Finnish Rhubarb Tart

I love rhubarb and my rhubarb patch!

It is time to harvest the last of my rhubarb for the season. I get a variety of thicknesses in my rhubarb.

I use the thickest stalks for Finnish Kisseli (Cold Rhubarb Soup).


I use the medium stalks in pies. My cousin gave me the best rhubarb pie I've had. Try it!

Ric's Mom's Rhubarb Pie

For the innards:

3 heaped cups chopped rhubarb.

2 cups sugar

1/2 cup tapioca

2 eggs

1/4 teaspoon nutmeg.

I save the thinnest stalks for the topping on this Finnish Rhubarb Tart I found on ScandiFoodie's blog. Click to see her step by step photos and a photo of the final product! Below I added the American measurements to her metric measurements. 

My neighbor said this recipe makes rhubarb taste like candy!

Finnish Rhubarb Tart

2 eggs
100g or 1/2 cup sugar
50g or 4 Tablespoons or 1/2 stick butter, melted
2 tsp vanilla sugar or 1 tsp vanilla extract
150g or 1 1/4cup plain flour, sifted
100ml or 1/2 cup pouring (light) cream
1 bunch rhubarb, peeled and cut into 2cm cubes I use my narrowest stalks for this topping.
2 tbsp sugar, extra
demerara or brown sugar

Whisk the eggs and sugar until light and fluffy. Stir in melted butter and vanilla sugar. Stir in flour and finally the cream. Mix well and pour into a greased tart tin (24cm or 9inches). Sprinkle the extra sugar on the rhubarb and mix. Spoon the rhubarb on the dough and sprinkle with demerara or brown sugar.

Bake in 175C for 345F or about 20 minutes. Serve with custard or cream (or on its own).

Finnish Sauerkraut Salad

Hapankaalisalaatti

Description:

Served often at most of our Finnish dinners growing up and on Christmas Eve. 

Ingredients:

2 cups sauerkraut, drain some liquid

1/2 cup finely chopped celery

1/2 cup chopped onion

1/2 cup chopped green pepper (red pepper too at holiday 

time)

1 cup sugar

1/2 cup water

3 T vinegar

1/2 tsp. salt

Directions:

• Combine water and sugar in a small kettle and bring to a boil.   

• Boil for approximately 5 minutes.   

• Allow to cool some.   

• Add vinegar and salt to sugar and water mixture and cool some more. 

• Pour syrup over sauerkraut mixture.   

• Stir well.   

• Cover and chill for about 5 hours before serving.   

• Easy one to make ahead of time. 

• Keeps well if refrigerated.

Pretty Pavlova

Pavlova was served to us in Estonia and Finland then I made it for a Relief Society meeting dessert and now make it at home.  It's been requested in place of birthday cake by our youngest.  Here is the Pavlova recipe I use.

Cardamom is the secret in these gingerbread cookies

Title: Piparkakut (Finnish Christmas Gingerbread Cookies)

Description:
My Mother says, "The aroma of these cookies baking takes me back to my childhood in Finland." We make various large to small sizes of these in heart shape and hang them in the kitchen window during Christmas. Heart is the symbol of Christmas in Finland. We also had plenty of other shapes to eat as well.

Ingredients:
3/4 c margarine or butter
3/4 c sugar
1 egg
2 T dark Karo syrup
1 t cinnamon
1 t cloves
1 t ground cardamom
1/2 t baking soda
2 1/2 c flour

Directions:
Cream margarine and sugar. Add egg, spices and syrup. Then add flour and soda sifted together. Form into a ball and wrap in plastic wrap. Chill the dough overnight in the refrigerator. Roll out on floured surface very thin and cut into desired shapes with a cookie cutter. Bake on a very lightly greased cookie sheet about 5 min at 375 degrees. Do not overbake! Store in an airtight tin and they will keep "forever".

Carrot and Rice Casserole

Tonight is Recipe Party!  I've missed the last two months and I'm determined to go this time.

Our theme is Holiday Favorites.   Of course it wouldn't be Christmas without pulla, but I've already made that for them.  And we always have rice porridge and I've already done that for them.  So, when I asked my Mother what her holiday favorite is she named this casserole.  Of course there are other casseroles and many sweets too that are traditional and favorites.  I can hardly wait to make the Joulu Torttuja (prune tarts), but since I only make those once a year, so I'm not doing them yet!  Many of you listed your favorites on my Facebook page too.  I appreciate that.  I hear I need to try and make divinity for example and other candies. 

