Hot smoked salmon sausages

Now, I loooove me some sausages. My dream kitchen is still work in progress, but I have reached a point where I have a food processor. And a meat mill. And one of those smokers too. Though that one key instrument in making your own sausages: that nozzle-like pipe attachment that is needed for pumping the mixture into the casings. So, no home-made bangers for me just yet. Though I'd probably also benefit from psyche that won't make me at least try making everything from scratch...?

These fishy sausages you can make without the nozzle and casings, and similar ones have been made on the blog before. This time I made the sausages from salmon, which got its gentle smokiness from hot smoked salmon (and not that Abu Sweden's concoction decorated with royal warranty we got on a trip to Nauvo), but hey, it's totally ok to use all regular salmon, too. And maybe add a drop of liquid smoke aroma into the mix...?

Depending on the size this makes 8-10 sausages

generous 200 g salmon
generous 200 g hot smoked salmon

zest of one lemon

1/4 - 1/2 chilli (depending on your palate and the fieriness of your chillis)

1 generous tbsp fresh dill, finely chopped (or 1/2 tbsp dried variety)

the green part of a spring onion

1 egg white

1,5 dl double cream

salt, pepper

Grate the lemon zest finely and chop chilli, spring onion and dill finely. Mince the regiular salmon in a machine, add egg white and the  cream in a thin stream until you're left with a  smooth paste. Then add roughly chopped hot smoked salmon (if using) and blizz quickly. Little lumps won't hurt! Finally fold in lemon zest, dill, chilli and spring onion.

Cut the cling film to sheets of about 20 cm long. Spread the mass in an oblong shape in the middle of the sheet and roll tightly. First make one small one to test if the seasoning is right and add more if needed. Then twist the ends and tie into a knot so you have a tightly sealed package. Bring water to boil in a big pot and cook the parcels in simmering water for about 5 minutes. Lift out of the water, let cool until you can remove the cling film and then fry them in butter in a pan to get a nice brown colour.

Serve. Like that, with mash, tzatziki or polenta fries. Or, as we did: in hot dog buns. With strawberry and dill ketchup (!) The lowdown of our hot dog fiesta tomorrow on the blog!

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ANYONE FOR SECONDS?



      

Pavlova with white chocolate mousse

The move has kept me so busy lately I haven't even had time to keep up with the goings on of the outside world. But as I was going through the contents of my old fridge and freezer I came across frozen egg whites left over from crème brûlée tart. And the last jar of that tropical mango, lime, pineapple and star anise jam. I couldn't let them go to waste, now could I? So, while there were about gazilliard other, more urgent things to focus my energy on I chose to bake instead. By the way - you might want to to actually mark how many egg whites the container contains - sort of makes life a lot easier...

And as I was waiting for the meringue to bake I finally had time to park myself in front of the computer to check the headlines. Yeah, Ukraine is still in chaos and Putin's views on human rights as every bit was warped as they used to. African children are still starving and in Nigeria an Islamist terrorist group feels being kidnapped is a lot better choice for little girls than, say, going to school. Spring is late and there's more rain on its way. Manchester United got themselves a new manager that nobody seems to like. Oh yeah, and GEORGE CLOONEY GOT ENGAGED!!!

So, let's hear it for George. (And all those poor, deluded women out there taking this 9th wonder of the world as a sign telling them to give that dead end, going-nowhere-relationship of theirs another 8 years as "miracles do happen and he'll eventually come around to it, too...!")

If you haven't been making your own jam, feel free to use any fruit jam you like. Mango is another favourite. Since my own jam packs a bit of a punch because of the lime and and star anise, you might want to use an entire lime if using another kind. You can also use a store-bought meringue base and pass it off as your own.

And naturally you can skip the meringue bit too and just make the mousse. In which case let it set in the fridge in the serving dishes for a couple of hours before serving. Or you can skip that part too and just shove the whole thing in your mouth straight away. I mean, George is hardly going to start returning those calls now, is he...?

