Bulsu- og byggsalat

Pearl barley salad with vegetarian sausages

I have already told you about the Icelandic meat substitute products based on barley grown in the country, which I came across by chance during my last stay in Iceland. Now the recipe for the pearl barley and barley sausage salad!


Ingredients

200 g barley pearls
1 cucumber
200 g tomatoes
1/2 onion
2 Tbsp pumpkin seeds
1 Tbsp parsley

1 pack of Bulsur

100 ml rapeseed oil
1 Tbsp mustard
1 Tbsp lemon juice
1/2 tsp coarse sea salt
1 pinch of pepper


Preparation

Prepare the barley pearls according to the instructions on the package, cook them and then allow them to cool thoroughly.

Clean and chop the vegetables, wash and chop the parsley.

In a large bowl, mix the cooled pearl barley with the cucumber and tomato pieces, the chopped onions, the pumpkin seeds and the chopped parsley.

Carefully remove the vegetarian sausages from the plastic packaging and fry them in a pan with a little oil until crispy.

Then cut the bulsur into slices and stir in as well.

For the sauce, mix the mustard with the lemon juice, salt and pepper.

Then slowly pour in the rapeseed oil, stirring constantly, until a uniform liquid is formed.

Then pour the sauce over the salad and serve immediately.

As a side dish I also had Rauðrófubuff, a vegetable burger with beetroot.

[Translated from here.]

Sausages for vegetarians and vegans

Meat substitute in Icelandic

A typical Icelandic product that has long been replaced by imported products such as rice and pasta, but is now experiencing a renaissance (even in more sophisticated cuisine), is pearl barley, known as "bankabygg" in Icelandic. In contrast to rice and pasta, barley is grown in Iceland itself and is therefore a regional product that does not have to be imported in a laborious or expensive manner.

In connection with pearl barley, I recently came across Icelandic meat substitute products for vegetarians and vegans, namely vegetarian "sausages" and "Grænmetisbuff", i.e. vegetable burgers. Both products are made from barley pearls. Pearl barley has long been traditionally used in the production of sausages in Iceland, usually in addition to meat, not instead of meat. But why not try new things? Because I'm a curious person, I tried both out right away!

The name "Bulsur" is a play on words from "bygg" (= barley) and "pylsur" (= sausage). The "Bulsur" from the Havarí company consist of barley, kidney beans, water, tomato puree, cornmeal, flour, seeds, oil, salt and other spices. In Iceland you buy them frozen in packs of four, for example in Krónan, Nettó or Hagkaup. For my 300 g pack in the Krónan Granda I have just under 900 ISK (the equivalent of around €6.60 / as of March 2019).

The "Bulsur" are packed in a plastic wrapper, you have to remove the packaging from the individual "sausages" before putting them in the pan or on the grill.

The “vegetable burgers” from Móðir Jörð in Vallanes are available in two versions, one with barley and another with beetroot. I chose the beetroot version ("Rauðrófubuff"), a pack (250 g) with 4 citizens cost just under 800 ISK (approx. €5.90). Here, too, the product consists of over 40% barley, plus potatoes and beetroot (23%) as well as herbs and spices. The "breading" consists of pearl barley and sesame seeds, which gives the whole thing a nice, crunchy consistency on the outside.

The “vegetable burgers” are heated in a pan or in the oven.

In terms of taste, I actually found both tasty - for my taste, the "Bulsur" had a consistency that reminded me less of sausages and more of dumplings, soft and almost a bit creamy, but they tasted nice and spicy with the fried surface it's a bit crunchy again. Because of the breading, I found the "Rauðrófubuff" to be very crunchy on the outside and soft on the inside, but not too soft, still a little bit chunky... definitely very tasty!

I prepared both for lunch, the fried burgers and a pearl barley salad with fried bulsur. I'll definitely pass the recipe on to you in the next few days!

[Translated from here.]

Skyr hummus

Skyr hummus

Okay, of course this isn't a classic Icelandic recipe - but I think it's very nice to put a traditional ingredient like skyr in a completely new, different context. And it was really really tasty!


Ingredients

1 can of chickpeas
(drying weight approx. 400 g)
1 clove of garlic
1 Tbsp lemon juice
150 g pure Skyr
1/2 tsp coarse sea salt
1 pinch of black pepper
1/2 tsp cumin

1 tsp olive oil
1 Tbsp pumpkin seeds
1 pinch of salt and pepper


Preparation

Drain the chickpeas well.

Then put the chickpeas in the blender with the garlic, lemon juice, skyr, salt and pepper and cumin and puree well.