While my family gets frozen lasagna, I'm making this carrot and rice casserole for the ladies tonight.  Well, I hope I get it done in time!  I'm way behind schedule because I'm on the computer selling Scentsy as a fundraiser for our boys's gymnastics during the holidays!  

Title: Porkkana Laatikko (Carrot and Rice Casserole)

Description:

This is the traditional Finnish Carrot and Rice Casserole served at Christmastime in Finland.

Ingredients:

1 1/2 lbs. carrots, peeled and sliced

1/2 cup uncooked rice

1 cup half and half

1 egg, beaten

2 tablespoons brown sugar

salt to taste

2-3 Tbs. chopped almonds

Directions:

Boil carrots in salted water until done. Drain and save the water. Remove carrots from pan and add enough water, if necessary, to make 1 1/2 cups pour rest of of liquid back into the pan and let it come to a boil. Stir in uncooked rice. Cover and steam on low for 20 minutes. Meanwhile mash cooked carrots. Add half and half, beaten egg, and brown sugar, mixing well. When rice is done, stir into carrot mixture, adding salt to taste.  Pour into a well greased 1 1/2 quart casserole dish.

A great compliment for meat dishes, especially ham. Freezes well.

Number Of Servings: Serves 6-8.

Preparation Time: Boil carrots for 20 minutes. Bake at 350 for 45 minutes.

Hannele's Berry Pie (Marjapiiras)

My cousin in Finland gave my Mother this recipe.  Pie crusts are very different over there, as you can tell from my previous post.  You could use the same blueberry filling from the previous post or use this yummy rhubarb & strawberry one below.  The Finns use less sugar, so adjust according to your tastebuds:)

Hannele's Berry Pie (Marjapiiras)

1 cup melted margarine

1.5 cups sugar

3 cups flour

3 tsp. baking powder

*2 eggs

*Before putting in the eggs, take out about 3/4-1 cup of the mix for crumbs to be sprinkled on top.

Cut up rhubarb and slice strawberries. Sprinkle with sugar. May use raspberries or blueberries too.

Pour batter into 2 greased quiche pans. Sprinkle fruit or berries over batter. Sprinkle with sugar and crumbs.  

Bake at 375 F for 30 minutes.

Mustikka Piirakka is Blueberry Pie Finnish Style

Oma means my own in Finnish.  This is one of those recipes my Mother had to make up when she came from Finland.  Blueberries are plentiful in August in Finland and grow well along the bushes nearby the also plentiful granite.  It's a wonderful thing to pick blueberries there. Well, it's not August and we didn't have blueberries on the ranch, but yet she craved that taste.  Here is her recipe. Again, I'm making this now because she was wishing she could make some.

Mustikka Piirakka

1 can Wyman's blueberries, with juice

1 reg. size cool whil carton full of frozen blueberries (or huckleberries)

1/3 c. potato starch, scant

1 c sugar

Put berries and sugar in a kettle and let them boil gently for 5-10 minutes.  Let it come to a boil.  In a little bit of cold water, dissolve potato starch.  Add to berries.  Stir well until thick.  let cool.  Spread this on pulla dough crust or another Finnish pie crust. 

Raijan Rahka Piirakka

1 T dry yeast

1/4 c. warm water

1 c. milk, scalded and cooled

1 tsp. salt

2 eggs, well beaten

4.5 - 5 c. flour

1/2 c. melted margarine

1 egg, for basting

cheese filling (see below)

In a large mixing bowl, dissolve yeast in warm water. Stir in milk, salt, sugar and eggs. Add 2 cups flour to yeast mixture; beat until smooth. Add melted margarine, stirring to mix well. Add remaining flour gradually, beating to keep dough smooth. After added all the flour and the dough is stiff, cover and let rest 15 minutes. Knead until smooth. Place in lightly greased bowl, cover and let rise in a warm place until doubles (1 to 1.5 hours).

