How To Make Homemade Creamed Kale Sauce (Grønlangkål) For Danish Summer Dishes

Creamed kale sauce has been eaten with pork or tongue and potatoes in Denmark and Nordic countries for several centuries.  A hearty meal great for  the summertime when you have fresh grown kale. Below is a recipe to make homemade creamed kale sauce (grønlangkål).

Ingredients:

• 1/2 tablespoon of butter
• 1/2 tablespoon of flour
• 1 cup of milk (other options is fish stock, chicken stock or beef stock)
• 1 large bunch of washed kale, finely chopped
• Salt and pepper
• nutmeg

Kitchen Utensils

• cutting board
• sharp knife
• small-medium heavy saucepan
• wooden spoon

Instructions  

Prepare the Kale
Rinse kale well in large bowl of warm water.  Place the kale in a colander and drain. Rip the leaves off the stem. Discard any discolored leaves and tough stems. 

Cooking Tip: Be sure to wash this carefully and just before use, since it will hasten spoilage.

Then cook the kale in a pot of water.  Add a little bit of salt into the water.  Cook for about 20 minutes in order for the leaves to get soft. Then scoop the kale out of the pot,  Slice the leaves crosswise into ½ inch thick slices with a sharp knife on a cutting board. Set it aside in a bowl.  

Cooking Tip: Whenever you shop for kale, buy lots of it because it cooks down dramatically.


Make the Cream Sauce
Melt the butter in the saucepan over medium heat.

Add the flour and whisk until the flour is absorbed into the butter (this a "roux").  Stir for about 2-3 minutes until it becomes thick, smooth and pale beige in color.

Add the milk gradually about 1/3 at a time, and whisk constantly.  Keep stirring and bring to boil.  Add Kale juices too. You don't want this to burn.  Stir constantly for about 5-6 minutes until smooth and thick. 

If the sauce is too thick, you need to prime with milk or kale juice. If it is too thin, boil a little more.  Avoid the sauce tasting like flour by stirring well and carefully. 

Turn down the heat.  Add chopped kale. Add nutmeg for flavoring. Season with salt and pepper. Simmer the sauce for 1-2 minute without boiling.

Cover to keep warm until you are ready to serve.  Serve "grønlangkål" with either cooked smoke ham or tongue and over potatoes. Enjoy!

Did you know that ....the ancient Greeks and Romans grew kale in their gardens?

Roast Beef, Remoulade & Fried Onions Open-Face Sandwich

When I was a child and my parents would have a lunch party, they would set up a smørrebrød table.  Often they served the Danish roast beef open-face sandwich with homemade Danish fried onions and Danish remoulade sauce. This classic sandwich was always a sure-fire crowd pleaser. It was and still is a completely delicious treat!

See Karen Grete preparing this delicious smørrebrød 

on our YouTube video

Below are a few ingredients to make an absolutely delicious sandwich.  


Ingredients:

• 1 piece of rye bread
• European style butter
• 4 slices of roast beef
• 1 to 2 tablespoons of homemade remoulade sauce
• 1 dill pickle 
• homemade Danish fried onions
• parsley for garnish 

Before you get started to prepare the sandwich you will need to do a little prep work and make a couple of the toppings (pålæg).  You will need to prepare the Danish remoulade sauce and the Danish fried onions in advance. 

1. When you are ready to make this smørrebrød, the first thing to do is butter a piece of dark Danish rye bread.
2. Lay across the rye bread either 3 to 4 slices of roast beef.Depending on the size of the roast beef.
3. Then, add a nice large spoonful of remoulade sauce on top of the roast beef. This rich mayonnaise remoulade sauce adds a delicious flavor to this sandwich.
4. Next add on top of the remoulade a large spoonful of homemade Danish fried onions which gives the sandwich a perfect savory flavor.  
5. Add a slice of pickle fanned out. 
6. Finally for garnish add parsley on the side

 
It's that easy! This sandwich goes great with enjoy with lager beer too.  We usually set the table with a Royal Copenhagen plate, a fork, a knife and a glass for the beer. 
 

Thumbs up for open-faced sandwiches!

Be sure to send me pictures of YOUR open-faced sandwiches.

xoxo,

Karen Grete and Heidi
Check out some of our other postings such as 

• 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)  

These recipes are perfect for the holiday season. Please let us know what you think!
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!

