Ingen pizza - men toppengod!

 

Oemotståndligt smarrigt!

Bläddrade i COOPs kundtidning - oftast blir det faktiskt att jag bara bläddrar igenom den - och råkade fastna på ett litet recepttips om 'Äppelpizza på tortillabröd'. Att kalla något man gör med (inköpes-)tortillabröd för 'pizza' är förstås att ta i ordentligt men detta verkade ändå lockande. 

Sagt och gjort, vi hade hemma både tortillabröd, crème fraiche, äpplen, kardemumma och såklart (svensk!) honung så det var bara att testa. På med ugnen 225C, smeta crème fraiche på ett tortillabröd, fixa flortunna äppelskivor med mandolin, strö på med kardemumma, smälta honung i vattenbad och ringla över - och in i ugnen med hela härligheten.

Riktigt gott blev det, jamen! Härlig konsistens med det lite sega tortillabrödet, tillsammans med syran från crème fraiche och äpplen och sedan som pricken på i:et kardemumman och honungssötman.

Några ytterligare funderingar:

• Mandolinen är verkligen grejen i många sammanhang. Tunt, tunt blir ofta så suveränt gott! Klart man kan fixa detta med kniven men det gäller verkligen att vara stadig på handen.
• Jag tar mycket (mortlad) kardemumma! Helt magiskt. Lite kanel därtill fungerar ypperligt bra också.
• Flytande honung från utlandet - som beklämmande ofta är fejkad honung - finns det ingen anledning att köpa. Det finns gott om väldigt god svensk honung som blir flytande på någon minut i vattenbad.
• Vi testade också med Chavroux getost, blandad med lite crème fraiche eller grekisk yogurt - fullträff!
• Råkade ha lönnsirap i skafferiet vid ett annat tillfälle och jag måste säga att det var inte alls dumt, det heller. Fast minst lika gott blir det med honung, egentligen.

Denna snabba anrättning går att variera hur mycket som helst, såklart, och härmed har vi en ny favorit till gofikat. Enkelt, snabbt och supergott - kanske läge att testa med päron nästa gång? 

   

This Is How: To Skip Dessert

 

Yes, I did skip dessert

It was a sunny winter day and it felt just right to skip dessert - and, actually, lunch as well. This Is How brewery is, surprisingly, not located in the US but in a very northern town of Piteå, Sweden! I checked the How To Skip Dessert can one more time and sure enough, there is not a word anywhere to be found about the origin of the beer. Everything on the can is in (American) English! Strange. I had the impression that the good folks in Piteå town are not the least ashamed of their home turf!

The very dark goodness of this chocolate stout is definitely extremely tasty - and filling. Super delicious and I'd guess it is as close a beer gets to chocolate, without a complete transformation. Yup, you can definitely skip dessert and choose How To Skip Dessert instead. Perhaps not such a great idea to skip lunch though. 

Apparently This Is How will also open a 'taproom' in (even more northern) Luleå; interesting for sure!  

The Instant Ramen Hack

 

So, how's this the ramen hack, since there must be roughly a billion of them on YouTube? Okay, let's just say that this is the only one I've tried, at least!

I was running low on lunch food at the office - I do fix my own lunch, in various ways, in case I don't have some of the really good stuff with me (the delicious leftovers from a home cooked dinner, prepared by my very own chef). What I did have was mayo - not the US whole-eggs-style but made of yolks only - plus eggs and instant ramen noodles. Heck, why not.

Some garnish would have been great - and some garlic as well - but at least there was a bit of built-in garlic taste in the Sriracha clone that I used for additional oomph. 

All in all, this weird combo does really work; it doesn't quite turn instant ramen into the culinary peak experience of a lifetime but you do get something quite a bit tastier than the bare bones bowl!

[UPDATE] The second time, I added spring onions that had been marinating overnight in my secret sauce (secret ingredients: Japanese soy, miso, sesame oil, lemon, chili, Hoisin sauce, Worcestershire sauce, ginger, maple syrup). A generous tablespoon of this combo went in together with the mayo in the beginning and then I garnished the works with some of the spring onions. The end result? Definitely yummy. I'd even say: the best instant ramen ever - and crazy cool.

Spectacular pizza - on the stovetop

It's almost begging: 'bite me!' I sure did :)

Sometimes, when the pizza cravings hit, there might not be an oven available - or perhaps you just don't want to fire up your oven, for whatever reason. So, what about the stovetop then? Googling 'stovetop pizza' gives way more than ten million hits so, apparently, it's doable alright! Just get your dough ready in advance, as usual, grab a pan and you're good to go. But hey, what about that amazing slightly charred, Neapolitan style leopard crust? Yup, you can fix that too, but you do need the specialty item that's also a must-have for the super delicious desserts like Crème Brûlée or Crema Catalana: a kitchen torch!

