Pear Inspiration

Pear is a sweet and delicious fruit that is perfect for baked goods but it's also equally amazing as an ingredient in a savory dish.



Why not try this beautiful Pear Walnut Gorgonzola Pizza from Kitchen Confidante.






These Baked Korean Pears in Wonton Crisps Honey Cinnamon Mascarpone from Cooking on the Weekends are looks absolutely amazing. Her pictures make me drool and wanting those Korean Pears right now.






WOW! How about starting up the day with a bunch of Caramel Sea Salt Pear Pancakes. Yum Yum! Cookin' Canuck sure knows how to make a proper breakfast.






The photos on Yummy Supper blogs are absolutely gorgeous! Her Little Pear Tarts are equally gorgeous looking.






ENJOY!

Potato Bread

If you have left over boiled potatoes from dinner use it to bake this amazing moist and great tasting bread.

4 Potato Bread
8 boiled potatoes, mixed
6 dl milk (600ml)
50 grams of yeast
2 tsp salt
2 tbsp dark corn syrup
2 tsp bread spice (mix of anise, fennel, caraway)
2 dl rye flour (200ml)
14-15 dl (1400-1500ml) wheat flour

Crumble the fresh yeast into a bowl and add lukewarm milk (37 d C.). If you are using dry yeast, let it dissolve in warm milk min. 43 degrees C. Set aside for 10-15 minutes while the yeast dissolves.

Add golden salt, syrup, bread spice, mixed potatoes into the milk and yeast mixture. combine. Add rye flour and wheat flour a little at a time and combine until you have used almost all the flour. The dough should become smooth. Make sure you don't use too much flour as it will make the bread dry. Work the dough by hand for about 20 minutes or in a kitchen aid for about 10 minutes. When you feel that the dough is ok, cover the bowl with a kitchen towel and set aside to rise to double its size for about 40-60 minutes. Place the bowl in a warm place.

TIP:
The dough is ready when it's slightly glossy. If you work the dough too little, the bread will turn out dense. One trick is to take a piece of dough between your thumb and index finger, pull finger apart, if the dough between your fingers are thin and elastic, you've worked it enough. Otherwise....work it more:-)

Sprinkle some flour onto work top and place the dough on top. Work the dough once again, this time, just a little bit, add extra flour if the dough is too sticky. Divide the dough into 4 equal sized pieces. Make large round loafs and place on an oven paper covered baking plate. Use a glass to make a whole in the middle of the bread. Sprinkle some flour on top. Leave and let rise for another 30 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 230 degrees C. Bake in the middle of the oven for about 15 minutes, until your bread has lots of colour. Let cool on an oven rack.


ENJOY!

Dried Fruit & Walnut Quick Bread

If you like a healthy yet sweet bread, then this is for you, a full flavoured Dried Fruit and Walnut Quick Bread. The dried apricots and raisins adds a nice sweetness to this quick bread and the walnuts and sunflower seeds ads to a crunchy texture. I love quick breads as they are super simple to bake and you can easily change the recipe to suit your personal taste.

This kind of bread is best the day after baking, to let it "set", and you can easily store it for about two weeks in a plastic bag.

Apricot, Raisin and Walnut Quick Bread

3 dl flour (300ml)
2 1/2 dl rye flour (250ml)
1 dl porridge oats (100ml)
2 dl crushed rye (200ml)
1 dl dried apricots (100ml)
1 dl raisins (100ml)
1 dl walnut (100ml)
1 dl sunflower seeds (100ml)
1 dl linseeds (100ml)
1 1/2 tsp salt
1 1/2 tsp bicarbonate
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp fennel seed
1/2 tsp caraway powder
1/2 tsp aniseed
1 dl light molasses syrup (100ml)
4 1/2 dl butter-milk (or natural yogurt) (450ml)

Decoration: oats

Preheat the oven at 200 degrees C.

Chop walnuts and dried apricots coarsely and put into a bowl. Add all the dry ingredients including the spices and combine. Add syrup and yogurt. Mix it all together quickly.

Put the sticky dough into a greased 1 1/2 liters bread-tin. Don't let the bread-tin be filled more than 2/3 since the bread will rise in the oven. Sprinkle oats on top for decoration.

