Swedish for a Day

My family isn't Swedish (just Norwegian, German, and most of the rest of Northern Europe) at all, but you'd never know it from our holiday menu. Every Christmas Eve we have Swedish meatballs and Swedish sausage to go with our lefse and pickled herring, and this Christmas Day I made kanebullar, Swedish cinnamon rolls, to go with our traditional present-opening feast of a breakfast.

The kanebullar were mostly for my sister Kathleen, who studied abroad in Stockholm and occasionally has pangs of Scandinavian homesickness that require a trip to the closest IKEA cafeteria. She swears the cinnamon rolls there are the best you've ever tasted.

I decided that one of my presents for her would be to try and recreate these miraculous Swedish rolls in the comfort of our own home. My ally in this attempt was Beatrice Ojakangas, a widely published cookbook author (and Minnesotan!) whose book Scandinavian Home Baking seems to be the definitive English work on the subject.

The recipe was surprisingly simple- a yeasted dough enriched with eggs and melted butter rests overnight (growing enormously in the process), and can be made into rolls the next morning. There is no kneading required, and the process of rolling out and shaping the rolls can be done quite quickly if you have all your ingredients assembled. The recipe makes about 32 rolls, more than you might want in one sitting, so I recommend assembling all the rolls and then freezing whatever portion you aren't planning to bake and eat right away. Yeasted enriched dough should hold up well for at least several weeks, and can either be defrosted first or baked straight from its frozen state.

One word of caution on the rising process - make sure that your dough is rising in a space that is an appropriate temperature. On Christmas I was able to leave the dough in the garage overnight, but by New Year's it had gotten so cold that the dough froze before it rose all the way - I probably should have made space for it in the refrigerator. The dough recovered a little bit the next morning, but never got quite as light and fluffy as the Christmas version.

Ojakangas suggests a cornet shape, looking like a croissant, for these rolls, but Kathleen assured me that real Swedes serve cinnamon rolls in the traditional spiral shape. I split the difference by making about half of each shape once the dough had risen in the morning. The risen dough is rolled out, slathered with a really delicious butter/cinnamon sugar mixture, and cut into the appropriate shape.

We enjoyed these Christmas morning along with our presents, and they were as appreciated as the gifts under the tree. Though delicious enough to make any morning feel like a special holiday, they were so simple and quick that I'd make them on an ordinary weekend.

Kanelbullar (adapted slightly from Beatrice Ojakangas' Great Scandinavian Baking Book)

for the dough

1 1/2 c. scalded milk

1/2 c. butter

3 eggs

1/2 c. sugar

1/2 tsp. kosher salt

1 pkg dry yeast (2 1/4 tsp.)

1/4 c. warm water (105 to 115 degrees Fahrenheit)

6 c. flour (I used 1/2 all-purpose and 1/2 whole wheat)

for the filling

1/2 c. butter, softened

1 c. sugar

1 tbsp. cinnamon

glaze

1 egg

2 tbsp. milk

pearl sugar or coarse sugar

To make the dough, bring the milk just to boiling in a small pot. Pour into a large bowl with the butter and stir until butter is melted. In a small bowl, dissolve yeast in warm water, let stand for 5 minutes. Mix eggs, sugar, and salt into the liquids in the large bowl. Add yeast once the mixture has cooled slightly. Mix in the flour to make a smooth but thick dough.

Cover the dough and refrigerate for 2 to 24 hours. The dough should rise substantially. When you are ready to make the rolls, prepare a clean, floured surface. Divide the dough into four parts, rolling each about 1/4 to 1/2 inch thick. Once the dough is rolled to the correct softness, brush with softened butter and sprinkle with the cinnamon and sugar mixture. To make a cornet shape, roll the dough into either a circle or a rectangle. Cut long skinny triangles/wedges, and roll from the base towards the point. Curl the ends together.

For a more traditional spiral shape, roll the dough into a long rectangle before applying the filling. Roll it up, then cut 1-2 inch slices. Lay on the flat side.

Once the rolls have been shaped, arrange them on a cookie sheet (greased or with parchment paper), and cover loosely with saran wrap. Let them rise for about 45 minutes or until slightly puffy. When ready to bake, preheat the oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit. Mix the milk and egg for the glaze together, and brush on the rolls. Sprinkle the sugar on top. Bake for 13 to 15 minutes, or until golden. Enjoy!

it's freeeezing here

Ok, I know that as a native Minnesotan, I am not supposed to complain about the weather. But three years in Manhattan, where the combination of population density and pollution prevents snow from sticking for more than four hours, have left me totally soft and unprepared for the vicious reality that is Minnesota winter.

