Litlar kökukúlur

Small cake balls - cake pops in Icelandic

The cute little “cake pops” that you can find everywhere these days can of course also be found in Iceland! Here in a - what else could it possibly be?!? - Version with Skúffukaka .


Ingredients

400 g Skúffukaka without icing
120 g cream cheese
100 g couverture
food coloring
decoration (sugar pearls, etc.)


Preparation

Cut off the edges of the skúffukaka, otherwise they will be too hard, and crumble the remaining cake thoroughly. Then mix the breadcrumbs with the fish cheese...

...and shape into 16 "cake balls" that are as equal in size as possible. It's best to put the balls in the freezer for a short time.

Melt the couverture, mix with the food coloring if desired, dip the cake pop sticks briefly into the chocolate, stick them into the cooled balls...

...and briefly dip each Kökukúlur into the melted, if desired colored, chocolate coating until it is completely covered with chocolate, decorate directly with the garnish and let it dry in a stand or something similar.

[Translated from here.]

Pestósnúðar

Pesto-rolls

Ingredients

650 g wholemeal spelled flour
1 pack of dry yeast
1 tsp salt
2 tsp raw cane sugar
300 ml warm water

5 Tbsp pesto (e.g. Grænt pestó)


Preparation

In a large bowl, mix approx. 400 g of flour with the yeast, salt and sugar.

Pour in the warm water little by little, carefully kneading in from the edge.

Finally, add the remaining flour and knead the dough thoroughly and carefully. Then cover and let rise in a warm place for about 1/2 hour.

Preheat the oven to 350 °F (180 °C) upper/lower heat.

Then carefully roll out the dough between two layers of baking paper as rectangular as possible, spread with the pesto and carefully roll up.

Then use a sharp knife to cut the roll into slices approx. 3 cm thick.

Place the pesto rolls on a baking tray lined with baking paper...

...and bake on the middle shelf in the preheated oven for about 20 minutes until the rolls have turned nice and golden brown.

We had the Pestósnuðar as a starter together with some dandelion and wild garlic pesto and homemade wild garlic cream cheese .

[Translated from here.]

Pippmyntuís með Oreo

Peppermint ice cream tarts

(with Oreo cookies and licorice)

Ingredients

1 pack of Oreo cookies
1 Tbsp licorice syrup

3 eggs
80 g brown sugar
100 g whipping cream
250 g pure Skyr
1 pinch of ground vanilla
1-2 drops of peppermint oil
100 g chopped peppermint chocolate

Peppermint licorice balls
30 g dark chocolate
1 Tbsp whipping cream
1/2 tsp licorice syrup


Preparation

Carefully crumble the Oreo cookies, mix with the licorice syrup and press them onto the baking paper-lined base of a small springform pan or dessert pan (18 cm). Just chill in the fridge.

Now prepare the mint ice cream:

Separate the eggs.

Mix egg yolks and sugar in a bowl until foamy.

In a separate container, whip the cream until stiff. Stir in the skyr and mix with a tiny bit (!!!) of the peppermint oil and the ground vanilla.

Stir in the egg yolk-sugar mixture with the Skyr cream.

Chop the peppermint chocolate large and stir.

Finally, beat the egg whites until stiff and fold in carefully.

Pour the ice cream mixture onto the prepared base, spread it carefully and let it freeze in the freezer for at least 5 hours.

For decoration, melt 30 g of dark chocolate, mix with a tablespoon of cream and a tiny bit of licorice syrup to taste,...

...brush the licorice balls with a little melted chocolate in one place, place them on the cake and distribute the remaining chocolate on the cake as desired.

Then serve iced as dessert.

We have this ice cream tart as an Easter dessert when we eat with the whole family. With that in mind - happy Easter! Gleðilega páska!

[Translated from here.]

Steiktur steinbítur með brún sósa

Fried wolffish with brown sauce

The fish, which is called "steinbítur" in Iceland, is often sold here as "steinbiter", but it is actually sea wolf. The fish grow to a height of over one meter and weigh around 20 to 25 kilograms when fully grown. Admittedly, visually they take some getting used to with their very wide mouth and strong teeth, which have enormous power and can be seriously dangerous to fishermen and anglers and their fingers, even for a long time after they have been caught.

The wolffish is caught all along Iceland's coasts, but is particularly common in the Westfjords. In April, a separate trip was often made here just to catch wolffish (while otherwise the fish are often just bycatch), and the fish caught were then divided between boat owners and the ship's crew according to very specific rules. The yield from this trip could be quite generous and ensure the survival of the families for a long time.