Pinch off balls of dough about 2 inches in diameter and place on a greased cookie sheet, leaving at least 3 inches in between the balls. Let raise until puffy, about 10 minutes, in a warm place. Flatten each ball of dough with fingers to about 3/8 inch thick. Let raise again until puffy, about 10 minutes; flatten centers of rounds, leaving edges slightly higher to hold in the filling. Brush with beaten egg and spoon 2 or 3 Tbs. of the filling into center of each round.

Bake in 375 degreen oven for 12 to 15 minutes or until filling is set and crust is golden brown. Cool and served plain or with a little red jam spread on top. (Sometimes I add a few raisins to the cheese filling before baking, as is customary in Finland.)

These freeze well. Thaw out and serve. You may also reheat in a 375 degree oven for 5 minutes.

Cheese filling:

2 eggs

1/3-1/2 c sugar

1/2 c sour cream

8 oz. package softened cream cheese,

1 Tbs. lemon juice

1 Tbs. lemon peel

In a small bowl with our electric beaters, combine the eggs, sugar, sour cream, cream cheese, lemon juice and lemon peel, beating until thick and smooth. Fills 20 to 24 buns.

These savory cheese buns originated in eastern Finland, but anymore they are available in even the smallest towns. usually can be found at the outdoor markets (toris).

OR you can use this other type of crust, her sister's recipe. 

Rahkapiirakka Crust

150 gr. voita 1 1/3 cubes butter
1 dl. sokeria 3/4 c sugar
1 kanamuna 1 egg
4 dl vehnäjauhoja 3 cups flour
1 tl. levinjauhetta 1 tsp. baking powder

Mix the ingredients above together and press it into a lightly sprayed round quiche pan, including up the sides, to form the crust. Now make the filling below.

Bacon Wrapped Dates

Tonight is our Recipe Exchange and we are to bring Hors d'Oeuvres.

Well, when my Mother served Hors d'Oeuvres at the Embassy, if she didn't serve this appetizer, one diplomat would say to her, "Nope I came for nothing"!  What was it he wanted?  It was a date wrapped in bacon!  She also wrapped chicken livers in bacon.

Bacon Wrapped Dates

Ingredients:
bacon
pitless dates
paprika
toothpicks

Directions:
Line up 1/2 strips of bacon on a cookie sheet.
Sprinkle paprika on them. 
Bake, then wrap a bacon strip around a pitless date and secure with a toothpick. 
Serve with a spicy dipping sauce. 

Rosettes

My Mother has requested Rosettes for her birthday since it's so close to May Day.  In Finland, rosettes may be served at May Day (Vappu) celebrations as an alternative to funnel cakes (tippaleipä).  They are traditionally made during Christmas time in Scandanavia.  Rosettes are a thin, cookie-like deep-fried pastry of Scandinavian origin. Rosettes are made using intricately designed irons. The iron is heated to a very high temperature in oil, dipped into the batter, then re-immersed in the hot oil to create a crisp shell around the metal. The iron is immediately removed and the rosette is separated from the iron. Usually, the edges of the rosette are dipped into frosting or sugar. Rosette recipes are popular in the United States among families with Scandinavian ancestry. 

Her Finnish friend sent me this recipe which I am translating from Finnish to English and converting from metrics too. 

ROSETIT 30 kpl (makes 30)

2 eggs 2 munaa
2 tsp. sugar 2 tl sokeria
1/2 tsp. salt 0,5 tl suolaa
0.63 cups milk 1,5 dl maitoa
0.63 cups flour 1,5 dl vehnajauhoja

Beat the eggs, salt and sugar;  add milk and flour. Batter will look thin.  Heat 1 quart oil to 350 degrees in a 2 quart pan.   Put the rosette iron in to heat up.  Quickly dot the iron onto a paper towel to remove excess oil.  Now dip the rosette iron into the dough careful not to get it on the top of the iron then turn it upside down for a second.  Next immerse the iron into the hot oil and fry until a light golden brown.  I count to about 55-60 with each one.  Remove from oil and gently remove from iron.  Lightly sprinkle with powdered sugar.  These are not very sweet.  Another day I'll make a batch where I add some vanilla sugar and another where I add cardamom to taste test the difference. 

As I made fried these, my husband exclaimed that he remembers Rosettes.  His DODDs principal's Icelandic wife served them to his family at Christmastime when they lived in Iceland!