I'm not sure how I found Andrea - probably more widely known as CuoreDiCiccolato on the web - but he seems to be a really nice guy who knows what he's doing in his kitchen, he's got this truly beautiful Italian accent and, talking about pizza: shoot, he's Italian! So, I checked his YouTube video about Neapolitan style stovetop pizza and knew I just had to give it a try. 

Andrea's dough recipe is way more exact than anything that I can handle so I just winged it, being careful not to add too much flour (you can always cope with a dough that's perhaps a bit too sticky but the other way round is basically impossible). The pan I used is a shallow DeBuyer Mineral B carbon steel pan and the torch a heavy duty Sievert Handyjet 2282. The result? I'd guess Andrea would say something like this: pretty spectacular!

Crazy delicious, the Parmesan shavings almost melting in the mozzarella and pesto topping. Rucola on top gives the final green and tasty touch!

The version above - Bianco e verde (mozzarella, pesto, capers and before serving generously with parmesan shavings plus arugula), many thanks btw to Martin Johansson and his superb (Swedish) book Bröd och pizza - is probably one of our great favorites that really shines with the sour dough boost Martin knows all about! My wife is a bit of a sour dough wizard so I will definitely later on try the Spectacular style infused with some sour dough magic :) 

All in all, I'd say that my stovetop pizza test was a great success and something I'll most probably get back to many times in the future. Very, very Cool and Grazie, Andrea!

Pro Home Cooks: Go Sour Dough - yeast is BS!

Neither me nor my wife - she is the LaplandCrossoverCuisine Chef, by the way! - are anything even remotely close to devoted YouTube fans but every now and then we do stumble on some really great stuff there. This is one of the gems: the holy grail for everyone singing the praise of sour dough bread (or the LCC crazy exquisite, mind blowingly yummy sour dough Nordic rolls - with a twist!). Putting it plain, the way Mike Greenfield does: don't trash your sour dough starter! However, I'd like to modify his statement ever so slightly: don't you dare thrashing your sour dough stater!

Just like MikeG, we love our sour dough bread, for the obvious reasons: it's good for you, no BS yeast needed because it would just mess things up - and the taste & crust is just so super good that nothing else comes even remotely close. We have been baking our own bread since the dawn of time and sour dough bread for many years. However, just like Mike says what he used to do: yes, full disclosure - we have also been thrashing our excess sour dough starter but no more!

Does it really turn out that good, making (almost) instant 'pancakes' out of the sour sour dough starter? We were a bit sceptical but, of course, we had to try it out. Not that we did it exactly the way Mike played it - instead, the Chef also used some other toppings - but my oh my: the result was just crazy delicious! The texture, the mouthfeel, the savory taste.. This is quite simply a perfect appetizer or snack, easy to modify the way you want it, to be enjoyed with some dipping sauce and perhaps a drink of your choice. Whoa! Perhaps we won't be eating this stuff daily, like Mike does, but pretty often for sure :)

I have been watching some of the ProHomeCooks videos - and earlier, BrothersGreen -  mainly because Mike has absolutely nailed the delicate mixture of fun but serious and inspiring cooking coaching. The most important part is that he has actually walked the walk, instead of just talking the talk - and his engagement definitely shines through. There are many nutcases making money on YouTube but, luckily, Mike doesn't seem to be one of those guys; it looks like he's more of the opposite kind.    

Thanks for the super tasty pro sour dough (starter) tip, Mike!

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SweTnc Glögg & Tonic: Ice Cold

There is a winter tradition in my Nordic area that goes back probably all the way to the ice age: drinking (steaming hot) glögg! There are, of course, several versions of the theme in other regions - and one of them is the well known mulled wine. However, proper Swedish glögg is most often quite a bit more powerful in comparison! 

These days there are quite a few glögg brands available in Sweden; both non alcoholic ones and those that are heavily 'spiced' with brandy or rum. The latest addition to the Swedish glögg supply is Gin & Tonic Glögg(!), available from SwedishTonic (the potent variety through Systembolaget only) - the well known producers of excellent, hand made tonic with no artificial ingredients.

This very special Glögg - spiced with both Christmas flavors and gin, of course, wasn't a great favorite of mine (see the full story) but now my ingenious wife has found a way to actually enjoy this brew. Tre recipe is simple: forget the hot beverage; instead drink it on the rocks, preferably with some lemon! We also add sparkling water, just a little bit. What about more gin, perhaps? Not tested - yet.

Summing it up: Gin & Tonic Glögg is not cool - it's ice cold!

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AeroPress Go: Hype And Reality

There's tons of hype about AeroPress; the (totally) incredible, (fairly) inexpensive, manually operated coffee gadget that (almost) instantly brews you that amazing (espresso) cup of coffee! Providing you have some ground coffee and hot water, that is. So much about the hype - now, let's see about the real deal.