In the Westfjords, the wolffish is traditionally breaded in flour, fried and then baked in the oven with a thick brown sauce and onions.


Ingredients

800 g skinless wolffish fillet
150 g flour
1 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper
1 pinch of ground ginger
2 Tbsp rapeseed oil
1 onion
200 ml water
1 tsp fish sauce
1 Tbsp roux for dark sauces


Preparation

Mix the flour with salt, pepper and a little ground ginger.

Cut the wolffish fillets into small, bite-sized pieces and roll them in the flour mixture.

Heat the oil in a large pan and briefly fry the breaded fish pieces on both sides.

Then place in a fireproof dish and keep warm in the oven at approx. 175 °F (80 °C) upper and lower heat.

Fry the onion rings in the oil, pour in the water and 1 teaspoon of fish sauce, thicken with a little dark roux and season with salt and pepper. Then pour the brown sauce over the breaded fish pieces and bake in the oven at 175 °F (80 °C) for about 20 minutes.

Serve with potatoes and, if you like, some salad.

[Translated from here.]

Heimatilbúið páskaegg

Homemade Easter eggs

At Easter in Iceland people like to give each other large chocolate eggs, which you can buy in stores everywhere and which sometimes weigh a good 1.5 kg. There are sweets and notes with good wishes hidden in the eggs.

Here's a recipe I used to make homemade Easter eggs to give as gifts:


Ingredients

400 g milk chocolate
Easter egg shape

To taste:

Vanilla
Cappuccino powder
Liquorice powder or similar


Preparation

Melt the chocolate in a water bath, stir in vanilla, cappuccino powder, licorice powder or similar to taste and then let it cool slightly until the chocolate has become viscous.

Pour the chocolate into a small mold that will later form the “foot” of the Easter egg. Cool well in the refrigerator and allow to solidify.

Pour the remaining chocolate into the Easter egg mold in portions, spread out the mold and let it set. Repeat the whole process again and again, applying a thin layer of chocolate until the chocolate layer has become thick enough. Carefully remove the hardened chocolate from the mold. (If something goes wrong - melt the chocolate again and start again, that can happen!)

When both halves are good enough, fill one half with candy and put a note with a kind wish inside.

Liquefy some more chocolate and spread it on the edge of both halves and stick them together.

When everything has set, pour some more liquid chocolate onto the chocolate mold for the foot and place the egg on top. Allow to solidify again.

If you like, you can decorate the egg with liquid chocolate, icing or similar.

Store the chocolate Easter egg in a cool room - and give it to a nice person!

[Translated from here.]

Eggjamuffur

Egg muffins

Fried egg with bacon in a different way!


Ingredients per person

4 slices of breakfast bacon
1 egg


Preparation

Preheat the oven to 350 °F (180 °C) upper/lower heat.

Fry the bacon in a pan until crispy.

Then line a solid metal or silicone muffin tin crosswise with the fried bacon,...

...break in the egg...

and bake in the preheated oven for about 15 minutes.

Allow to cool briefly, then carefully remove from the mold and serve immediately!

[Translated from here.]

Morgunbollur

Breakfast rolls

Ingredients

140 g flour
300 g wheat bran
1 Tbsp sugar
1 tsp salt
1 pack of dry yeast
1 Tbsp oil
400 ml warm milk


Preparation

Mix flour, wheat bran, sugar, salt and dry yeast in a large bowl.

Then pour in the oil and warm milk...

...knead everything well and let it rise covered overnight.

The next morning, divide the dough into 10 equal pieces, knead each piece once and let it rise briefly again.

Bake at 350 °F (180 °C) upper and lower heat for about 15 to 20 minutes, ...

...until the rolls are nice and light brown.

[Translated from here.]

Rjómaostur

Cream cheese / cream cheese

Ingredients

500 ml buttermilk
180 g sour cream

to taste:

2 tsp Grænt pestó (wild garlic pesto)
salt and pepper


Preparation

Bring the buttermilk and sour cream to a slow simmer in a large saucepan over low heat.

It's best to pour the mixture into an old coffee filter with a filter bag...

...and let it drain for at least 6 hours.

Then season the drained cheese mixture with salt and pepper to taste or with the wild garlic pesto...

...and knead into balls.

The cream cheese can be kept refrigerated for at least 5 days.





[Translated from here.]