 

Fizzy Finnish lemon drink called Sima

One of the items I need to make ahead for my Mother's birthday this weekend is this fizzy Finnish lemon drink called Sima made somewhat like home made root beer with yeast. You need to make it about 3 days before you want to serve it. It will last unopened for about a week after that without going flat. 

Although traditionally served at May Day in Finland it was made for many celebrations in my home growing up. 

Title: Sima -- Finnish Drink

Ingredients:
4 quarts water
3/4 cup brown sugar
2 1/4 cup white sugar
2 lemons
1/4 t dry yeast
3-4 T warm water
sugar
raisins

Directions:
Make in the evening. Wash the lemons; use a carrot peeler to get the peel from the lemons; use only the yellow; peel and discard the white; slice the lemons; put lemons and sugar in a 6 quart kettle (unless you are very good at full kettles like Mummo is). Pour the hot water over all of this; let come to a boil but do not boil for very long; let sit until it cools--a couple of hours.
Mix 1/4 t dry yeast in about 3-4 T warm water to dissolve; sprinkle a little sugar to help it rise; pour this into the cool sima and stir; put a lid on it over night. In the morning strain the lemon pulp out. Pour the sima into Martinelli's bottles. Add 2-3 raisins and 1 t sugar per bottle before capping it.

Leave the bottles on the counter for a couple of days until the raisins swell and come to the top. Now it's time to place in a cooler place to chill it. Be careful when you open it! Open it at a slant with a glass under neath it to catch any spills.  Many are the stories of this drink being served over the years because of the yeast. 

Number Of Servings: 4 bottles

When I make rice, I want Karjalan Piirakka

If you give a mouse a cookie, he's going to ask for  . . . 

Yesterday I was making rice for lunch and it made me think of making rice porridge 

which made me think of Karjalan Piirakka. 

Then, I remembered my Mother recently talking about how she'd always wanted to try Karjalan Piirakka made with barley porridge filling, but she had never made it, which made me want to try it. 

For the Barley Filling, just follow the instructions on the package, but then add about 5-6 cups of milk to cook with it as well to make it porridge like you do for the rice porridge.

I attempted this with whole barley grain and it was a miserable failure.  I  guess that's why there is such a product as "Quick Barley" because I  cooked the other all day and it still wasn't ready and when it was I never could get it like a porridge.  

Here you see the different looks on this cookie sheet full with some barley ones and some rice ones.  You can see the flecks in the barley and they are darker, especially in the picture above.

I read an old Finnish cookbook that even adds carrot in with the rice.  Yummy.  Sounds like Porkkana Laatikko to me. 

And of course you can use  mashed potatoes for the filling.  This is what they used during the war when neither rice nor barley was easily available.

Now my Mother suggests trying rutabaga filling.  I found this recipe blog, mainly Estonian  (cousins to the Finns), but a few Finnish recipes and one is for Karelian pasties. Check her out.  She confirms many fillings may be used!

Raijan Rahka Piirakka

Raijan Rahka Piirakka

1 T dry yeast

1/4 c. warm water

1 c. milk, scalded and cooled

1 tsp. salt

2 eggs, well beaten

4.5 - 5 c. flour

1/2 c. melted margarine

1 egg, for basting

cheese filling (see below)

In a large mixing bowl, dissolve yeast in warm water. Stir in milk, salt, sugar and eggs. Add 2 cups flour to yeast mixture; beat until smooth. Add melted margarine, stirring to mix well. Add remaining flour gradually, beating to keep dough smooth. After added all the flour and the dough is stiff, cover and let rest 15 minutes. Knead until smooth. Place in lightly greased bowl, cover and let rise in a warm place until doubles (1 to 1.5 hours).

Pinch off balls of dough about 2 inches in diameter and place on a greased cookie sheet, leaving at least 3 inches in between the balls. Let raise until puffy, about 10 minutes, in a warm place. Flatten each ball of dough with fingers to about 3/8 inch thick. Let raise again until puffy, about 10 minutes; flatten centers of rounds, leaving edges slightly higher to hold in the filling. Brush with beaten egg and spoon 2 or 3 Tbs. of the filling into center of each round.

