semiswede

I’m not allowed to make these anymore. Not for a while at least because I am incapable of restraining myself. My mother-in-law brought me a batch which I promptly ate within a few days. Then the batch I made disappeared just as quickly. My efforts to thwart my addiction by putting them in the freezer […]

Blood oranges were on special in my local market the other day and I got a great deal on some of the particularly colorful Moro variety. The vibrant juice makes a stunning vermillion-colored sorbet. In thinking about what to pair with the blood oranges I remembered the lavender that has been burning a hole in […]

I’m a big fan of the spectacular Swedish spettkaka. Ribbons of batter piped onto a conical form make-up the unique confection sometimes called a pyramid cake in English, probably because the literal translation of spettkaka is spit cake. That’s a bit unfortunate, but makes sense when you learn the cake is baked on a rotating […]

Pink, pink, pink. I have just come off of a pink high for my 5 year-old’s princess birthday party and now it’s nearly Valentine’s Day which means more pink. My mother reminded me that I wasn’t a fan of pink or hearts as a little girl but now that I have two girls of my […]

Five ingredients, easy to make, gluten-free, and addictive. This is a recipe I come back to again and again despite the fact I typically lack the patience for the monotonous repetition of baking cookies. These couldn’t be easier to make and are a great baking project to do with kids.

There are beet-lovers, and beet-haters. If you are the latter, I’m not going to pretend this is the recipe to win you over to the beet camp. You are better off with baby steps and the Swedish classic Biff à la Lindström. This recipe is a decidedly beet-lovers moment and even for that crowd adjusting to […]

This is one of my all-time favorite salads and whenever I share it with others it gets rave reviews. The honey vinaigrette in combination with the tang of the blue cheese, crunch of toasted hazelnuts, and sweetness of the currants is heavenly. I kid you not. I can’t get enough of this salad and I’ve […]

As much as I appreciate the crust on a beautifully pan-fried meatball, I just don’t have the time or the patience to stand over the stove and fry up all of those little darlings. My Swedish grandmother (born in the U.S. to Swedish parents) used to make her meatballs a “shortcut” way by broiling and baking […]

I still have a mother lode of golden Lucia buns burning a hole in my freezer and the holiday season in Sweden officially ends on the 20th day after Christmas or tjugondagknut (which happens to be Friday the 13th this year…how cheery). In my efforts to come up with creative ways to use all of […]

Ostkaka, literally cheese cake in Swedish, is a specialty of the Småland region. Historically its earliest mention is in the 1520s in a list of foods served on New Year’s Day in the household of Bishop Hans Brask in Linköping. Today you can buy it ready-made in any supermarket making it an easy and popular […]