Viking Vittles; Svenska Köttbullar - Swedish Meatballs

Unlike French Fries, Danish Pastry and Vienna Sausage; Swedish meatballs (Svenska Köttbullar) are the national dish of Sweden. They are usually a made of veal or a combination of ground beef and ground pork which is then mixed with finely minced onion and seasoned with Nutmeg, All Spice, and White Pepper with milk soaked bread as filler all bound together with an egg or two.

What really makes 'Swedish Meatballs' is the size (only about 1 inch) and the texture of the meat due to the milk soaked bread and the method of processing the meat until smooth. I am, at times, very influenced by my Danish heritage and tend to utilize Mace in place of Nutmeg as well as adding Cardamom to just about everything. But today is not that day. In order to present a more "true to the origin" recipe, I am leaving those out this time.

However the Crème Fraîche and the shallots are staying in, normally heavy cream is added at the end of the pan sauce construction stage, but I like the slight tang provided by the Crème Fraîche, and the shallot seems to deliver more flavor than a yellow onion.

Swedish Meatballs

1 cup Buttermilk White Bread (Crust removed)
3 oz Whole Milk
4 TB clarified butter or ghee, divided (I prefer Beurre Noisette - Browned Butter)
3/4 cup finely minced shallot
2 cloves of garlic slightly broken
1 1/2 tsp kosher salt plus a pinch or two for shallot
2 lbs ground Veal –or- 1 lb ground Pork mixed with 1 lb ground Beef (preferably not less than 10% fat)
1 large Egg
1 large Egg Yolk
3/4 tsp White Pepper
1/2 tsp Nutmeg, ground - or Mace
1/4 tsp All Spice, ground - or Cardamom
1/3 cup AP flour
3 cups Beef Stock
4 oz Crème Fraîche or Heavy Cream
16 oz Egg Noodles of your choice

Place the torn bread in a bowl with the Milk and let it soak.

In a sauté pan over medium heat, place 2 T of the browned butter and when hot, add the shallot and Garlic along with a pinch or two of salt.

Sweat the Shallots until they become soft and translucent… Do not Sauté them (No sizzling).
Remove from the heat and extract the garlic.

In your stand mixer’s bowl, combine the Milk/Bread mixture, Ground Veal, Egg Yolk, Egg, 1 1/2 tsp Kosher Salt, White Pepper, Nutmeg, All Spice, and Shallot.

Put the spurs to it and beat on medium speed for 3 to 5 minutes. (You want a completely homogeneous mixture.)

Lay a double layer of Plastic wrap over your kitchen scale and scoop meatballs into 1-ounce portions, then move to a sheet pan.

Chill the sheet pans for about 30 minutes.

Rub your hands with olive oil, or use latex gloves, shape the meatballs into… Well, balls... of about 1 inch in diameter.

Heat the remaining 2 TB of butter in the sauté pan over medium-low heat, or use and electric skillet set to 350 degrees F.

Sauté the meatballs golden brown all over, about 8 to 12 minutes.

Move the meatballs to a baking dish and place in the warmed oven; you may have to work in batches.

When all of the meatballs have been cooked, decrease the heat to 250F and add the flour to the pan or skillet whisking until sufficiently 'Cooked', about 2 to 3 minutes.

Gradually add the Beef stock while whisking constantly; then continue whisking until the sauce begins to thicken.

Add the Crème Fraîche and continue cooking until the sauce thickens a little more.

Retrieve the meatballs from the oven, smother them with the sauce simmer for 5 minutes.

Then serve in a chafing dish with toothpicks as an appetizer, or my favorite way, which is over fresh egg noodles as a main course.

Mangia!!
~~

Stroop to My Level - The Stroopwafel

Yeah, it's time to travel to another part of the globe in the never ending quest for delicious waffles. Our journey, today, takes us to Gouda in the Netherlands. No, no, Gouda is known for more than just its delicious cheese. Oh yes... For it is also the home of the Stroopwafel. Which, in my opinion, is the bestest waffles EVER! (The Liege runs a REALLY close second).

What is a Stroopwafel? It is a very thin cinnamon waffle made from something that can best be described as a yeasted cookie dough. The hot waffles are split in two while still flexible, filled with a cinnamon molasses syrup (stroop). Oh Yeah Baby! It is then pressed back together and allowed to crisp up as it cools. Exquisitely delicious... Leave it to the Dutch to come up with something so decadently divine.

I have been wanting to make these for Eons, but a stroopwafel iron is a little hard to come by. At least on the Southern West Coast. Oh, they are available on Fantes.com for a small fortune, but I have never been able to justify the expense. Well, I found one, quite by accident, and I broke the cardinal rule for waffle iron purchasing:

"NEVER buy a plastic housed waffle iron, because it is incapable of getting hot enough to properly bake a waffle."

I can get away with following this rule, because I have no little ones running around that can get burned, just my own clumsy self. ;)

But I am digressing... What's so special about a stroopwafel iron...? Well the grid looks like this...

