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RosettbakkelsFried rosette biscuits

Rosettbakkels are another of Norway's seven traditional Christmas biscuits, delicate fried flowers made by dipping a heated metal rosette iron into thin batter and then into hot oil, where the batter puffs, crisps and drops off as a lacy rosette. They are dusted with icing sugar and kept in tins for the Christmas visitors. You need a rosette iron, sold in kitchen shops at Christmas. Chef's tip: dip the iron into the batter only three-quarters of the way up, as batter over the top locks the rosette onto the iron.

45 minScandinavian Baking

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Imelletty perunalaatikkoSweet baked potato casserole

Imelletty perunalaatikko is the most traditional of the Finnish Christmas casseroles, made in the days before Christmas Eve. Mashed potato is mixed with a little flour and left warm for hours, so the potatoes' own enzymes turn starch into sugar ('imelletty' means sweetened), and then it is baked slowly until the top is a deep caramel brown. The result tastes gently sweet with no added sugar and is eaten with ham, herring or, on a vegetarian table, with mushroom salad and beetroot. Chef's tip: keep the mash at hand-warm (about 55 °C) while it sweetens; too hot and the enzymes die, too cool and nothing happens.

300 minScandinavian Sides

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Knäck (Swedish Christmas toffee)

No Swedish julbord is complete without knäck. Families make it in the weeks before Christmas Eve, often with children filling the little paper cases, and it sits on the table beside saffron buns, gingersnaps and ischoklad. Equal parts of cream, golden syrup and sugar boil down into a deep caramel that sets glossy and firm, then gives way to a pleasant chew; chopped almonds add crunch. It is lovely with strong coffee or glögg made from berry juice. Knäck has never contained egg: the cream is boiled until its milk sugars caramelise and the mixture reaches the hard-ball stage, so the sugar itself sets the toffee. Some cooks stir in breadcrumbs; they are left out here so the toffee stays gluten free. Chef's tip: test the toffee by dropping a little into cold water rather than trusting the clock alone; the common mistake is stopping too early, which leaves knäck that sticks to your teeth and to its paper.

55 minScandinavian Desserts

by KrazyBadal 0 views

KrumkakeThin wafer cones

Krumkake are one of the 'syv slag', the seven kinds of biscuit a Norwegian household traditionally bakes for Christmas. A thin, buttery batter is pressed between the plates of a patterned krumkake iron, then each lacy wafer is rolled round a wooden cone while still hot and pliable. They are served plain, or filled at the table with whipped cream and cloudberries or other berries. You do need the electric or stovetop krumkake iron. Chef's tip: roll each wafer within seconds of lifting it off the iron, as it sets crisp almost at once.

60 minScandinavian Baking

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AchappamFried rose cookies

Achappam, the rose cookie, is a Christmas staple in Kerala's Syrian Christian and Latin Catholic homes, fried in big batches in December and offered to neighbours of every faith. A thin batter of rice flour, egg, coconut milk and sugar, scented with sesame or cumin, clings to a flower-shaped iron, which is dipped into hot oil until the lacy rose drops off. They keep for weeks in an airtight tin. You need an achappam (rosette) mould. Chef's tip: heat the mould in the oil each time; if the batter slides off, the mould is too cool, and if it won't release, it's too hot.

60 min

Indian Snacks & Starters

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VörtbrödDark Christmas rye bread

In Sweden the Christmas smörgåsbord (julbord) is never without vörtbröd, a dark, soft, slightly sticky rye loaf flavoured with wort, the sweet malty liquid brewers start beer from, plus dark syrup, orange peel, clove and ginger. It is sliced, buttered and eaten with the Christmas ham or with cheese. Many home bakers use dark beer, which contains alcohol; this recipe uses a non-alcoholic dark malt drink, which gives the same malty depth. It keeps for 4 days, and freezes well. Chef's tip: rye dough is sticky and never feels smooth like wheat; resist adding lots of extra flour or the loaf will be dry.