Bake the bread in the middle of the oven for about 90 minutes. Cover with foil if the loaf starts to get to dark.

ENJOY!

Yogurt & Oat Scones

Scones are quick and easy to make for your for afternoon tea or a long lazy weekend breakfast. This recipe is my favourite scone recipe as the texture is soft and light yet the outside is slightly crispy. And they have the right level of sweetness.  Serve with butter, cream cheese or marmalade.

Yogurt & Oat Scones,  8 pcs
4 1/2 dl flour (450ml)
3 dl porridge oats (300ml)
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 dl sugar
125 grams butter, cold
1 egg
2 dl yogurt (200ml)
2 tbsp milk and oats for brushing the scones


Pre-heat the oven to 250 degrees C.

Combine the dry ingredients, add butter and crumble it together. Add yogurt and egg and knead very lightly to a smooth dough. If you knead the scones too much they'll turn out dense and not light and fluffy.

Flatten the dough until about 3 cm high, use a glass to cut round scones.

Place the scones onto an oven papered baking plate. Brush with milk.

Bake in the oven for about 15 minutes, until golden.

ENJOY!

Pumpkin Inspiration

I've gathered some heavenly pumpkin recipes for you. I'm literally drooling while browsing for yummie recipes....

What is your favourite pumpkin recipe?


Why not try this beautiful Pumpkin Pecan Bundt Cake from Magnolia Days.





This No Bake Pecan Pumpkin Cheesecake from Slow Cooking Kitchen looks insanely delicious.





Oh my these Mini Pumpkin Cheesecakes with Gingersnap Crust from Life (Made) Simple are just adorable.





Pumpkin and cookies! Why not try these soft and puffy little Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies from Kitchen Meets Girl.





Who loves brownies? Who loves pumpkin? If you say yes to both, what then can be better than a Pumpkin Brownie Pie from Bakeaholic Mama?





I love Whoppie Pies! And these Pumpkin Whoopie Pies from Annies Eats are absolutely super cute!





Another must try is these gorgeous Pumpkin Spice Latte Cupcakes from Tracey's Culinary Adventures.





Let's not forget the most important meal of the day; breakfast! And what is more suitable than Pumpkin Pancake from Zesty South Indian Kitchen?




I hope you've enjoyed my little pumpkin round-up!

Multi Seed Crackers

Healthy, crunchy, nutritious, low carb, Multi-Seed Crackers. Another great thing about these cracker is that they are super easy to make. Great with dips, spread, or plain. I love to eat them with hummus or avocado and a big cup of tea!

Multi Seed Crackers
1/2 dl flax seeds (50ml)
1/2 dl sesame seeds (50ml)
1/2 dl pumpkin seeds (50ml)
3/4 dl sunflower seeds (75ml)
2 dl cornflour (200ml)
1 pinch of salt
1/2 dl sunflower oil (50ml)
2 1/2 dl water, hot (250ml)
Sea salt flakes


Preheat the oven to 150 degrees C and prepare one baking sheet lined with parchment paper.

Place the flours, seeds and salt in a mixing bowl. Add the olive oil and stir it in with a fork. Add the hot water and mix it in. Spread the sticky dough evenly on your baking sheet, as thin as possible. Sprinkle some sea salt flakes on top. The recipe said 70 minutes, but my crackers had a nice, crunchy texture and golden surface already after 40 minutes,. Maybe my oven temperature was higher than called for...

Transfer to a cooling rack. Then break into preferred sized crackers. The crackers will keep for a few weeks in an airtight container.

ENJOY!

Cinnamon Flavoured Semolina Pudding with Raspberries

This is an easy dessert that tastes absolutely heavenly. This soft pudding has an unique texture only semolina granules can  create. Add some cinnamon powder and top with your favourite berries or jam. If you reduce the amount of sugar you can even have it for breakfast. And  who doesn't like a dessert for breakfast.

