cool topping on the rye bread during the hot summer months. Hope you enjoy the sandwich as much as I do.

Danish Italian Salad (Italiensk Salat)
First step is to make the italiensk salat. The good news is that it is super easy to make. Check out our recent posting on how to make the delicious topping! Italian Salad Recipe

Next step is to make the sandwich!

Ingredients:

1 piece of rye bread
European style butter
1 table spoon of Danish Italian Salad (Italiensk Salat)
Danish ham (not smoked)
alfalfa sprouts or cress

When you are ready to sit down to have smørrebrød, the first thing to do is butter a pice of dark Danish rye bread. Then, place two or three slices of ham. Top off the ham with a nice spoonful of Danish Italian Salad. If you like alfalfa sprouts or cress then sprinkle it on top of the Italian Salad. It is that simple to make!

We usually set the table with a Royal Copenhagen plate, a fork, a knife and a glass for the beer.

Our channel has videos including

Sunday, June 30, 2013

Italian Salad Recipe. A Danish Topping For Open-Face Sandwiches

The Italian Salad is called Italiensk Salat in Danish. The topping is used for various open-face sandwiches such as ham or salami. The Italian Salad is similar to remoulade and used on open-face sandwiches. It is a great alternative topping for folks that don't like pickles or beets on their open face sandwiches. Plus, it is super easy to make!

Ingredients:

1 cup of mayonnaise
1/3 cup of pasta
1/3 cup of cooked peas
1/3 cup of cooked carrots
1/3 cup of cooked white asparagus
1 teaspoon of brown mustard

Kitchen Utensils

measuring cup
bowl
spoon

Instructions:
Mix in a bowl all of the ingredients. It's that easy! Then, have it on your open-face sandwich.

We hope you enjoyed our Scandinavian recipe. Please check out our other postings including and subscribe to our blog!

*how to make Swedish Glogg for Christmas & cold evenings! (glögg or mulled wine recipe)
*how to make aeblskiver (æbleskiver)
*how to make Danish Christmas Klejner
*how to make easy Danish cucumber salad (arguksalat)
*how to make Danish sugar browned potatoes (brunede kartofler)
*how to make Danish red cabbage (rødkaal)
Please let us know what you think!

Saturday, June 1, 2013

Learn how to make Danish Rémoulade sauce. Our step-by-step guide to make this easy sauce.

Remoulade (reh-moo-lahd) is a classic French sauce. Remoulade sauce is found all over the world in many dishes such as in Louisiana, Germany and Scandinavian countries. There are as many versions of this rich mayonnaise base rémoulade as there are cooks who make it.

Remoulade sauce is a condiment meant to enhance flavorful dishes such seafood and meat dishes. In Denmark, the rémoulade sauce is used on fish, hot dogs and on open-face sandwiches including roast beef sandwich. Our version is a Danish family recipe that is simple to make from scratch.

Learning how to make a rémoulade sauce from scratch is a quick and easy process that results in endless variation possibilities. All remoulades are based on either oil or mayonnaise. Some folks make it similar to a tartar sauce and use a yellow mustard for the distinct yellow color. Other people use garlic, paprika and Cajun seasonings. However, alot of folks have their own “secret recipe” for this sauce. Because there are so many options feel free to play with the proportions to make it suit your taste!

See Karen Grete preparing the Danish rémoulade sauce

on our YouTube video

Our YouTube video has a very simple recipe to make. Below is one more recipe for you to pick from too. As we mentioned earlier that there are so many ways to make it taste good.

Main Ingredients:

1 cup mayonnaise
1 tablespoon whole grain mustard
1 tablespoon of a white onion
1 tablespoon parsley
1 tablespoon of capers
dash of curry to taste

Below these ingredients are optional too

1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1 tablespoon finely chopped celery
1 teaspoon paprika
1/4 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper to taste

Kitchen Utensils:

mixing bowl or electric mixer
a whisk
cutting board
cutting knife
mixing spoon

Directions:

Mince onion, parsley and capers. Be careful not to mince too much which will make them too watery.

Place 1 cup of mayonnaise, 1 tbsp. of mustard, 1 tbsp. of fresh lemon juice, and 1 tsp. of Worcestershire sauce in a medium mixing bowl. Add the remaining ingredients and whisk everything together in the bowl.

