Sweet temptations

Veiled maidens
(Tilslørte bondepiker)

(Serves 4)

4-5 stewed cooking apples or 2-3 dl apple puree
1/2 dl sugar
1/2 dl water
2-3 dl biscuit (US: cookie) crumbs or dried breadcrumbs
2-3 tbsp sugar
2-3 tbsp butter
approx. 3 dl whipping cream

Garnish:

1 dl coarsely chopped almonds

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Peel, core and chop the apples. Cook with the sugar and water until just soft. Cool. Melt the butter in a hot frying pan. Mix the crumbs and sugar with the butter and fry until the mixture is crisp and golden. Whip the cream. Place the apple puree, cream and crumbs in layers in a bowl. Top with the chopped, roasted almonds.

Rhubarb soup

(Serves 4)

Rhubarb soup is usually made in May, when the first shoots appear after the long winter.

1/2 kg rhubarb
1 l water
approx. 60 g potato flour
1 stick of cinnamon (optional)
approx. 150 g sugar

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Wash the rhubarb and cut it into pieces. Bring the water to the boil and place the rhubarb and cinnamon stick in it. Remove the cinnamon after about 5 minutes, when the rhubarb is cooked. Add sugar to taste. Add the potato flour dissolved in a little water. The soup may be served hot or cold. Garnish each bowl with a spoonful of crème fraiche or sour cream.

Cream layer cake
(Bløtkake)

This is the cake Norwegians serve on special occasions and above all on their national day, the 17th of May.

Cake:

(About 16 slices)

4 eggs
100 g sugar
100 g flour
1 tsp baking powder

cake tin, about 22 cm in diameter

Filling:

2 dl raspberry jam
1 tin sliced peaches, approx. 400 g
1 packet of vanilla cream (5 dl)
3 dl whipping cream
1 tsp sugar

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Berries and/or fruit to garnish. The cake in the picture is decorated with strawberries, bilberries (US: blueberries) and raspberries.

Beat the eggs and sugar until they form peaks. Sieve the flour and baking powder into the egg mixture and fold lightly in. Pour the batter into a greased tin and bake the cake. Cool on a rack. Slice the cake in three, horizontally, and sprinkle each slice with some of the peach juice from the tin. Cover two of the slices with jam, peach slices and vanilla cream. Place the third layer on top of the other two and cover the whole cake, including the sides, with the cream whipped with the teaspoon of sugar. Garnish with berries and/or fruit.

Recipe from TINE Kjøkken

Waffles

(About 10 waffles)

Fresh waffles with jam and sour cream are a treat that never palls.

100 g butter
2 eggs
4 tbsp sugar
1 tsp vanilla-flavoured sugar
5 dl milk
3 1/2 dl flour

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Melt the butter and pour it into a bowl. Add eggs, sugar, vanilla-flavoured sugar, milk and flour. Beat until smooth. Allow to stand for at least 15 minutes. Ladle the batter into a waffle iron. Serve with sugar or jam and sour cream.

Recipe from TINE Kjøkken

Strawberries and cream

(Serves 4)

1/2 kg strawberries
1-2 dl cream
sugar

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Hull the strawberries and wash them. Drain in a colander. Serve with sugar and either cream or a mixture of cream and milk.

Whole-wheat bread

1 kg mixed whole-wheat and white flour (half and half)
6 dl water or a mixture of water and sour milk
50 g yeast
2 tbsp soy bean oil
2 tsp salt
2 tsp sugar

This bread tastes especially good with any of the following additions:

2 tbsp linseeds
2 tbsp sunflower seeds
2 tbsp sesame seeds
2 tbsp oatmeal flakes

In this case the liquid should be increased by approx. 1/2 dl

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The ingredients should be at room temperature and the liquid lukewarm. Mix all the ingredients. Fresh yeast should first be dissolved in the liquid. Dried yeast may be sprinkled directly into the flour. Knead the dough well until it is smooth and firm. By hand this will take about 15 minutes, with a food processor about 8 minutes. Add more liquid or flour if necessary. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and allow the dough to rise for about 30 minutes. Divide the dough into two and make each half into a sausage. Knead them flat so as to press out the air. Roll up each rectangle and place with the folded edge downwards in a greased baking tin. Allow the dough to rise in a warm place for 40-45 minutes, covered with a cloth and a sheet of plastic wrap. Bake on the bottom shelf of the oven for about 45 minutes at 200-225°C.