Meringue:

4 egg whites

2 dl fine caster sugar

1 tsp white wine vinegar

Separate egg whites from the yolks. Whisk (taking your time) until the foam is hard and then start adding the sugar in thin stream, continuing to beat, until you're left with marshmallow-like, thick and glossy mixture. Then add white wine vinegar. Spoon or pipe onto a baking tray lined with parchment into meringues or into one large pavlova base (in which case oil the parchment lightly). Bake at 90 for 1,5-2 hours until meringue is hard and dry on the outside. It does get a little bit of colour, so if you want, cover the meringue with parchment halfway through. Switch off the oven, leave the meringue(s) in and let them dry and cool to room temperature. Top with trimmings of your choice. Such as créme patisserie. Or whipped cream and fruits/ berries. Or the white chocolate mousse below!

White chocolate mousse:

130 g white chocolate

1,5 dl cream

1 egg white

1 tsp vanilla extract

finely grated zest and juice of 1/2 lime

to serve: 1 dl tropical jam or mango purée, berries/ fruits

Melt the chocolate in Bain Marie. Whip cream in one bowl and season with vanilla. In another bowl beat the egg white until the foam is hard. Fold the ingredients together and mix carefully until smooth. Spoon over cooled meringue layering with jam and then, using a skewer draw swirly pattern on the top. Decorate and serve with berries/ fruit of your choice.

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ANYONE FOR SECONDS?

      

Spicy nuts

Being away form someone you love is hard. In the words of a mature, intelligent, analytical and verbally utterly gifted individual such as yours truly separation sucks ass. And now it sucks even more - the long awaited second season of Swedish-Danish series "The Bridge" just premiered in Scandinavia. 

Oh, that Saga Noren. For a moment it almost seemed she just might be feeling human emotions! Just like Sara Lund, the lead character in another Swedish-Danish masterpiece "The Killing" (or, "Förbrydelsen" as we in the know like to call it) it makes one wonder what exactly is wrong with these ladies? They're perfect tens alright - on Asperger's scale!

Those series have given us many marathon evenings in our home cinema, with a glass of wine in our hand (The Gentleman) and tears of horror in our eyes (me). Now, with mixed (read: bitter sweet) feelings I'm observing the tragedy unfold, all by myself. With no-one but that wine to hold my hand. And some snacks. Such as these spicy nuts.

The final product is not very hot, so adjust/ amend the spices as you see fit - you can test-drive the blend by tasting the mixture before it goes in the oven. Curry is another spice that (always) works. Allspice on the other hand lends the mixture lovely wintry heat so these would work well with some mulled wine too.

5 dl nuts
(mine was a blend of pecans, blanched almonds, hazelnuts, walnuts and cashews)
1 egg white

1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp cayenne 
1/2 tsp ginger
1/2 tsp allspice
salt, pepper

Heat the oven to 200°. Whisk the white until foamy and with no liquid left on the bottom of the bowl. Fold in the nuts and sprinkle the spices on top. Mix so everything is evenly coated, spread on a tray lined with a baking sheet and toast until golden  - about 20-30 minutes. Let cool and break apart any clusters. Store in an air-tight container.

If you prefer yours sweeter (and stickier) you can also mix the spices with a couple of generous tablespoons of sugar (in which case omit the egg white). Pour the spice mixture on a hot pan. After the sugar starts caramelizing, pour in the nuts and stir to make sure they're all coated. Keep toasting until they have a lovely colour. In case the sugar seems to start to burn, add a splash of water and stir thoroughly. Break any clusters with a spatula. Once done, spread them on a baking sheet and let cool. 


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Coconut macaroons

In addition to meringues, these are a good way to use any leftover egg whites you might have left from sabayon, ice cream, chorizo pasta, Spaghetti Carbonara or crème patisserie.

The name, macaroons, is a bit confusing and can easily be mixed with macarons, those rainbow-coloured little pieces of heaven La Durée does so incredibly well.

In Jewish cooking these are popular dessert treats especially during Passover, when flour is not used. This makes these little babies suitable for those on a gluten-free diet too! These are supposed to be crisp on the outside and gloriously gooey and chewy on the inside. 

You can also add for instance the grated zest of lime or half an orange. Dried fruits and berries would work too. Vanilla extract could be substituted with for instance almond extract.

Traditionally these are free-form, fluffy piles, but as I'm neurotic and insisted on them to be of equal size and appearance, I used one of those plastic egg trays that come with fridges. That (or any other mold you might use) should be oiled before use.