70 minScandinavian Baking

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SerinakakerAlmond and pearl sugar butter biscuits

Serinakaker are the easiest of the Norwegian seven Christmas biscuits, so they are often the first one children help to bake in Advent. Small balls of rich butter dough are flattened with a fork, brushed with egg and topped with chopped almonds and pearl sugar, then baked until the edges just colour. They taste of butter and vanilla, with a crunch on top. Chef's tip: use baker's ammonia (hjortetakksalt) if you can find it for the traditional crisp-light snap; baking powder works too but gives a softer biscuit.

32 minScandinavian Baking

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Polkagris (Gränna peppermint candy sticks)

Gränna, a small town on the shore of Lake Vättern, has been pulling polkagris since the 1850s, and visitors still stand at shop windows watching the sugar being stretched and twisted on marble tables. The sticks are sold all year but are a favourite in summer, when the town fills with tourists, and again at Christmas. Pulled properly, the white part turns satiny and slightly airy, so the candy is crisp on the outside and almost chalky-soft as it melts, with a clean, cooling peppermint flavour and a thin red spiral. Eat them as they are, crush them over ice cream or hang them on the tree. Polkagris is naturally egg-free: nothing but sugar boiled to the hard-crack stage holds it together, and the pulling, not any added protein, gives the pale, opaque texture. Chef's tip: work in a dry kitchen with oiled gloves and have every tool ready before the sugar reaches temperature; the common mistake is letting the mass cool too far before pulling, at which point it cracks instead of stretching.

50 minScandinavian Desserts

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HamborgarhryggurGlazed smoked pork loin

Hamborgarhryggur, 'Hamburg-style loin', is the most common Christmas Eve centrepiece in Iceland, served at six o'clock when the church bells ring Christmas in. It is a cured and lightly smoked pork loin on the bone, simmered gently, then glazed with brown sugar and mustard and baked until shiny. It comes to the table with caramelised potatoes, red cabbage, green peas and a creamy sauce. Use a smoked pork loin (Kassler) from a butcher. Chef's tip: keep the poaching water just trembling, not boiling, so the cured meat stays juicy.

150 minScandinavian Meat

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PorkkanalaatikkoCarrot and rice casserole

A Finnish Christmas Eve table is set with a row of oven-baked casseroles called laatikot, and porkkanalaatikko, the carrot one, is the children's favourite. Grated carrots are folded into soft rice porridge with milk, egg and a spoon of golden syrup, then baked until the top is caramel-brown with a ring of crisp edge. It is served hot beside the ham or, in vegetarian homes, with beetroot salad and potatoes. It can be made a day ahead and reheated. Chef's tip: use the rice porridge cold, so it holds the egg mixture and the casserole sets into soft, sliceable layers instead of a runny mash.

85 minScandinavian Sides

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SandkakerAlmond butter tartlet biscuits

Sandkaker ('sand cakes') are small, crumbly almond and butter biscuits pressed into fluted tins, and they are a fixture among the seven Norwegian Christmas biscuits. The dough is short and rich with ground almonds and a few bitter almonds or almond extract, and the shells are served upside-down as they are, or filled with whipped cream and berries. You need small fluted tartlet tins (sandkake forms). Chef's tip: press the dough as thin as you can against the tin sides, because thick shells stay doughy in the middle and won't release cleanly.

55 minScandinavian Baking

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RjúpurPtarmigan in cream sauce

For many Icelandic families, rjúpa (rock ptarmigan) is the true Christmas Eve dish, a small wild bird with dark, gamey meat that is hunted in autumn under strict seasonal limits and kept frozen for the holiday. The breasts are browned, then braised gently in stock made from the legs and carcass, and the sauce is finished with cream and a spoon of redcurrant jelly. Serve with caramelised potatoes and red cabbage. Outside Iceland, use partridge, pigeon or pheasant breasts. Chef's tip: make the stock from the legs and carcasses the day before; it is what gives the sauce its deep game flavour.