Gooseberry Fool Recipe- A delicious dessert to celebrate April Fool's Day! Stikkelsbær dessert

We love gooseberries (stikkelsbær)! A typical Danish fruit that we have grown in our yards for years. Believe it or not we still have some gooseberries in the freezer from last summer.  So, April Fool's Day is coming up and we thought what better way to enjoy April Fool's Day by making Gooseberry Fool.

Gooseberries make a classic Fool dessert which dates as far back as the sixteenth century in England.  Even though Gooseberry Fool is not a Scandinavian dessert it is a wonderful refreshing dessert to serve after a Scandinavian dinner.  A delicious mixture of lightly sweetened fruit puree, sweet custard and whipped cream.

The word "Fool" is believed to have originated from the French word "fouler" which means "to mash" or "to press".  And this is exactly what we will do with this fruit dessert. So let's get started!

 

 Click on our YouTube video 

to see how Karen Grete prepares this delicious dessert. 

First Step: Make the Gooseberry Stewed Puree 

Ingredients

• 2 cups of gooseberries rinsed and drained, or frozen berries, thawed
• 2 tablespoons of sugar or to taste
• 2 tablespoons of Elderberry syrup or elderflower cordial or water

Instruction: 

1. Clean, top and tail the gooseberries. 
2. Put the gooseberries into medium, heavy saucepan over low heat.  
3. Add in the elderberry syrup and sugar into the saucepan. 
4. Bring up to boil and then simmer for 5 to 10 minutes gently until the gooseberries are soft and pulpy.  Keep stirring often.
5. Then crush the berries with a potato masher or a fork when they are thoroughly soft. 
6. Taste the liquid mixture to see if it needs more sugar. It might be tart
7. If you like the gooseberries to be pureed, use a blender or a fruit processor.  Then strain if you like it smooth.  
8. Cover and refrigerate until cool.

Second Step: Make the Custard

Check out our recent post on how to make homemade custard.  This custard recipe is very versatile and perfect for this dessert.

 Click on our YouTube video 

to see how Karen Grete prepares the custard.

Third Step: Make the Whipped Cream
Ingredients

• 1 1/4 cup of heavy cream

Before serving make the whipped cream until soft peaks.

Fourth Step: Combine all of the Ingredients 

 

Instruction:

1. Before you get started be sure the custard and the gooseberry puree have cooled down.
2. When ready, gently fold the whipped cream into the custard into a medium mixing bowl. Leave about 1/4 of the whipped cream on the side for decoration later.
3. Now we should be ready to prepare the serving bowl or individual glasses.  First, spoon the custard mixture onto the bottom of a serving bowl or individual glass.  
4. Next layer, spoon the gooseberry puree on top of the custard layer. Then layer custard on top of the gooseberry puree mixture and so on.  Keep layering until the glass bowl is full with layers. This gives a beautiful contrast if serving in a glass bowl.  
5. Keep the serving bowls or individual glasses in the refrigerator until ready to serve. 
6. Decorate with additional whipped cream.  
7. Add either thin slices of almonds, fresh gooseberries or chocolate on top as garnish before serving.

  

 A delightful combination.  It so pretty to see the contrasting layers in a clear glass.

  

Here our table setting has George Jensen silverware, a vintage Royal Copenhagen pitcher, a glass candle holder by iittala Finland and a Swedish summer tablecloth from IKEA. 

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!

Orange Fromage Dessert - Appelsinfromage Opskrift - A Classic Danish Orange Mousse Dessert Recipe

This refreshing & delicious dessert is served cool. This homemade dessert is great to serve to your friends and family anytime of the year! 