Cinnamon Flavoured Semolina Pudding with Raspberries, 8-9 portions

1 l whole milk

200 g heavy cream
a pinch of salt
100 g sugar
1 vanilla pod, split length ways, seeds scraped out
100 g semolina
Cinnamon according to your likening
200 g fresh raspberries

Heat milk, heavy cream, salt, sugar as well as the scraped out seeds of a vanilla pod (add the pod, too) in a large saucepan. Bring to a boil, then remove from heat and discard the vanilla pod (or use for something else). Slowly add the semolina while continuously stirring, then return to the heat, bring to a boil again and let simmer for another minute until it has thickened a bit. Add cinnamon flavour according to your own personal taste. Fill in little glasses or pots. Add fresh raspberries on top.

The little pots can be enjoyed warm or cold and can be kept in the fridge (covered) for a couple of days, too.
 

 

ENJOY!

Healthy Carrot & Seed Buns

Summer is over and it's getting colder in Sweden and what is better to eat on a rainy day but Soup and a hearty healthy Carrot Bread? In this recipe I added loads of different seeds since I love the crunchy texture and also, they get way healthier than eating just a plain wheat based bread. The carrots doesn't actually give much flavours to the buns but they do turn out beautiful orange coloured and very, very moist. I hope you like them!

Healthy Carrot & Seed Buns
25 grams of fresh yeast or 1tbsp dry yeast
4 dl water (400ml)
2 carrots, medium sized, finely grated
1 dl sunflower oil (100ml)
1 tbsp dark corn syrup (25 ml)
2 tsp salt
2 tsp bitter orange
1/2 dl sunflower seeds (50ml)
1/2 dl flax seeds (50ml)
1/4 dl sesame seeds (25ml)
4 dl rye flour (400ml)
7-8 dl wheat flour (700-800ml)

Crumble the fresh yeast into a bowl and add lukewarm water (37 d C). If you are using dry yeast, let it dissolve in warm water min. 43 degrees C. Set aside for 10-15 minutes while the yeast dissolves.

Add finely grated carrots, sunflower oil, syrup, salt, bitter orange, all the seeds, rye flour and almost all flour into the yeast mixture. The dough should still be a little bit sticky. Make sure you don't use too much flour as it will make the bread dry. Work the dough by hand for about 20 minutes or in a kitchen aid for about 10 minutes. When you feel that the dough is ok, cover the bowl with a kitchen towel and set aside to rise to double its size for about 40-60 minutes. Place the bowl in a warm place.

TIP:
The dough is ready when it's slightly glossy. If you work the dough too little, the bread will turn out dense. One trick is to take a piece of dough between your thumb and index finger, pull finger apart, if the dough between your fingers are thin and elastic, you've worked it enough. Otherwise....work it more:-)

Sprinkle some flour onto work top and place the dough on top. Take small pieces of the dough and roll into buns. Place the buns on your baking sheet. Brush with milk.

Leave and let rise for another 30 minutes. Preheat the oven to 200 degrees C.

Bake in the oven for about 20 minutes, until your bread is golden coloured. Let cool on an oven rack.


ENJOY!

Blueberry Semolina Pudding

This pudding brings up so many childhood memories for me! My grandmother used to make this for me. In Sweden we usually make this with lingonberries but I wanted to try it out with fresh blueberries and I wasn't disappointed. If you don't make it overly sweet you can eat it for breakfast, but if you add lots of sugar and eat it with cream is more like a dessert.



Blueberry Semolina Pudding, serves 4
2 1/2 dl milk (200ml)
2 1/2 dl water (200ml)
1 dl semolina
1 dl fresh or frozen blueberries or jam
Sugar according to taste
2 tsp vanilla sugar


Pour milk and water into a medium pot and bring to a boil over medium heat. Slowly sprinkle semolina while continuously whisking. Remove from heat after 5-6 minutes. Add vanilla essence, blueberries and sugar if needed.  Pour into another bowl and whict with an electric mixer for about 5 minutes until fluffy. Serve with milk or cream and add extra blueberries on top.

ENJOY!

Healthy and Quick Lingonberry Loaf

I just love to bake no-yeast breads as it's so uncomplicated. You don't even have to kneed the bread. You basically just add all ingredients in a bowl, combine, spoon it into the loaf tin and bake. Who said it was difficult and time consuming to make homemade healthy bread? The dark corn syrup gives the bread a nice robust sweet flavour as well as making the bread darker in colour. Lingonberries adds a sweet and sour flavour and the sunflower seeds adds crunchiness. Eat with your favourite toppings as cream cheese, ham, tomato and cucumber.