I decided to get the AeroPress Go which is the most compact AeroPress version, easy to bring along in case you ever travel anywhere in this weird world of ours. Basically, it's the very same design as the 'original' AeroPress; three main parts only plus the filter holder 'cap'. Let's get the facts straight:

• AeroPress Go is very compact, very durable, very much Go
• I don't see the point in using disposable paper filters; go for metal
• The UpsideDown method is the way to go - never makes a mess, at least for the first cup. However, I never pour in more water afterwards! Crazy!
• I grind my coffee pretty fine; not espresso fine but close. The one and only golden rule: freshly ground coffee makes the best cup of coffee, period
• Don't rush it, when using the plunger - easy does it, for best results
• Forget about the 'science' of exact water temperature and the absolutely right amount of coffee grounds. Instead, wing it until you like it
• The coffee you get is definitely not espresso!

What about the cup of coffee you do get, using your AeroPress? I like the coffee from my AeroPress Go; it's strong but not bitter. I do prefer my Go to a French press and - for whatever reason - when drinking AeroPress coffee I never get trouble with my stomach which does sometimes happen with the java from a French press.

One more bonus for AeroPress: it's very easy to clean this thing and dispose of the coffee grounds when they have done their magic. The grounds are pressed into a puck that - after a while - can be dumped in one quick move. Very Cool!

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Semi Automatic Toaster

A masterpiece of engineering: the semi automatic toaster, combining a pro manual mode with the ease of use through ingenious automation. Truly a gem in any kitchen!

What's the brand, then? Sadly, I have no idea - this amazing piece of kitchen equipment is not ours. Sigh.

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Tons of tonic!

Sure, this might be pushing it a bit but.. Hey, I do like a good gin tonic! A lot. The fact that all the tonic goodness pictured above - from SwedishTonic - ended up on our kitchen table is interesting and there's definitely a back story to it..

The tonic produced by the folks at Swedish Tonic in Stockholm is different; those guys are dead serious about their tonic and the (yup, pricy) liquid is apparently hand made from scratch - no artificial flavors whatsoever. Their tonic also has this really neat amber glow since that's what you get if you use 'real Chinchona Bark'. Anyway, that's what they say and I choose to believe them.

I'm not sure where I heard about SwedishTonic the first time but I have bought their tonic syrup several times now; I prefer mixing the tonic with sparkling water - from our Soda Stream, works great - myself, instead of buying their bottled tonic (which is also good).

So, earlier this winter I noticed that Systembolaget - the state liquor store in Sweden - would soon get the special Christmas glögg from SwedishTonic, spiced with gin of course. I made my move quickly and reserved two bottles right away. They were not cheap, by the way.

Then came Christmas time, and also time to sample some very special glögg! Me and my wife opened the beautiful bottle, took a little sip, looked at each other slightly puzzled, took another one - and we were done. Not tasty; somehow bitter and almost perfumelike aftertaste. I wasn't happy, partly because there was one more bottle in the cellar.

I had been in touch with the SweTnc folks before so I decided to shoot them an email with some feedback. Not long after I sent the mail I got a reply stating they were sorry I didn't like the glögg and they would be happy to mail some tonic my way. Okay, no objections to that.

A couple of days later I got a notification on my phone: there was a package from SweTnc waiting at the local grocery store, a ten minutes' walk from our house. Cool, I figured I'll take a walk and bring that bottle of tonic back in the pocket of my down jacket. At the store I went to the cashier, showed the delivery info and then got my package - all 10 kg of it (yup, that's more than 20 lbs US)! I was pretty sure the folks at the store had made a mistake but nope, it was my package alright.

It was a short walk from the store but it had been snowing quite a bit and when I was back home I was drenched with sweat.

I wonder if the SweTnc guys somehow knew that I would collect my package on foot. Could they also have checked the weather in advance so they knew about the heavy snowfall in my area?! Shoot, I'd guess I'll never know - and, actually, I don't care that much. I think I'm going to make myself and my wife a really good gin tonic.

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Primus Lite Plus

[UPDATE] This tiny stove has been serving us well for some time now; basically the only gripe I have is the fact that it is really easy to burn off the lower part of the handle strip, since it readily folds down very close to the burner. See the close-up here. A word of caution to the new owner would definitely have been great and an easy way to stop this from happening [UPDATE]

Fixing food outdoors can be tons of fun but sometimes you just want to get it over with - fast. The best camping stove I've ever had is the tiny PrimusLitePlus; it's lightning fast for bringing water to a boil but the really Cool(?!) thing is that it also works just fine for actually cooking or warming up food since the flame is highly adjustable (beats JetBoil I've heard!).

Several smart solutions make this rocket stove even better - for example, there are three 'screws' tucked away in the handle (strangely, not visible in the pic from Primus shop) that make it possible to use a frying pan on top of the stove (do not try it without the screws in place) Very nice! Just make sure you don't lose those screws.. A drop of medium strength Loctite might be a very good idea.

The whole package is, of course, extremely compact - including the gas that you pack within the stove itself - and this thing functions amazingly well even when there's a bit of a breeze.

Very cool - indeed, you don't burn your fingers when grabbing the mug even though the stuff inside gets very hot! - and highly recommended. Check it out on the manufacturer's site.

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