We're set to get our first big winter storm this week, and it's supposed to be 2 below on Friday. Not below freezing - below ZERO. So I'm planning on spending most of this week and weekend heating up in the kitchen, hanging out by the warm oven and getting a bunch of my holiday baking done.

On the agenda so far: family classic Russian Teacakes, Peanut Blossoms, Scandinavian spritz cookies, and a brand new chocolate gingerbread cookie recipe from the geniuses at Baked, one of my favorite bakeries of all time.

What are you making for the holidays? And what else should I make? If you've been good this year, I might take requests ;)

very American apple pie

If there's anything more American than apple pie, it's this apple pie, which has a delicious pecan crumble crust covering sweetly spicy apples that have been sauteed in real Kentucky bourbon. Pecans, being native to south-central America, put the patriotic appeal of this delicious dessert right over the top.

I first made this recipe for Thanksgiving dinner two years ago, after seeing it in the New York Times. It comes from a restaurant called Bubby's in Tribeca, a diner known for an delicious home-style brunch and an extensive, varied, and invariably scrumptious selection of pies. I loved the recipe so much that I ended up asking for the book it came from that Christmas, and everything I've made from it has been really, really good.

But back to the pie at hand. We usually have a pretty good-sized crowd for Thanksgiving dinner, and not everyone in my extended family likes pumpkin pie (sacrilege, right? you already know how I feel about pumpkin flavored things). I love making classic apple pies (in fact, I entered one in the Minnesota State Fair this summer), but I was intrigued by the addition of the bourbon, the nutty crumble topping, and the fact that the apples get sauteed before being put in the pie shell.

This pie is fantastic with or without classic accoutrements such as whipped cream or vanilla ice cream, and was such a big hit with my family that we haven't been able to celebrate Thanksgiving without it since. For some reason, this year's pie was even more delicious than last - I don't know if it was the Wild Turkey, the Minnesota-grown apples, or my culinary education kicking in, but I hope next year's turns out just as well!

Bubby's Whiskey Apple Crumble Pie (slightly modified by me)

Pate Sucree (recipe from the French Culinary Institute):

125 grams butter, softened

63 grams powdered sugar

1 egg plus one yolk

250 grams all-purpose flour

Crumble Topping:

3/4 c. all-purpose flour

1/4 c. light brown sugar

1/4 c. granulated sugar

1 tsp. cinnamon

Salt

6 tbsp cold unsalted butter

1/2 c. chopped pecans

Whiskey-Apple Filling

3 tbsp. cold unsalted butter

2 pounds tart apples, peeled, cored and sliced 1/4-inch thick (Granny Smith work great)

1/2 c. light brown sugar

Pinch ground cloves

Pinch ground nutmeg (freshly grated, if possible)

1 tsp. ground cinnamon

2 tbsp. whiskey or bourbon (I used Wild Turkey for an All-American Kentucky bourbon take)

1. To make the crust, bring the butter and the eggs to room temperature. Beat the butter and the (sifted) powdered sugar with an electric mixture until thoroughly creamed. Add eggs one at a time, careful to maintain the emulsion and mix thoroughly before adding the next. Add flour and mix only until incorporated. Wrap in plastic and chill in refrigerator for at least one hour.

2. Roll out crust, place in buttered 9-inch pie dish, crimp edges as desired. Chill for at least 30 minutes. (I like glass or Pyrex pie tins, because they allow me to monitor the done-ness of my crust more easily.)

3. Make the crumble topping, either by hand or in a food processor. If the latter, add all ingredients except butter and nuts, pulse to mix. Add butter, pulse until texture approximates lentils or small peas. Add chopped nuts. If by hand, mix all ingredients except butter and nuts until combined, cut in butter with pastry blender or two knives. Mix in pecans at end, chill until needed.

4. Core and slice apples (I tend not to peel mine, you can if you like). Melt butter in frying pan over medium heat, add apples and brown sugar. Cook until slightly soft around the edges, about 10 minutes. Remove from heat, add spices, bourbon. Let cool for 10 minutes

5. Pour filling into chilled crust, top with crumble. Bake at 400 degrees for 10 minutes; lower oven to 350 and bake for another 40 to 50 minutes, or until topping is set and filling is juicy, bubbling, and heavenly-smelling.

6. You'll want to eat it right away, but do yourself a favor and let it rest - the pie will cut more easily and taste even better once it's cooled down (at least an hour - our pie was even tastier the day after Thanksgiving!)