180 minScandinavian Meat

by KrazyBadal 0 views

PinacaRice flour, jaggery and coconut cakes

Pinaca is one of the oldest Goan Christmas sweets in the kuswar tray, made in the weeks before Christmas from three things: rice flour roasted until golden and nutty, jaggery and freshly grated coconut. They are pressed into small cakes or squares and have a soft, crumbly, toffee-like bite. They are vegan and gluten free. Chef's tip: take your time roasting the rice flour, as it is the roasting that gives pinaca its flavour, but stir constantly because it burns at the edges.

60 min

Indian Indian Sweets

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KokadCoconut, jaggery and semolina squares

Kokad is one of the sweets in the Goan Christmas kuswar, the tray of homemade sweets Catholic families swap with neighbours in the days around 25 December. Freshly grated coconut is cooked with jaggery, semolina and ghee until it pulls together into a dark, fudgy mass, then pressed into a tray, scored into diamonds and topped with cashews. It is chewy, caramel-sweet and fragrant with cardamom. Chef's tip: roast the semolina in ghee first, until it smells nutty, as raw semolina makes kokad pasty.

75 min

Indian Indian Sweets

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Goan milk creamMilk and cashew sweet

Milk cream is a pale, fudgy Goan Christmas sweet, set in pretty little moulds of flowers, stars and Christmas trees and laid on the kuswar platter beside neureos, bebinca and kulkuls. Whole milk is cooked down with sugar and ground cashews (and sometimes semolina) until it turns into a smooth paste, a little like Indian peda but softer. It is gluten free and very rich, so pieces are small. Chef's tip: dust the moulds with sugar, not flour, so the sweets pop out cleanly with crisp detail.

90 min

Indian Indian Sweets

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JulekakeCardamom raisin Christmas bread

Julekake is the Christmas bread of Norway, baked in the days before Christmas Eve and eaten for breakfast on Christmas morning, sliced and spread with butter and brown goat's cheese (brunost). It is a soft, round, golden loaf enriched with milk and butter, perfumed with freshly ground cardamom and dotted with raisins and candied citrus peel. It is plain enough to enjoy every day of the holidays, and leftovers make wonderful toast. Chef's tip: crush whole cardamom seeds yourself just before baking; ready-ground cardamom loses its scent within weeks.

65 minScandinavian Baking

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JuleribbeRoast pork belly with crackling

In much of Norway, Christmas Eve means ribbe: a slab of pork belly with the ribs left in, roasted until the scored rind puffs into crackling and the meat beneath is soft and juicy. It is served with medisterkaker, tangy caraway sauerkraut, red cabbage, boiled potatoes and gravy from the pan. Butchers sell ribbe ready scored in squares at Christmas. Chef's tip: salt the rind and leave it uncovered in the fridge for 1–2 days; a dry rind is the secret of the crackling.

230 minScandinavian Meat

by KrazyBadal 0 views

MaksalaatikkoLiver and rice casserole

Maksalaatikko is a baked casserole of rice, milk, minced liver, onion, raisins and a little syrup, and it is one of the old dishes on the Finnish Christmas table, eaten all year too. It sounds unusual, but the liver softens into a mild, savoury custard and the raisins and syrup give a gentle sweetness, all cut by sharp lingonberry jam. This version uses pork or calf's liver, minced or very finely chopped; pork liver is the most traditional. Chef's tip: soak the minced liver in milk while the rice cooks, which mellows the flavour.

100 minScandinavian Meat

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MedisterkakerSpiced pork patties

On Christmas Eve in eastern Norway the main dish is ribbe, crackling pork belly, and on the same platter come medisterkaker: soft, pale pork patties seasoned with nutmeg, ginger and white pepper, fried in butter and then simmered gently in the ribbe juices. They are made from medisterfarse, a fine pork mince lightened with milk and potato starch, and are just as popular on ordinary weeknights with brown gravy. Chef's tip: beat the mince with the milk a little at a time until light and sticky, as this is what makes the patties so tender.