 Ingredients:

• 4 pasteurized eggs that are separated 
• 1/2 cup of sugar
  
• 2 cups of freshly squeezed orange juice
• finely grated orange zest from one orange
• 1 cup of whipping cream (including some for garnish)
• 1 tablespoon of unflavored gelatine
• 1/2 a cup of water

 Kitchen Utensils

• measuring cup
• measuring spoon
• knife
• spatuala
• wooden spoon
• electric mixer
• cutting board
• 1 small mixing bowl
• 2 medium size mixing bowls
• 1 large mixing bowl
• 1 medium pot

Instruction: 

1. Whip 4 egg yolks with a 1/2 cup of sugar in a large mixing bowl.  Whip until it is a light white-yellow in color and fluffy.
2. Mix 1 tablespoon of gelatin into a 1/2 cup cold water in a small mixing bowl. Stirring constantly to make sure the gelatine dissolves.
3. Next heat up the orange juice in a medium pot on high heat on the stove.  Remove from the stove and add the dissolved gelatine.  Stir constantly to ensure the gelatine is dissolved.  Then, let the mixture cool for at least 10 minutes.
4. Next whip the 4 egg whites in a medium size bowl until stiff. Set aside
5. Whip the whipping cream with the electric mixer in a medium size bowl. Set a side
6. Combine the orange juice mixture and orange zest into the egg yolk mixture in a large mixing bowl.  Make sure the orange juice is cold before doing this.
7. Then, fold in the whipped egg whites into the egg yolk mixture with a spatula. 
8. Fold the whipped cream into the egg mixture one forth at a time. (Leave about 1/4 cup of whipped cream on the side for decoration later.) Stir gently until it starts to thicken.

Serving instructions  

When the orange fromage is almost stiff, spoon into either a serving bowl or individual glasses. If you want to kick it up a notch, create an orange into an individual serving bowl.

To create an individual orange bowl 

Using a sharp knife, cut an orange in half.  Then remove the inside of the orange by scooping out the flesh. You now have a bowl made out of orange peel to use for the orange mousse. Now spoon in the orange fromage to the rim of the orange peel. 

Keep either the serving bowls, individual glasses or the orange bowls in the fridge until ready to serve. Decorate with additional whipped cream.  Add either an thin slice or orange peel, fruit or chocolate on top before serving. This is a fun and tasty way to present the orange fromage dessert! Chill for several hours or until firm. 

Shredded Brussels Sprouts Salad Recipe with Clementines - Rosenkål Salat Opskrift

 

Summer is coming and starting to think about great salads. Mixing fruits and salads have become popular to make.  Typically brussels sprouts are prepared either cooked or oven roasted. Instead these brussels sprouts are uncooked, thinly sliced and tossed with a dressing.  

 

This is a great side dish similar to coleslaw. Great with either pork chops or grilled chicken.  Perfect salad to serve at a brunch or at a barbeque out on the deck. 

Dressing Ingredients

• 1 teaspoon of lemon zest
• lemon juice from 1 medium size lemon
• 1 teaspoon of rice wine
• 2 teaspoon of honey
• 1/2 teaspoon of dijon mustard
• 1 /4 cup of olive oil

Salad Ingredients 

• 1 pound of Brussels sprouts, cleaned and remove outer leaves
• 1/2 a cup of pomegranate seeds (about 1 fruit)
• 1/3 cup toasted pine nuts
• 3/4 cup of clementine segments 
• 1/2 a cup of shredded mozzerella white cheese
• salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Kitchen Utensils

• medium-large bowl
• 1 small bowl
• cutting board
• knife
• wooden spoon
• measuring cup 
• measuring spoon

Click on our YouTube video 

to see how Karen Grete prepares this summer salad!

Dressing Instructions

To prepare the dressing, combine lemon juice, zest, dijon mustard, rice wine, honey in a medium bowl. While whisking continuously, slowly drizzle the olive oil into the mixture until all of the oil is incorporated. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Set aside.

Salad Instructions

1. Select hard, bright-green sprout heads, as mushy sprouts yield less flavor. Choose sprout heads of roughly the same size and cut in half.
2. Remove the outer leaves from the brussels sprout and rinse them well, 
3. Using a very sharp knife, cut them into shreds thinly slice them crosswise.
4. Break up the layers and place the sliced sprouts in a large bowl. 
5. Add pomegranate seeds into the large bowl  
6. Drizzle the dressing over the salad. Add as much dressing as desired, gently toss until combined
7. Add the pine nuts to the Brussels sprouts salad
8. Sprinkle the cheese and toss.
9. Add individual clementine segments over the salad.  Arrange the clementines in a circular or decorative pattern                                                                                   
10. Transfer to a individual serving plates or salad bowls. 

 

Let us know if you have a request another brussels sprout recipe! Enjoy! 

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!