Then serve the Skyr hummus in a bowl with a little olive oil, the pumpkin seeds and a pinch of salt and pepper.

Serve with bread - we had grilled Flatbrauð with it.

[Translated from here.]

Grillað flatbrauð

Grilled flatbread

Traditionally, Icelandic flatbrauð is made with just flour and water and then baked on a hot stove or cast iron skillet. This is a more "newfangled" recipe with yeast, salt, sugar and a spoonful of olive oil. This Flatbrauð is grilled here or alternatively baked in a grill pan.


Ingredients

500 g wheat flour
1 tsp dry yeast
1 Tbsp sugar
1 Tbsp salt
350 ml warm water
1 Tbsp olive oil


Preparation

In a large bowl, mix the flour with the yeast, sugar and salt.

Add the water and a tablespoon of olive oil...

...knead into a smooth dough...

...and let it rise at room temperature for at least 2 hours.

Then knead the dough again, if necessary adding a little more flour if the dough still sticks while kneading. Divide the dough into 6 to 8 portions.

Then roll out each portion of dough to a somewhat round shape and grill it on the grill (or, as I do here, in a grill pan) until the bread is baked through and has already become nice and dark in places.

The Flatbrauð can be served warm or cold as a side dish, depending on your taste.

[Translated from here.]

Brúnaðar kartöflur með rjóma

Caramelized potatoes with cream

Caramelized potatoes are, in a sense, THE typical Icelandic side dish and are traditionally served with meat dishes, usually with red cabbage, peas or green beans.


Ingredients for 4 persons

1 Tbsp butter
100 g sugar
100 ml cream
1 kilo of potatoes


Preparation

Wash the potatoes, boil them in salted water...

...and peel.

Melt the butter and sugar in a large skillet.

Add the cooked potatoes and stir over high heat until all the potatoes are evenly caramelized.

Pour in the cream and continue to simmer.

Bon appetit!

[Translated from here.]

Eggjamúffur

Egg muffins

The recipe made enough for me for 20 muffins - with salad on the side it was a nice meal for 6 people. Even though my children thought it would be okay as a starter, they would prefer something more “solid” as a main course. Well, next time I'll take it to heart!


Ingredients

10 large eggs
250 ml sour cream
1 red pepper
1 yellow pepper
1 bunch of spring onions
1/2 tsp coarse sea salt
1 pinch of freshly ground pepper
200 g spicy cheese


Preparation

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

Place all eggs in a large bowl...

...and whisk with the sour cream.

Clean and chop the peppers and spring onions.

Mix the peppers and spring onions with the egg mixture.

Grate the cheese...

and stir in half of the grated cheese, seasoning with salt and pepper.

Then pour the mixture into a greased muffin tin or one lined with paper cases.

Spread the remaining cheese on the muffins...

...and then bake in the oven at 350 °F (180 °C) for about 25 minutes until the muffins are nice and golden.

Serve immediately after baking - with a fresh salad on the side - a nice complete meal, at least for my taste.

[Translated from here.]

Tosca kaka

Tosca cake

(almond caramel cake)

The Tosca cake is actually more familiar from Sweden as "toscakaka", but in Denmark it is also available as "toscakage", in Norway as "toscakake" and in Finland as "toscakakku" - and of course it is also available in Iceland ! (Unfortunately, it is no longer possible to understand how the cake got its name.)


Ingredients

120 g butter
120 g brown sugar
2 eggs
300 g flour
3 tsp baking powder
150 ml milk

For covering

150 g sliced ​​almonds
150 g butter
150 g brown sugar
3 Tbsp honey


Preparation

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

In a large bowl, beat the butter and sugar until fluffy.

Add the eggs and mix.

Then add flour, baking powder and milk and work everything into a smooth dough.

Then put the dough into a springform pan lined with baking paper (diameter approx. 26 cm)...

...and bake at 350 °F (180 °C) upper and lower heat for about 25 minutes.

Meanwhile prepare the topping:

Put the butter, sugar and honey in a saucepan and bring to the boil slowly (while stirring constantly!).

Finally, stir in the sliced ​​almonds. (Unfortunately I didn't have enough sliced ​​almonds and had to add a few chopped almonds.)

After 25 minutes of baking, take the cake out of the oven and heat the oven to 475 °F (250 °C) upper/lower heat.

Spread the topping on the cake...

...and let it bake in the oven for about 5-7 minutes until the topping on the cake starts to bubble. (It's best to stand next to it and make sure that the top of the cake doesn't get too dark!)

Then take the cake out of the oven and let it cool thoroughly before carefully removing it from the tin and serving.

Bon appetit!

[Translated from here.]