Bake in 375 degreen oven for 12 to 15 minutes or until filling is set and crust is golden brown. Cool and served plain or with a little red jam spread on top. (Sometimes I add a few raisins to the cheese filling before baking, as is customary in Finland.)

These freeze well. Thaw out and serve. You may also reheat in a 375 degree oven for 5 minutes.

Cheese filling:

2 eggs

1/3-1/2 c sugar

1/2 c sour cream

8 oz. package softened cream cheese,

1 Tbs. lemon juice

1 Tbs. lemon peel

In a small bowl with our electric beaters, combine the eggs, sugar, sour cream, cream cheese, lemon juice and lemon peel, beating until thick and smooth. Fills 20 to 24 buns.

These savory cheese buns originated in eastern Finland, but anymore they are available in even the smallest towns. usually can be found at the outdoor markets (toris).

Hyvat Korput - Finnish Biscotti

My Mother loves biscotti. I found out the reason why she eats biscotti is because she can no longer make Korput -- Finnish biscotti anymore.  When I came to my visit my folks today, I found my Dad had made Korput by drying hot dog buns and sprinkling cinnamon sugar on them. They'd seen the recipe in a Finnish American newspaper.  I decided I'd find her Hyvat Korput recipe she used to make and make them for them.  She also used to dry out older pulla and make it into biscotti or korppuja as well. Here is the recipe her friend Piret gave her years ago.

Hyvat Korput

1 cube butter or margarine
pinch of salt
3/4 cup sugar
3 teaspoons baking powder
3 cups flour
1 cup milk

Cream butter and sugar well. Mix baking powder into flour then add alternately with milk. Mix batter into small buns and bake them 20 minutes until light brown. Split in half with a fork and allow the rusks to dry even more at a low temperature.

20 minutes
24 korppuja

Chocolate Dream Roll

This month's recipe theme is "chocoholic". I'm not really a chocoholic, but do like it. My chocolate eating is mainly chocolate candy bars with Reese's being my favorite, followed by peanut M&Ms. It's a real treat though when I get to eat Fazer (Finnish) and Marabou (Swedish) chocolate. I enjoy brownies too. I like my Grandma's Chocolate cake pudding.  I would love to get the commercial recipe for the cake our friends had at their wedding in California.  Well one of my family's favorites is my Mother's Unelma Torttu which translated means Dream Roll. She got this recipe from her Jukarainen aunt. I made this for our recipe exchange and am glad I have some left over to share with my Mother.

Unelma Torttu

Ingredients:

4 egg yolks
1 cup sugar

4 egg whites
3/4 cup flour
4 T cocoa
2 t baking powder
1/4 t salt

Filling:

1 cube margarine
1 1/2 cup powdered sugar
1 egg or yolk
vanilla

Directions:

Beat yolks until thick and lemon colored; gradually beat in 1/3 cup sugar. In a large bowl, beat whites until soft peaks form, gradually add remaining 2/3 cup sugar, beat until stiff peaks form. Fold yolks into whites. Sift flour, baking powder, cocoa and salt. Fold into egg mixture. Spread on greased wax paper on a cookie sheet.

Bake at 375 degrees for 12 minutes.

Turn onto a dish towel sprinkled with sugar.

Roll, cool completely, unroll, and fill. 

Roll again. 

Cut in half and wrap in saran wrap and keep in refrigerator.

I prefer black strap molasses

Today, on the 12th day of Christmas, I made Finnish Gingerbread cookies at my Mother's. We'd been too busy earlier in the season. I was out of dark karo syrup and had heard one could use molasses instead. I used black strap molasses and it gave them the dark color they need. The smells were incredible and although it's time to have the oldest man in the village come to our home and sweep out the straw (it's what they decorate with in Finland), it felt we should keep Christmas up awhile longer. A friend on facebook asked for the recipe today, so here it is again.

Title: Piparkakut (Finnish Christmas Gingerbread Cookies)

Ingredients:
3/4 c margarine or butter
3/4 c sugar
1 egg
2 T dark Karo syrup (or black strap molasses)
1 t cinnamon
1 t cloves
1 t ground cardamom
1/2 t baking soda
2 1/2 c flour

Directions:
Cream margarine and sugar. Add egg, spices and syrup. Then add flour and soda sifted together. Form into a ball and wrap in plastic wrap. Chill the dough overnight in the refrigerator. Roll out on floured surface very thin and cut into desired shapes with a cookie cutter. Bake on a very lightly greased cookie sheet about 5 min at 375 degrees. Do not overbake! Store in an airtight tin and they will keep "forever".