50 minScandinavian Meat

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SörurAlmond meringue cookies with buttercream

Sörur are Iceland's most loved Christmas cookie, named after the French actress Sarah Bernhardt and adapted from a Danish pastry. Icelandic families bake them in batches through Advent and keep them in the freezer, where they are eaten straight from frozen. A chewy-crisp almond meringue disc is spread with silky coffee buttercream made on egg yolks and dipped in dark chocolate. The yolks are cooked by a hot sugar syrup; for anyone pregnant, very young or vulnerable, use pasteurised egg yolks. They are gluten free. Chef's tip: grind the almonds with the sugar, which stops them turning oily, for a finer meringue.

80 minScandinavian Desserts

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Palada payasam (Kerala rice-flake milk pudding)

No Onam sadya in Kerala feels finished without palada, ladled onto the banana leaf near the end of the feast, often after a darker jaggery payasam. Thin flakes of rice (ada) are cooked for a long time in milk and sugar, and as the milk reduces the sugar caramelises very slightly, turning the whole pot a soft blush pink. The result is creamy and gently chewy, with a taste like warm toffee milk. It is served warm or at room temperature, sometimes mopped up with a crisp pappadam crushed into it, the way Keralites eat it at weddings. It is naturally egg-free: the starch from the rice flakes and the slow reduction of the milk thicken it, with no custard at all. Use ready-made rice ada from an Indian shop. Chef's tip: the pink colour only comes with patience; keep the heat low and steady and keep stirring, because rushing it on a high flame scorches the milk and turns it brown and bitter.

95 min

Indian Indian Sweets

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Bhapa doi (Bengali steamed sweet yogurt)

Bhapa doi means steamed yogurt, and it's the dessert Kolkata households make when there's no time to visit the sweet shop for mishti doi. It's especially popular on Jamai Shashthi and at Poila Baisakh, the Bengali New Year, but it appears at Sunday lunches all year. Thick hung yogurt is mixed with condensed milk and a little milk, scented with cardamom, then gently steamed until it sets like a soft cheesecake without a crust. Chilled, it's dense, smooth and tangy-sweet. Serve it plain in small bowls, topped with pistachios, or with ripe mango in summer. There is no egg here: the milk proteins in the yogurt and condensed milk set with gentle heat, just as eggs would set a baked custard, and the condensed milk adds body and sweetness. Chef's tip: steam it on a low, gentle simmer; the common mistake is a fierce boil, which makes the yogurt weep whey and turn grainy.

285 min

Indian Indian Sweets

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Avarekalu saaruField bean and coconut curry

When the avarekai (hyacinth bean) season comes to Bengaluru and Mysuru in December and January, the city celebrates with a whole street festival of avarekalu dishes, and this thin, fragrant saaru is the one cooked at home for lunch with ragi mudde or rice. The tender beans, popped out of their pods, are simmered in a gravy of coconut, roasted spices and a little tamarind and jaggery. Fresh beans are watery, so a portion gives about 12 g of protein, from the beans, a little toor dal and the coconut; that is why it is not tagged High protein. Frozen shelled avarekalu from Indian grocers works well out of season. The most common mistake is undercooking the beans: like all hyacinth beans they must be cooked until completely soft, never eaten raw or half-cooked. Chef's tip: for the classic hitikida flavour, soak the shelled beans in warm water for 30 minutes and squeeze each one out of its skin; it takes time but gives a creamier, sweeter saaru.

50 min

Indian Curries

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Ghanta tarkariMixed vegetables with dried peas

Ghanta is the Odia one-pot of everything the winter market offers, cooked in Bhubaneswar and Cuttack homes for festival days and pujas, and in a similar form in the temple kitchens at Puri. Pumpkin, raw banana, sweet potato, aubergine and beans are cooked with soaked dried peas and chana dal until the pulses thicken it into a soft, chunky stew, seasoned with ginger, cumin and a light panch phoron tempering. A portion gives about 20 g of protein from the dried peas, chana dal and vegetables. The dried peas and chana dal need 8 hours of soaking first (overnight), which is not counted in the times. The most common mistake is adding all the vegetables at once: pumpkin melts to mush while the raw banana is still hard, so add them in two stages. Chef's tip: grind the ginger and cumin with a little water to a fresh paste rather than using powder; it is what gives ghanta its clean, warm flavour.

60 min

Indian Curries

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