Whole-wheat rolls

(24 rolls)

1/2 kg finely milled whole-wheat flour
1/2 kg white flour
2 tsp salt
2 tsp finely chopped or 1 tsp dried thyme
approx. 1/2 dl oatmeal flakes
50 g yeast
approx. 3/4 l water or skimmed milk

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Mix the dry ingredients. Heat the milk or water until it is lukewarm. Mix the fresh yeast with the liquid and add to the flour mixture. Knead the dough until it is smooth and comes away from the edge of the bowl. Allow to rise in a warm place for 40-60 minutes. Preheat the oven to 225°C. Divide the dough into 24 pieces and make into rolls. Roll each one in fine oatmeal. Allow the rolls to rise for 15-20 minutes. Bake in the centre of the oven for about 15 minutes. Excellent for freezing. They should be defrosted in a warm oven.

Recipe from Professor Kaare Norum, University of Oslo

Macaroon tower cake
(Kransekake)

Kransekake is used for celebrations.

A kransekake, suitably decorated for the occasion, is an indispensable centrepiece for Christmas, weddings and confirmations. It is easiest to bake the cake in special moulds, which consist of graduated rings, but if these are not available, the dough can be piped straight onto ovenproof paper on which the rings have been drawn in pencil. The rings have to be graduated in size so as to form a tower. Start with the smallest, which should measure about 6.5 cm in diameter, and increase by 1 cm in diameter each time.

250 g unblanched almonds
250 g blanched almonds
500 g icing sugar
3 egg whites

Icing:

100 g icing sugar
1 egg white

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The almonds must be completely dry before they are ground. Grind them twice, first alone and then together with the icing sugar. Add egg whites to make a firm dough. Preheat the oven to 200°C. On a low heat, knead the dough until it is almost too hot to handle. Pipe the dough into rings or into greased moulds. Bake until the rings are dry and firm on the outside and chewy inside. This takes about 12-15 minutes. Cool the rings a little before removing them from the moulds to cool completely.Mix the icing sugar and egg white to make a fairly thick icing. Use the icing to glue the rings together in ascending order. Pipe the icing in thin zigzags on the sides of the tower. Garnish with sweets, small crackers, flags, etc.

Recipe from Vårt norske kjøkken, KOM forlag 1993.

Gratin of raspberries

(Serves 1)

2 dl raspberries
1 dl vanilla sauce

Place the berries in a dessert bowl. Pour over the vanilla sauce and place under the grill until the surface is golden brown. This should be carefully watched, since it only takes a few minutes. Serve at once.

Cinnamon wheels

(20 wheels)

125 g butter
31/2 dl milk
50 g yeast
75 g sugar
approx. 450 g flour

Filling:

5 tbsp butter
5 tbsp sugar
1/2-1 tsp cinnamon

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Melt the butter and add the milk. Dissolve the yeast in the lukewarm liquid. Mix in the sugar and add flour to make a fairly firm dough. Allow to rise under plastic wrap until it has doubled in size. Roll out into a rectangle measuring approx. 20 by 40 cm. Spread the butter over the rectangle and sprinkle over the sugar and cinnamon. Roll up the rectangle from the long edge and cut into slices about 2 cm thick. Place the wheels on a baking sheet and cover with plastic wrap. Allow to rise in a warm place until they are double the size. Brush with beaten egg. Bake in the oven at 250°C for about 10 minutes. Cool on a rack.