Cover and chill 1 hour. Rémoulade sauce is better if left for a few hours to let the flavors meld. which will allow the flavors to blend and intensify.

Keep refrigerated. Will keep for several days in an airtight container in the refrigerator.


Be sure to check out our variety of Danish smorrebrod sandwiches both on our YouTube channel & Blog

Our Scandinavian recipes including Danish, Norwegian, Swedish and Finnish are on http://scandinavtoday.blogspot.com/
*how to make Danish Christmas rice pudding with cherry sauce dessert recipe (Risalamande med kirsebærsauce)

*how to make Swedish Glogg for Christmas & cold evenings! (glögg or mulled wine recipe)

*how to make aeblskiver (æbleskiver)

*how to make Danish Christmas Klejner

*how to make easy Danish cucumber salad (arguksalat)

*how to make Danish sugar browned potatoes (brunede kartofler)

*how to make Danish red cabbage (rødkaal)

Follow us either on Twitter @scandinavtoday, Blogger, Google+, Google Pages, Pinterest and Subscribe to our YouTube Chanel Scandinavian Today! Let's get cooking Scandinavian foods!

Sunday, May 19, 2013

How to make classic Danish Pancakes

Danish pancakes is a special treat and it is served as a dessert. The Danish pancakes seem to be a little sweeter than crepes. This delicious dessert will impress your family and friends for sure. Your guests will be buzzing in anticipation to have the Danish pancake for dessert.

Danish pancakes are very easy to make. Most of the ingredients you probably already have in your kitchen. It does take a little time because you want to make at least two large pancakes for each person to enjoy. The pancakes are made one at a time in a large skillet similar to making crepes.

Ingredients:

1 cup of all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons of sugar
a pinch of salt
2 eggs
2 cups of milk
European butter for frying
grated lemon peel
optional filling for the pancakes such as sugar, fresh fruit, or preserves

Cooking Utensils:

a whisk or a fork
small bowl
spatula
grater
a large non-stick frying pan
measuring cups
measuring spoons

Directions:

Add all ingredients (except butter) into the bowl. Mix well until all clumps are gone.
Let the batter sit in a large measuring cup for 20 to 30 minutes.
Now you are ready to start frying pancakes! Add a bit of butter to a non-stick skillet and heat until medium warm.
Tilt the pan approx 90 degrees and pour batter from the top. The batter will, run down and fill the pan from rim to rim. You can also pour the batter in the middle of the pan and quickly make circling motions to distribute the batter all over the pan. The goal is to have as thin a batter layer as possible.
Cook until the pancake is a bit stiff. Before you flip the pancake be sure the pancake is firm on the edges.
When ready flip over the pancake. You will see it is nice and golden brown. Cook the other side for another 1 minute. The pancake should be light brown on both sides.
When ready, remove the Danish pancake from the frying pan.
Repeat the steps until you have used up all of the batter.

The smell of danske pandekager on the pan is sure to attract everyone in the neighborhood.

Danske pandekager can be eaten in many ways. Usually there is a large stack of pancakes on a serving dish for everyone to share. We usually pass around the serving dish so at least each person has one or even two on their plate.

The traditional way is to eat Danish pancakes is to drizzle sugar or marmelade in the center of the pancake. Then roll up the pancake into a roll.

If you have fresh fruit either strawberries

or raspberries

are wonderful to serve with the Danish pancakes on the side.

In Denmark, pandekager are normally served at kaffetid (coffee hour) at 3 p.m. Formally we usually have coffee or tea with the pancakes. If we have guests, we serve the pancakes on our Royal Copenhagen China and our Georg Jensen silverware.

We hope you enjoyed our Scandinavian recipe. Please check out our other postings including and subscribe to our blog!

*how to make Swedish Glogg for Christmas & cold evenings! (glögg or mulled wine recipe)
*how to make aeblskiver (æbleskiver)
*how to make Danish Christmas Klejner
*how to make easy Danish cucumber salad (arguksalat)
*how to make Danish sugar browned potatoes (brunede kartofler)
*how to make Danish red cabbage (rødkaal)
Please let us know what you think!