Depending on the size this recipe makes 20-30 macaroons

2 eggwhites
2 tsp vanilla extract
pinch of salt
6,5 dl coconut flakes
1,5 dl sugar

200-300 g good quality dark chocolate, melted

Heat the oven to 175. Separate egg whites form yolks and, using an electric mixer, whisk into a hard foam. Then add salt and sugar in a thin stream. Add vanilla extract and finally fold in the coconut flakes. Using a tablespoon drop mixture onto a baking sheet and bake for 10-15 minutes until they start getting a bit colour. Keep an eye on them as "a bit of colour" turns to "whoah! Far too much colour!" in an instant.

The snowball-like appearance makes these wonderfully wintery. If you want, you can get all Jackson Pollock and splash melted chocolate stripes on these, dip the bottom in the chocolate or cover them entirely with chocolate for a homespun take on Bounty (this is also a very convenient way to hide any evidence of overcooked macaroons...!)

Meringues

Just like Finland, overwhelming majority of the Spanish are Christian. But here the  (Catholic) religiousness is visible in a completely different way. There are altars devoted to different saints embedded in the walls of ordinary homes. Every village seems to have their own patron saint that they celebrate and commemorate in the form of festivals. In close-by Mijas there's even a chapel marking the place where Virgin Mary herself is said to have lived for 500 years, inside a rock no less. At least that's what she had told to the couple of local children she had appeared to.

And if this doesn't feel freaky, then that's what the local Easter celebrations feel like - in the eyes of yours truly anyway. During the Holy Week, Santa Semana there are processions where the men walk around dressed in pointy hooded- robes. The robes cover their faces so that only eyes are visible through the holes cut in the fabric. 

Unfortunately I can't spoil you with photographic evidence of this Ku Klux Klan- like tradition, as this year we're spending Easter in Finland. With no religions shenanigans whatsoever. 

I don't celebrate Easter anyway but it's always nice to have some time off and enjoy getting together with friends around long meals (ok, so that's maybe not so different from our everyday life after all...) And it's a great time to celebrate the humble egg that so prominently symbolizes the resurrection and the circle of life in the Greek Easter tradition. 

And meringues are probably one of my favourite eggy treats. And since I realized I'd never made them myself, it was time to fix that. With that famous "how hard can it be" spirit. And true enough, hard it wasn't. As long as you remember a couple of things. Do not even attempt to whisk the egg whites by hand. Save your biceps and tears and use an electric mixer instead. The bowl and the mixer must be clean and dry. The egg whites should be slightly older and room temperature. The sugar (little by little) shouldn't be added into the egg whites until it forms stiff peaks. Oh, and if it rains you shouldn't be making meringues at all. Well folks, that's it really.

In case you, instead of free-form spooned ones, decide to pipe them, make sure you use a good quality piping bag. Not the sort of self-exploding one I used. Another equally bad idea is  panicking and trying to destroy the evidence by eating it all. Result: a very nauseous cook.

Both egg whites and yolks can be frozen, so in case you have left over egg whites (say, from penne with chorizo) this  is a great way to use them up. And the yolks left over from this operation can be utilized for crème patisserie, which you can use to fill the meringue nests. That too is nothing to fear, in spite of its high maintenance-sounding name. And it's a good recipe to have in your arsenal - this is said to be for pastry chefs what cement is for builders.

Meringues:

3 egg whites
1.5 dl sugar

Whisk the egg whites until the foam is firm. Then add sugar, little at a time whisking the whole time until the mixture is thick and glossy. If you want to colour the meringues with food colouring or flavour them with something, this is the moment to do that. Spoon (or pipe) the mixture onto a baking sheet and bake in 90° for 45 minutes until the meringues are dry. They might get a bit of colour, so for the last 10 minutes keep checking on them. Turn off the oven and let them dry in the residual heat.

Crème patisserie:

3 egg yolks
4 tbsp sugar
the seeds scraped off 1 vanilla pod (or 1 tsp vanilla extract)
2 .5 dl milk
1 3/4 tbsp flour
1 3/4 tbsp corn starch

Mix yolks and sugar. Heat milk in a pan with vanilla. When it's come to boil, pour into the yolks mixing vigorously. Pour back into the pan and bring to boil, stirring continuously. Cook for at least 5 minutes (stirring) so the flour cooks and the mixture thickens. Let cool and. Fill the meringue nests with the cream and fresh berries.