Lingonberry Loaf
3 dl wheat flour (300ml)
1 dl porridge oats (100ml)
2 1/2 dl rye flour (250ml)
1 tsp salt
1 tsp baking powder
2 tsp bicarbonate
1 tbsp bread spices (1/3 anise, 1/3 fennel, 1/3 caraway)
1 dl lingonberries (or lingonberry jam) (100ml)
1 dl dark corn syrup (100ml)
3 dl yogurt (300ml)


Preheat the oven at 150 degrees. Combine all ingredients in a bowl. You don't have to kneed the dough, just combine. Grease or place grease-proof paper in a 1 1/2 litre loaf tin. Spoon the sticky dough into the loaf tin. Bake at the bottom of your oven for about 50-60 minutes or until a stick comes out clean. Let it cool before slicing.


Enjoy!

Oven Baked Pancake

This Oven Baked Pancake brings me back to my childhood. I can't even remember when I ate this dish the last time, but it must be years ago. I had totally forgotten about it, but now, this is something I need to make again, soon! It's quick and easy to make, which I love! In my family we add smoked bacon before baking it in the oven, and top it with raspberry or cloudberry jam. We eat it for dinner but you can also make it for your lazy, long, weekend breakfast.

Oven Baked Pancake, serves 3

2 eggs

3 dl milk (300ml)

2 1/2 dl flour (250ml)

1 pinch of salt

1 tbsp butter, for greasing the skillet

100 grams smoked bacon

Preheat oven to 220 degrees C (425 degrees F). Place smoked bacon in a 10 inch cast iron skillet in the oven for about 10 minutes or until the bacon is ready.

Mix half the milk, all flour and salt until you have a smooth batter. Add the eggs and mix again. Add the rest of the milk and mix.

Pour batter into hot skillet. Return skillet to oven and bake for about 25 minutes. It will rise like a souffle, then fall when taken out of oven.

Serve with raspberry jam, lingonberries or your preferred jam.

ENJOY!

Crescent Rolls

I get so excited when I succeeed in baking bread! Somehow it's easier to find great recipes for delicious sweets. Bread is more difficult, and sometimes the flavour of the bread is boring and don't turn out at all the way I hoped.  I do prefer to eat healthier breads, but these ones were so cute and looked like croissants so I had to try them out. And I'm glad I did! Freshly baked from the oven, I prefer to eat them with salty butter. The next day I prefer them with cheese and cucumber or why not a sweet apricot marmelade:-)

Crescent Rolls, 18pcs
6 dl water, warm (600ml)
1tsp sugar
1 tbsp dry yeast
2 tbsp sunflower oil
2 tsp salt
12-13 dl flour (1200-1300ml)

Topping:
1 egg
poppy seeds

Mix dry yeast, half the warm water and sugar, set aside for 10 minutes. Add the rest of the water and remaining ingredients. Work into a smooth dough for about 15 minutes by hand. If you take a small piece of dough between your thumb and index finger, the texture of the dough should be elastice and turn into an elastic string once the dough is ok.

Cover the dough with a kitchen towel and set aside and let rise to double its size, about 45 minutes.

Work the dough on a floured surface. Divide into 3 pieces. Roll the dough round, 30cm in diameter. Cut into 6 triangles. Roll each triangle, starting from the wider part. Curve the crescent roll a little bit and place on an oven papered covered baking plate. Cover the crescent rolls with a kitchen towel and let rise once again for about 30 minutes.

Preheat oven at 250 degrees C.

Brush the crescent rolls with egg and sprinkle poppy seeds on top. Bake in the middle of the oven for 15 minutes, Lower the heat at 175 degrees C, and bake for another 5-10 minutes. In the recipe it said 20 minutes, but that had been too long in my oven.

ENJOY!

