My Friday posts are normally about things that I love, love, love. Though I suppose you could argue that the rest of the days on this blog are like that too! 😉 Anyway, today is no exception. Though this post is actually a rehash of previous posts…
My sweetie tweetie twister friends Nikki (@NikkiStarr of Flylady family fame) and Teri (@TeriLinWA of Flylady fanclub fame) asked for the imperial measurements for two of my recipes. Because, as you all know, Americans don’t do metric, do they? As Eddie Izzard says, “Goddamn Commie metric system!” 😉
Well, come on down, girls, here they are in full imperial glory!
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The first is for COLD RISEN BREAD
For metric measurements, see my old post which is here.
This is a wonderful bread recipe. No kneading involved (I’m such a lazybones aren’t I?) and it makes a wonderful spongy bread which is very similar to foccacia. Lookie here, here’s a bit I managed to save from Monday!
You’ll need:
- a small packet or 2 1/4 teaspoons of active dry instant yeast (or one cube of fresh if you insist on using it – just remember to ‘dissolve’ it first in some of the water)
- 2lb flour (white for ciabatta style, or mix wholemeal in for healthier)
- 2 teaspoons salt (I love Maldon Seasalt)
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- 32 fl oz or 4 cups or 2 pints cold water
- a little bit of oil (olive if you have it)
- dried herbs, salt and pepper (optional)
Mix the yeast, salt, sugar and the flour (keep back a cupful) in a large bowl. Pour in the water and mix well – I use a handmixer but you can use a wooden spoon if you need the upper arm exercise 😉 Just mix until it is coming away from the sides of the bowl but is still gooey and’dusty’. Add a bit more of the flour if you need to. Do not knead!
Sprinkle on the rest of the flour, cover with plastic wrap and leave on the kitchen counter for about 4 hours. It will double in size. You can also put it in the fridge and leave it there for 12 hours or overnight. If you’re going to do the overnight thing, I’d use just half the amount of yeast because it will rise and fall again before you bake it.
Preheat the oven to 425f. Tip the dough (which will still be bubbly and wobbly) into a LARGE baking tray. Mine is from Ikea and is 15″x 12″ or 38cmx30cm. I put baking paper in the bottom of mine, for easier lift-out and clean-up.
Now, if you want to make it look (and taste) really good, mix some dried herbs and salt and pepper in a little bowl. I sometimes get out my pestle and mortar and crush together: dried rosemary, chili flakes, garlic seasoning, lemon pepper and Maldon Seasalt. Use your fingers to make indentations (holes!!) all over the dough and drizzle over a couple of tablespoons of olive oil. Then shake your herb mix over. ‘More’ is definitely very good in this context 😉
Bake for about 30 minutes (keep an eye on it, first time you make it) until it is golden brown.
Remove from oven and sprinkle more of that lovely Maldon Seasalt on. It will keep really well in a plastic bag or box for a couple of days.
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Next up, we’re making FORLOREN HARE (DANISH MEAT LOAF)
Metric measurements and original post are here.
I never ate meatloaf until I came to Denmark in 1998 – it’s not something that we ever ate in our family in Scotland. But I can’t get enough of it now – especially the sauce I drown it in 😉
You’ll need:
- 1 onion, 1 carrot and 1 clove of garlic (see below)
- 1lb minced pork/veal/beef, any combination you like. The traditional Danish combo is ½ veal + ½ pork and it comes ready mixed in the supermarket.
- ½ cup breadcrumbs (also from a packet)
- salt and lots and lots of pepper!
- 1 egg
- ½ cup cream or milk
And for cooking it:
- packet of bacon (long strips)
- 1 cup milk
- 1 cup hot water
- stock cube
And for the (heavenly) gravy, ‘brown sauce’ or brunsovs:
- ½ to 1 cup cream or milk
- 1-2 tablespoons of Maizena (sauce thickener)
- 1 tablespoon redcurrant jelly (you want a bit of sweetness)
- salt and pepper (duh!)
- gravy browning if you use it
Put a roughly chopped onion, carrot and the clove of garlic in your mixer and reduce to a pulp. I put in the onion and garlic for flavour. The carrot isn’t essential, it’s just for extra, hidden, veggies and because I always have a house full of them 🙂
Add the meat, breadcrumbs, seasoning, egg, milk or cream and run the mixer until the whole thing starts to come together and starts going round the blades like a motorbike in one of those Wall of Death things 😉
Put the mixture into a large oven dish and pat it down a bit, so it looks like a big, fat, long sausage. Cover the whole thing with strips of bacon, working from left to right or top to bottom. It’s your call! My ones look like this…
Put into a hot oven, 425f for 15 minutes until the bacon starts sizzling. Then turn down the oven temperature to 400f and pour the milk/stock mixture around the meatloaf. Continue cooking for about 45 minutes. Check in the middle that it is hot and cooked all the way through – will depend how ‘fat’ your meatloaf is.
Pour the milk/stock mixture through a strainer (if you can be bothered…) and put into a saucepan with the rest of the ingredients and bring to the boil. Adjust with more cream if necessary 😉
For a really traditional Danish meal, serve with boiled potatoes, peas or hot red cabbage, pickled cucumber slices, asier (a strange pickled ‘white’ cucumber) and loooooots of sauce.
And as they say here – velbekomme! 🙂
This meatloaf freezes well. Freeze uncooked. Wrap in foil and put in plastic bag. Defrost in fridge the night before you want to use it. Cook as directed. Then enjoy!
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Bon appétit and have a fabulous Foodie Friday! 🙂