Cranberry Apple Pies and Finnish Meat Pies

Today, for our daughter's birthday,

I made

Finnish Meat Pies

Click here for my Mother's Recipe

and 

Apple Cranberry Pie 

Click here for Recipe Girl's Recipe

and I've added her text below.

A different take on the apple pie.

CRUST:
3 cups rolled (old fashioned) oats
1 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
½ tsp (rounded measure) salt
1½ tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 cup + 2 T. brown sugar
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
1 cup butter (2 sticks), melted

FILLING:
7 cups peeled, sliced Granny Smith apples
1 cup fresh or frozen cranberries
3 Tbs fresh lemon juice
1½ tsp ground cinnamon
¼ tsp ground allspice (or ground cloves)
¼ tsp ground nutmeg (fresh is best!)
½ tsp grated lemon rind
3 Tbs unbleached all-purpose flour
¼ cup brown sugar (packed)
½ cup sour cream

1.  Prepare crust: Combine all crust ingredients in a medium-sized bowl, and mix well. Press firmly and evenly into the bottom and sides of a 9 or 10-inch pie pan, forming a thick crust. Reserve about a cup of the crust mix for the topping.

2.  Preheat oven to 375°F.

3.  Place sliced apples and cranberries in a large bowl. Drizzle with lemon juice and sprinkle with spices; toss until well coated. Add rind. Sprinkle in flour and mix again. Gradually add brown sugar and sour cream as you mix. Don't worry if the apple slices break a little while being mixed and tossed.

4.  Distribute the filling into the unbaked crust. Sprinkle the reserved crust crumbs over the top and pat neatly into place.

5.  Bake for 45 to 50 minutes or until the apples are soft and the crust is nicely browned on the edges. Note: If the top appears to be browning too quickly during baking, cover loosely with foil (check after about 30 minutes).

6.  Serve hot, warm or at room temperature. This is doubly good with a nice scoop of vanilla ice cream.

Yield: 1 pie

Cooking Tips

*Depending on how thick you'd like the crust, you may have some crust mix left over. Use any remaining crust crumbs in little ramekins to make a couple of extra "apple crisps!"

Recipe Girl's Recipe Source
Adapted significantly from The New Enchanted Broccoli Forest

Hubby makes Prime Rib

After I cooked (yet had lots of help from all of the family) several traditional Finnish Christmas dishes on Christmas Eve, my hubby decided he'd make the dinner on Christmas. He chose prime rib.

Here are some pictures he took while he was making it. I know he packed it with just the right granulation and amount of salt and tested the temperature often.

When it came out of the oven, we put *yesterday's casseroles back in cooling oven to reheat as we'd opted to just have left overs for the rest of the meal:)

Wonderful Roasted Prime Rib

The recipe my hubby used says "This method makes the BEST roasted prime rib. It never fails to produce a tender/juicy prime rib for me. Don't worry, the salt mixture will not affect the taste. It's purpose is to seal in all the flavor and juices".

SERVES 10

Change to: Servings US Metric

• 1
• 2
• 3
• 4
• 5

clear stars

Write a Review! (optional)

Ingredients

• 1 (3 lb) box of morton kosher salt
• 4-6 lbs prime rib roast

Directions

1. Slowly add a little of the water to the Kosher salt and stir; then add a little more water and stir. Continue until the salt becomes the consistency of "snow" so that you can "pack" it on the roast and it sticks like snow (Sometimes you may need a little more or less of the water) -- YOU DO NOT WANT TO DISSOLVE THE SALT.
2. Pat some of the salt mixture in a foil-lined pan in a rectangle big enough to put the roast on.
3. Place the roast on the salt and pat the remaining salt mixture on the roast, covering completely.
4. Inset a meat thermometer.
5. Bake at 425 degrees for about 2 hours.
6. (140 degrees for rare, 160 for medium).
7. Remove the roast when the thermometer registers 5 degrees BELOW desired doneness.
8. CRACK AND REMOVE ALL OF THE SALT CRUST.

