Flauelsgrautur

Velvety smooth milk groats

I found the recipe here in a book about traditional Icelandic everyday cooking in a new look , which I recently bought in the second-hand shop here in Selfoss.

A very exciting book, for my taste - and I actually found this recipe for "velvet-soft milk porridge" extremely tasty, maybe not exactly exciting, but for me personally it was soul food, especially on these first uncomfortable days of autumn...

Ingredients for 4 (small) portions

1 liter of milk

100 g butter

100 g flour

1 tsp salt

sugar cinnamon

Milk, juice or similar

Preparation

Bring the milk to the boil in a pot.

Melt the butter in a second, large pot.

Stir the flour into the melted butter.

Then add the hot milk in portions, stirring constantly.

Salt the porridge and let it cook for a few minutes while stirring.

Then serve the warm groats with sugar cinnamon and a little cold milk, juice or similar.

Bon appetit!

[Translated from here.]

The "Cave People" of Laugarvatnshellir

Have you ever visited the “Cave People” near Laugarvatn?

We've been there several times and I also reported on the last cavemen in Iceland in a special edition of the German magazine "Zauber des Nordens" ("Magic of the North").

It was only around 100 years ago that people still lived in this small cave near Lake Laugarvatn.

Laugarvatnshellir

The caves dug into the soft tuff of Reyðarbarmur Mountain on the road from Laugarvatn to Þingvellir were created by human hands . Initially, after the conquest of Iceland, the caves were probably used primarily by shepherds as a refuge for them and their sheep. This use was later abandoned after stories about ghosts were told here in the caves.

The Cave People

In the summer of 1910 , a young couple came who wanted to farm. Because there was no land or farm to buy in the area, they settled in the caves. The man, a trained carpenter, converted the larger cave into a " living cave " as a living and sleeping area with a kitchen. The smaller cave became a sheepfold. After almost a year, the couple was able to purchase a farm in the surrounding area and moved.

In 1918 , another young couple, Jón Þorvarðsson and Vigdís Helgadóttir , settled here; the caves then probably belonged to one of Jón's relatives. They also farmed here, kept sheep, a few horses and a cow and sold skyr, cream and homemade cakes to travelers on the way from Laugarvatn to þingvellir. Vigdís had also planted a garden and successfully grew potatoes in a comparatively sunny location on the southern slope. Jón hunted ptarmigan, which he sold in Reykjavík, and they collected berries to sell.

Their eldest daughter, Ragnheiður, was born here in the cave in April 1919 . Jón had to walk through the deep snow to Laugarvatn to get the midwife when there were complications and it took around 8 hours to cover the 13km route, but it turned out well and mother and child survived the birth. The second child Magnús was born in 1920 and the youngest daughter Hrafnhildur Ásta in 1922.

At the end of 1922, Jón and Vigdís were able to buy their own farm and moved with their children.

Photo from the visit to the Cave People in April 2019

Since 2017, the reconstructed cave of the “Cave People” can be visited again as part of a guided tour .

In the special issue of "Zauber des Nordens" I present a little about what life might have been like for little Magnús and his family around 100 years ago, and also what kind of dishes they probably ate.

There is a hollow pan hanging on the kitchen board in the living cave, which was used to bake eplaskífur (apple pancakes), for example... you can of course also find a suitable recipe for this in the special issue!

Last weeks we were in Laugarvatnshellir again to show the finished special issue. We were also able to take a few photos, including with the current guide through the caves. Thanks again to the Cave People for this!

We really enjoyed our visit again this time!

[Translated from here.]

Bökuð skyrkaka með karamellusósu

Baked skyr cake with caramel sauce

We have child 3's friend visiting and I asked beforehand what she likes/dislikes/doesn't like to eat. The answer was "I love anything with vanilla and caramel".

So I went looking and in the one beautiful cookbook about everyday Icelandic cooking in a new look from 1992 that I recently found in the second-hand shop in Reykjavík, there was a recipe for baked Skyr cake in it. Originally, pure Skyr was intended, but given my declared love for vanilla, I used vanilla Skyr. And instead of the fruit sauce that was originally intended, I used the thick, sweet caramel sauce that I recently used for apple pie...

The result was definitely one of the best skyr cakes I've baked so far - wonderfully creamy, fresh and also very fruity thanks to the lemon zest and juice. It was very well received and was really almost perfect for me too! I definitely need to bake this more often!

Ingredients for the soil

50 g white sugar

150 g flour

100 g butter

1 egg yolk

Ingredients for the filling

300 g vanilla skyr

2 eggs

100 g brown sugar

1 pinch of salt

1 organic lemon

100 ml milk

100 ml cream

3 Tbsp corn flour

Ingredients for the glaze

120 g brown sugar

30 g butter

100 ml cream

optionally a pinch of coffee spice or similar.

Preparation

Preheat the oven to 300 °F (150 °C) upper/lower heat.

Mix the sugar and flour in a bowl, then add the butter in flakes and the egg yolks.

Knead the ingredients into a smooth dough.

Spread half of the dough on the bottom of a springform pan (lined with baking paper) and press it down.

Bake the base in the oven at 300 °F (150 °C) upper and lower heat for 10 minutes, then remove it from the oven and let it cool down again.