And much to my excitement, Rival is now selling one, and calling it a "Ice Cream Cone maker". Which is technically correct, since the pattern is the same as that of the Sugar cone (I have a feeling the Sugar cone was invented by a Dutchman, but I will have to research that).
I have noticed that things like this happen... Pancake puffs come to mind (which I will be posting about in the near future). I am sure you have heard or seen the Pancake Puff pan which became such a rage about a year ago. Can anyone say Danish Aebleskivers??? The darn thing has been around for centuries, but they gave it a new name and a commercial, and it becomes all the rage... LOL Life is funny.

Suffice it to say, that I now have a Stroopwafler/Sugar Cone Maker and for being plastic, it seems to work fairly well, except I have to hold it closed, because the lid plate isn't heavy enough to place enough pressure on the dough. This is something that I can work through. So without further babbling, I present ... Directly from Bowie, Maryland... Mrs. Watson's Recipe for Stroopwafels.

Nederlandse Stroopwafels

Makes about 32 pieces
(You will need a VERY sharp knife, preferably a fillet knife)

Wafel Dough:
3 TB Warm Water (105-115 degrees)
1 tsp Active dry Yeast
1 tsp Granulated Sugar
1 cup Unsalted butter
1/3 Cup Granulated Sugar
Pinch of salt
1 TB Cinnamon
3 1/4 cups flour
2 Large Eggs

Stroop (Syrup):
1 TB ground cinnamon
1/3 cup Karo light syrup
2/3 cup Honey
7/8 cup Light Brown Sugar
1/4 cup Unsalted Butter
Pinch of Salt

Proof yeast in 3 TB water with 1 tsp sugar until bubbly.

Beat butter, 1/3 cup Sugar, Salt and Cinnamon, creaming until light.

Add the yeast, flour and eggs

mix with until crumbly.

Set the mixer aside and knead with your hands in the bowl until the dough holds together (it will kind of feel like sugar cookie dough)

Set in a warm place for about an hour to rise. (Don’t worry if it doesn’t look like it’s raising much, it’s a heavy semi cookie dough)

Meanwhile, make the syrup (stroop).
Heat Butter, Cinnamon, Corn Syrup, Honey, Salt and Sugar on stove in a small saucepan over low heat.

and cook slowly until thickened a bit (about 10 minutes).

Remove from heat, it will thicken as it cools, but still must be slightly warm and thin enough to spread easily.

If it cools too much, reheat gently; if it thickens too much, add a bit of Lemon Juice.
Heat your waffler.
Divide the dough into 32 pieces and roll them into balls

Place a ball in the waffle iron

Press down and hold it down for about 30 seconds.

Remove waffle, and with and extremely sharp knife, slice waffle in half, horizontally. Be quick, or the waffle will crisp up on you and all will be lost...

(They will be really hot, but you must be quick)

Spread syrup quickly.

Then press the two halves back together again and set aside to cool and get crispy.

Repeat with the remaining 31 pieces of dough.

Now the best part, eating a stroopwafel!!!
Place one over your cup of coffee to warm it back up.


Mangia!!!
~~

Et Tu, Brute? - Romaine Betrayal

This is actually Post #100 for me...YAY!!! So I think a food origin post is kind of fitting in a way. Just a warning before you start reading this. I am very passionate about Caesar Salad.... ;)

Food Origin: The Caesar Salad

Just like the Colosseum of Rome (Flavian Amphitheatre), The Pantheon and the Dome of Florence. The Caesar salad is an architectural masterpiece of Italian ingenuity. Named after its creator, Caesar Cardini, not Julius Caesar or Caesar Augustus, the salad was originally prepared table side by Caesar himself in his restaurant in Tijuana, Mexico, from the 1920s thru 1940s.

Contrary to popular belief, and reinforced by shoddily pre-made bottled dressings of your local grocery chain, the original Caesar Salad did NOT contain actual anchovy; the slight whisper of anchovy flavor comes from Worcestershire sauce. Cardini was hotly opposed to using anchovies in his salad. The confusion, methinks, lies in the fact that Caesar’s brother, Alex, is responsible for another salad craze, the Aviator Salad, which DID contain anchovy.

There is a Cardini's Caesar dressing available in the Mega-Mart, produced by the family, sadly though, due to modern manufacturing practices, it is now made with Soybean oil (Blech!!) instead of Extra Virgin Olive oil (Yum!). Here is also where another issue rears its ugly head (of lettuce)…

Caesar is a “salad”, not a “dressing”… Does that make sense? Maybe I should rephrase that.
It is a preparation of Romain Lettuce leaves topped with croûtons, not a dressing to be dumped on lettuce leaves and there is NO chicken involved whatsoever.
The salad is actually built in the bowl as you toss, layer by layer, each addition building and transforming on the foundation of what came before.

It is magnificent in its simplicity, divine in flavor and inspired in technique.

Now like any good construction project, you need building materials. This will require a little work. For you need Croûtons. No, do not go BUY croûtons. This is why the French snub their noses at American cuisine… Croûtons are the easiest thing in the world to make, and yet most of us go to the Mega-mart and buy them in bags… Ew! The only sad news to this is that you will need a mortar and pestle, you cannot use a blender. Garlic has emulsifying powers just like egg yolks and mustard, so if you try to use a blender, you will end up with aioli. Which is still tasty, and the proper form of aioli instead of garlicy mayonnaise, but it will not work for making croûtons.