*Christmas Eve Dinner included:
smoked salmon
rye bread
havarti cheese
rye and rice pastries (karjalan piirakka)
egg butter
ham
sauerkraut salad
rutabaga casserole (my Dad made this:)
carrot and rice casserole
potato casserole
strawberry rhubarb kisseli
pulla
lingonberry juice

Show Off Salmon-in-a-Crust

Tonight's recipe party theme is "Show Off".  This came immediately to mind for me.  I've only made it a couple of times a few years ago, but my Mother used to serve this at ladies luncheons or a small group.  She was first served this on an official visit to Heinavesi by Ambrosius in a Russian Orthodox Monastery and started serving it when they returned home.  

Salmon-in-a-Crust

Lohipiirakka--Finland

Every Finnish hostess has her own version of this fish pie.

1.5 cans salmon 

2 T butter

1 T lemon  juice

2 T minced fresh parsley

4-5 T dried dill weed

salt and pepper to taste

1 t onion powder

1 1/2 cups cooked rice

3 hard-boiled eggs

1 egg, thoroughly beaten

lots of melted butter:)

Lemon wedges for garnish

Drain water off of salmon, open second can, just scoop out half of it.  In a small bowl, mix together with a fork:  salmon, lemon  juice, parsley, dill and salt and pepper to taste. Refrigerate at least 20 minutes.  

Cover a large ungreased baking sheet with parchment paper.  Or grease baking sheet; set aside.  Shape on end to resemble a fish tail, not less than 6 inches wide.  Arrange pastry on prepared baking sheet.  Cut pieces of dough scraps to represent fins; press in place.  Spread salmon, parsley mixture over pastry within 2 inches of the edge.  Drizzle with butter.  Now make a layerof  rice and drizzle with more butter and sprinkle more dill weed over it.  Next make a layer of chopped boiled eggs and again drizzle with butter and dill weed.  

Roll remaining half of dough to a 20" x 10" oval.  Moisten edges on bottom crust with water.  Arrange top crust over salmon layer.  Press top and bottom crust, shaping fins and tails.  Brush surface with beaten egg.  

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  Cut a hole where eye of fish should be.  Insert a small ball of dough to keep hole open.  With tips of scissors blades, cut top crust to simulate fish scales.  These also serve as air vents during baking.  Bake 35 minutes or until crust is lightly browned but still pale.  To serve, cut in crosswise slices.  Serve with melted butter, lemon wedges and Horseradish Mayonnaise.  Makes 8 servings.  

Cottage-Cheese Pastry

Rahkakuori--Finland

Use this lovely, flaky pastry for sweet or savory pies.

1 cup cold, firm butter

2 c all-purpose flour

1 small-curd cottage cheese

1-2 T ice water, if needed

In a large bowl, cut butter into flour until mixture is crumbly and pieces are about the size of peas.  Stir in cottage cheese until mixture forms a crumbly dough.  Knead lightly to shape into a ball, adding ice water a few drops at a time, if necessary.  Chill 30 minutes before rolling out. 

Keeps well in refrigerator if you'll use it within 2 days.  It freezes well, so make it ahead of time. 

Horseradish Mayonnaise

This is excellent with any cold fish.

1/2 cup whipping cream

1 cup mayonnaise

3 Tbsp. grated fresh horseradish

In a medium bowl, beat cream until soft peaks form. Fold in mayonnaise and horseradish until blended. Refrigerate 15 to 30 minutes for flavors to blend. Makes about 2 cups.

Beet Salad goes well with this.  Apple Juice is nice to serve as the drink.  Dessert could be lemon souffle. 

Beet Salad

Punajuuri Salatti

2 cans of whole beets

1 apple

1/2 tsp horseradish

Drain the beets and grate them.  Now peel the apple, remove the seeds and then grate it.  Add the horseradish and as you keep stirring it, tastes it and add until it has enough of a kick for you.  

Roll 'em up and eat 'ems

A family food tradition we have is "Lattyja"  or Finnish Pancakes.  My good friend growing up couldn't say it, so her family called them "Roll 'em up and eat 'ems".  Growing up we'd have them for dinner on Fast Sundays.  