To make the filling, first separate the eggs.

Beat the egg white until stiff.

In a bowl, mix the vanilla skyr with the sugar, a pinch of salt, the milk and 100 ml of cream and the egg yolk.

Carefully grate the lemon peel and squeeze half a lemon.

Add the lemon zest, lemon juice and corn flour and mix everything thoroughly.

Finally, carefully fold in the egg whites.

Press the second half of the dough onto the sides of the springform pan.

Pour the skyr mixture onto the cake and bake at 350 °F (180 °C) upper and lower heat for 15 minutes.

Reduce the oven temperature to 200 °F (100 °C) and bake for another 45 minutes.

Then take the cake out of the oven and let it cool down.

For the caramel glaze, heat the sugar in a pan over low heat and add the butter. Mix the sugar with the melted butter.

Add the cream and optionally a pinch of cinnamon, coffee spice or similar...

...and let it thicken slowly while stirring constantly.

Let the sauce cool in the fridge and then spread it on the skyr cake.

Store the cake in the refrigerator and pour until well chilled.

Bon appetit!

[Translated from here.]

Ofnbakaður saltfiskur

Oven baked salt fish

One day I made saltfish casserole for dinner for us. Salt fish is an important part of Icelandic cuisine, as the aim is to preserve fresh fish for as long as possible - in earlier times it was vitally important for the people here in Iceland.

Salt fish are so-called “hard-salted fish products” made from beheaded and gutted fish. Fish with a salt content of over 20% in the fish tissue water are called “hard salted”. Salting basically does not change the structure and color of the fish or fish fillet, nor does it change the basic taste - but it becomes very salty to very, very salty. It is therefore important to water the fish thoroughly before preparing it or, if necessary, to soak it in water overnight.

Nowadays you can often buy “lightly salted” salt fish. Although it has a shorter shelf life than “real” salt fish, it is often sold frozen so that its shelf life is ensured. The "lightly salted" fish still tastes salty and no additional salt is necessary for the dish, but you can use the fish directly without having to spend any time watering it first. I also used lightly salted frozen fish for this fish casserole.

Ingredients for 4 persons

500 g cooked salt fish

2 stalks of leeks

3 carrots

1 small cauliflower

2 Tbsp butter

3 Tbsp flour

200 ml milk

200 ml vegetable broth

2 eggs

1 pinch of pepper

1 pinch of ground nutmeg

2 Tbsp brauðmylsna / breadcrumbs

Preparation

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

Wash, clean, chop the vegetables...

... and place in boiling salted water for about 5 minutes.

Melt the butter in a saucepan, add the flour and stir, then add the vegetable stock in portions and then the milk and bring to the boil, stirring constantly, until a thick sauce forms.

Season with pepper and nutmeg.

Separate the eggs.

Add the egg yolks to the sauce and stir.

Beat the egg white until stiff and carefully fold it into the sauce.

Mince the fish.

Place the vegetables and fish in a greased, ovenproof dish...

...add the sauce...

... and mix everything thoroughly.

Sprinkle with the breadcrumbs and bake in a preheated oven at 350 °F (180 °C) for about 40 minutes.

Then serve with fresh salad, potatoes and/or Rúgbrauð.

[Translated from here.]

Kryddeplakaka með karamellusósu

Spiced apple pie with caramel sauce

I baked something for our visit at the weekend. At first I wasn't sure what I wanted to do, but in the end it turned out to be this spiced apple cake with caramel sauce. Very tasty - the sauce is only added to the piece of cake right before serving.

The cake is spiced with cinnamon and ground cloves - many of our visitors automatically associate "cinnamon" with Christmas. But I think cinnamon tastes good in all seasons!

Ingredients

Ingredients for the cake

100 g butter at room temperature

250 g brown sugar

2 eggs

200 g flour

1 tsp cinnamon

1 tsp ground cloves

1 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

50 ml milk

2 apples

100 g walnuts

Ingredients for the sauce

225 g brown sugar

40 g margarine

120 g cream

optionally a pinch of salt, cinnamon, coffee spice or similar.

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 thoroughly.

Then add flour, cinnamon, cloves, baking soda, salt and milk and mix everything well.

Wash, peel, core and cut the apples into small pieces.

Chop the nuts finely.

Stir the apple pieces and chopped walnuts into the dough.

Pour the dough into a springform pan lined with baking paper...

...smooth it out and bake it in a preheated oven at 350 °F (180 °C) for about 50 minutes - if the cake passes the stick test, it's ready! (Otherwise bake for a few minutes longer.)

To make the caramel sauce, slowly heat the sugar in a pan over low heat, then add the butter and let it melt. Mix everything well.

Add the cream and a pinch of salt (or alternatively cinnamon, coffee spice or similar)...

...and let it thicken slowly while stirring constantly.

Then put the sauce in the fridge.

Before serving, pour the cold, thick caramel sauce over the cake pieces and decorate with chopped nuts, lava salt, coffee spice or similar to taste.

Thanks to good weather, bright blue skies, sunshine and virtually no wind, we were even able to enjoy the cake on the terrace!

[Translated from here.]