Quick Bread - Kavring

This Quick Bread, or Kavring, as it's called in Swedish, is a dark rye bread, with a sweet flavour from dark corn syrup. You basically mix all ingredients quickly, pour it into a bread tin, bake it, and 1 hour later you've got yourself an amazing breakfast bread for a long, lazy, weekend breakfast:-) Cut thin slices and add your favourite toppings, like cream cheese, ham and sliced cucumber. And you're off to a great start of the day!

Kavring
1,5 dl Rye flour (150ml)
2 1/2 dl Wheat flour (250ml)
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
3 dl yogurt (300ml)
1 1/4 dl dark corn syrup (125ml)

Preheat the oven at 175 degrees C. Butter and flour a 1-litre baking tin.

Place all dry ingredients in a bowl and combine. Add yogurt and dark corn syrup, combine quickly to a smooth mixture. Pour the mixture into the bread tin.

Bake the bread in the middle of the oven for about 40 minute. However, I had to bake the bread for a little bit over an hour. Use a stick to check the centre of the bread to see if it comes out clean, when it does, the bread is ready. Remove from the bread tin and let it cool covered by a kitchen towel.

ENJOY!

Swedish Flat Bread - Polar Bread

I'm so happy and excited today!! I found a great bread recipe and of course I have to share it with you! In Sweden we call this bread "Polar Bread" and I would say it's somewhat similar to a flat bread. I was surprised how easy and quick it was to make it, even though it's a yest based bread. The texture of the Polar Bread is soft, a little chewy and has a mild rye flavour. This is a keeper recipe and a new favourite of mine! I'll bet your kids will like it too. Make a batch, store in the freezer and you can easily heat it up in your toaster for a quick and healthy breakfast. I prefer to eat my Polar Breads with a mild cheeze/cream cheese and cucumber.

Polar Bread, 20 flat breads
50 grams butter
5 dl water (500ml)
50 grams of fresh yeast, or 1 tbslp dry yeast
3 tbsp golden syrup
1 tsp salt
5 dl rye flour (500ml)
11 dl wheat flour (500ml)

Melt butter, add water and warm until 37 degrees C, is using fresh yeast, about 45 degrees or little more, if using dry yeast. Pour the liquid into a bowl, add yeast, and let it dissolve. Add golden syrup and salt and stir. Add most of the flour and work the dough until smooth and a little shiny. By hand, about 20 minutes. The dough should not stick to the edges of your bowl when you've worked it enough. Sprinkle some flour on top, cover with a kitchen towel, and set aside and let it rise to double the size, about 30 minutes.

Heat oven at 275 degrees C. Place oven paper on several baking plates. Divide the dough into 20 pieces. Form to round balls and then use a rolling pin to flatten your breads on a floured baking table. Prick your Polar Breads using a fork and place onto baking plates. Cover with a kitchen towel and let rise for about 10 minutes.

Bake in the middle of your oven for about 3-5 minutes. Let them cool on a rack, covered with a kitchen-towel.

Don't forget to join My Sweet Party with your Favourite Pie!

ENJOY!

My Sweet Party JUNE - Top 3 Summer Fruit Favourites

It has been difficult to choose my top three favourites from My Sweet Party - June - Summer Fruits, you've linked up amazing and tempting sweets! If you would like to check out all Summer Fruit contributions, do so here.

First up is a very summery Strawberry and Cheese French Toast made by Jennifer at Peanut Butter and Peppers. I am a big fan of her blog and always feel inspired when browsing around her blog and drooling all over her delicious recipes. I recommend you to check out her blog and her amazing weight loss story. This Strawberry and Cheese French Toast must be the perfect start on a lazy summer weekend.

My next favourite also include strawberries in the recipe, it must be THE summer fruit all times, strawberries are so delicious, and sweet and colourful. Ambreen from blog Simply Sweet n Savory linked up these lovely and yummy looking Strawberry Jam Ring Cookies. Buttery cookies, sandwiched together with strawberry jam and dusted with icing sugar. I love cookies with jam so this is definitely a must try.

I LOVE MANGO! Which means that this Mango Lime Tart from blogger Julie at White Lights on Wednesday had to be in my top three favourites. It sounds absolutely fantastic! make sure to stop by her blog to be inspired for more amazing treats.

ENJOY and don't forget to link up your favourite pie to My Sweet Party-July.