Title: Lättyjä (Finnish Pancakes)

Description:
Crepe like dessert. Made in Finland, Sweden, Iceland, Germany and other countries.

Ingredients:
5 cups milk (can use powdered milk)
1 cup sugar
1 tsp. salt
4-5 eggs
1/2 cup oil
3 1/2 cups flour or little more

Directions:
Mix all ingredients and beat well. Let stand at least 1 hour. The longer it stands the better. Fry in pan with margarine over high heat. Pour batter into middle of the frying pan. Pick up pan and pour the batter around until it is thin and lacy.
Serve hot with sugar or fruit with whipped cream, or fruit jams, or powdered sugar with lemon and butter or whatever combination you experiment with.

Number Of Servings:Makes about 2 dozen pancakes.

Preparation Time:
Fry one at a time or have 2 frying pans going. Can make somewhat ahead if you have a way to keep them warm. I put them in the oven with a bowl of water underneath to keep them moist. A tortilla warmer would work too.

Cousin E is a legend because growing up, he set the record for the nieces and nephews eating 24 lattyja at one time. Cousin C holds second. A may challenge them in a few years. Anyway, I made an observation, if this recipe makes 24, then E can eat a whole batch by himself!!! A batch usually fed the 5 of us growing up and now the 6 of mine at this age.

Meat Pies for Sale

Finnish Meat Pies are sold at the train stations in Finland. I remember buying them at the "kioski" to eat. Apparently so does another woman whose Mother is also Finnish. I ran into her at the grocery store and she said she most remembers the meat pies at the "asema" but has never made them since she doesn't have a recipe for them.

Well my Mother has the meat pie recipe and I grew up eating them -- especially at my brothers' teenage parties and other fun events. I guess since they could be considered a Finnish hamburger, my Mother would serve them to teenagers. I've never made them myself though as I remember them being time intensive -- at least in ratio to how quickly they are consumed. 

Recently our daughter has been asking me to make them, so I guess it's time to make them for my kids and to share the recipe.  (Now I make them once a year on her birthday or when requested.  Like anything different to you, they get much easier to make the more you make them.)

Finnish Meat Pies (Lihapiirakat)

from Finlandia Ranch

Dough:

2 cups milk, heated

1 Tbsp. dry yeast, dissolved in a little warm water

2 tsp. salt

4.5 - 5 cups flour

1/2 cup shortening

Mix as you would any bread dough, working in the shortening last with your fist, kneading well.( I have sweet memories of watching my Mother with you strong hands kneading dough, but I use a Bosch with a dough hook instead.) Cover and let rise 1 hour.

Meanwhile prepare the filling as follows:

In a quart size kettle, boil 1/2 cup Quick Pearl Barley in 2 cups water for about 20 minutes or until all the water is absorbed. Stir now and then during cooking.

In another kettle, prepare the following:

1 1/2 cups chopped onions

1 beef bouillon cube

1 cup water

Boil these together until onions have wilted; approximately 10 minutes.

Then add to onions, 1 lb. hamburger, stirring until hamburger is cooked. Take off heat and now add the cooked barley and the following spices:

1 tsp. onion powder

1 tsp. white pepper

2 tsp. dill weed

and salt to taste.

Now your dough should be ready, so roll it out real thin, using 1/4 of the dough at a time. Use an empty Crisco can as your cutter. Place a tablespoonful of meat filling in the center of each round, moistening edges with a little bit of cold water. This helps seal it. Fold it in two and pinch it to seal it. Place on counter top to raise. By the time you have all of them filled, the first ones are raised and you can star t deep fat frying them. Drop as many pies into heated oil as you can. Let cook on one side, then turn over and cook the other side. Keep turning over a few times until brown. Take out with a slotted spoon and place on a paper towel to drain. Place another paper towel on top and a heavy bath towel, to soften the pies. Then cool and heat before serving. And of course eat some as soon as they are cooked. That is when they are best. Make a slit in the pie and squirt mustard or ketchup in.

Handy and quick snack to have on hand. Goes well in a lunch box or take along on a picnic. They freeze well. You may reheat them individually in the microwave or put a batch in the steamer to reheat them.

Hope you enjoy them as we do.