Garlic Croûtons:
3 cloves of Garlic
1/4 tsp Sel Gris or Fleur de Sel (You need something that can abrade the garlic)
1/4 cup Extra Virgin olive oil
2 cups of 1/2 inch cubed day old Italian Bread

In a mortar & pestle, pulverize the garlic with salt.
Add Extra Virgin Olive oil (Go for something fruity).
Stir into a slurry-ish type substance and let it set while you…
Cut up your bread into 1/2 inch cubes.
Dry in a 325 degree oven (about 5 minutes - do not let them brown)
Strain oil into a skillet over medium heat and fry the dried croûtons, tossing until all oil is absorbed and the croûtons turn golden brown.
Set them aside

(Try not to eat them while performing the next steps, I know it’s hard to resist warm croutons... Well, snitching 1 or 2 won't really hurt...)

Next you will need Coddled Eggs. What the heck is a coddled egg? A coddled egg are gently cooked. Instead of being boiled, it gets simmered. It can also be done in a doohickey (technical term) similar to a bain marie. The egg is cracked into a little cup, and the cup is placed in simmering water. In America, these gizmos (again, technical term) are sold as Egg Poachers which they are not, they are egg coddlers.

Coddled Eggs:
2 Large Eggs

Bring 2 cups of water just to a boil
Meanwhile, prepare a bowl with water & ice
When the water just reaches a boil, remove from heat and let it set 30 seconds
Immerse 2 eggs in hot water for 1 minute and 1 minute ONLY

Remove and immediately place in ice bath to stop cooking.


I am also pretty sure that this recipe will work if egg substitutes are used for those concerned about salmonella. I have not tried to use them personally, but there are also pasteurized eggs available on the market. Although I have some qualms about consuming irradiated foods. The dip in the 200 degree water will kill the Salmonella Enterica living ON the shell.
According to the US Dept of Health, cooking at temperature of 72°C/160°F or more is sufficient to kill salmonella.
I also dug this up on the CDC website regarding Salmonella Enteritidis (in the egg itself)... “Only a small number of hens seem to be infected at any given time, and an infected hen can lay many normal eggs while only occasionally laying an egg contaminated with the Salmonella bacterium.”
To me, this means that the chances of catching salmonella are so minuscule, that they are hardly even worth mentioning.

Romaine Lettuce:
2 heads of Romaine lettuce outer leaves removed (16oz);
Remove the core, separate the leaves.
Wash and then Dry them well, or the oil will not adhere to the leaves and your dressing will crumble to the ground (The wise man build his house upon the rock, not the sand)
It is your choice whether you leave the leaves whole or tear them in to more manageable pieces.

(Yes I tear, cause you will have to chill the leaves after drying them so if you cut them, the edges will brown, please tear the leaves)
Keep well chilled until ready to toss.

Shred your Parmigiano-Reggiano.
Normally I am not a stickler for cheese… I mean, ALL cheese is good. I tend to waffle between Asiago d’Allevo, Pecorino Romano, Parmegiano-Reggiano and Grana Padano all the time (except for Pasta Carbonara – Pecorino Romano only). But in this case Romano and Asiago are too sharp and Grana Padano is just to mild. So this is one of the few cases where I will say “It’s ALL ABOUT THE PARM”. I don’t mean “Parmesan” either (no green can). It’s only 1 1/2 oz.... It’s worth it.

OK, now that all the building materials are amassed, it’s time to bring in the heavy equipment.

1 Very large Bowl (In this case wider is better than deep)
2 Salad Tossers (one for each hand.)

OK, Lets recap to make sure we have everything:

16 oz Romaine Lettuce; Cleaned, dried and chilled
6 TB Extra Virgin Olive oil
Kosher salt
10 Grinds of Black Pepper
1 - 1 1/2 lemons (it will depend on how big your lemons are 1 large or 1 1/2 medium).
9 Dashes of Worcestershire
2 Coddled Large Eggs
1 1/2 oz Shredded Parmigiano-Reggiano Cheese; plus a little more for serving (optional)
Freshly Made Garlic Croûtons

Let’s cut the ribbon, break ground and build ourselves an Edifice of Lettuce:

Place Romaine in the bowl and toss with 3 TB of the Olive oil, just enough to lightly coat the leaves.

Sprinkle with a pinch of Kosher Salt and 10 grinds black pepper and remaining 3TB olive oil and toss well.

Use a kind of rolling motion to move the leaves around, this minimizes bruising.
Squeeze the Lemon juice over the leaves

as well as the Worcestershire and toss again, briefly.

Crack Coddled eggs over leaves and toss until the eggs create an emulsion of lemon juice and olive oil.

Your ingredients will achieve a creamy consistency, kind of very pale beige.

Sprinkle with shredded Parmigiano-Reggiano

and toss to incorporate.

Serve with Croûtons on large Plates,

with Prosseco or Asti… The gentle bubbles in Spumanti and Frizzante style wines intensify the flavors.

Mangia!!
~~