Swedish Breakfast on America's Independence Day

Happy 4th of July! I've had this past week off so I have been busy with meetings, doctors appointments, and experimenting in the kitchen. Yesterday, JC and I tried our hand at fermentation. For my birthday, JC got me The Art of Fermentation and Jennifer got me Wild Fermentiaton both by Sandor Ellix Katz. I've been wanting to try fermenting for a while and I finally found some inexpensive bail-top glass jars at TJ Maxx yesterday. We decided to start with some dill cucumber pickles and sauerkraut. We've filled the jars, locked the lids, and now it's time to wait. In just a couple weeks we'll have delicious (and nutritious) fermented treats.

This morning I wanted to try making some swedish oat pancakes. I was inspired by the pancakes at La Bellavia restaurant in Flagstaff. They are these giant, dense, oaty pancakes topped with cinnamon apples. I decided to try to make them a little smaller, more buttery/savory, and lighter. I found a recipe on Bon Appetit and these turned out absolutely amazing! JC thinks they are even better than the ones in Flagstaff. These have a rich buttery flavor, just slightly sweet, and not too heavy or dense. These taste wonderful just as is but would be just delightful with a dollop of jam or preserves. They are so easy to make with very simple ingredients.

To top off my Swedish breakfast, I made some crispy bread topped with smoked herring. I would have like to used smoked trout, but this was all we had at home. JC and I have been eating lots of canned fish recently--anchovies, sardines, herring, trout. I topped some toasted bread with cream cheese, sliced cucumbers, and a few pieces of fish. What a delicious fresh snack.

These swedish oat pancakes and smoked fish on bread are the perfect brunch item. Enjoy!

Swedish Oat Pancakes
from Bon Appetit

• 2 c. old-fashioned oats
• 1/2 c. all purpose flour
• 3 Tbsp. sugar
• 1 tsp. baking soda
• 1 tsp. baking powder
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 2 1/2 c. buttermilk
• 2 large eggs
• 1/4 c. unsalted butter, melted
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract
• Preserves or fresh berries (optional)

1. Combine the oats, flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl. 
2. Whisk buttermilk, eggs, melted butter and vanilla in a medium bowl. Add to dry ingredients; whisk until blended but some small lumps still remain. 
3. Let batter stand to thicken, about 2 hours in the refrigerator. (Can be prepared up to one day ahead. Cover batter and refrigerate.)
4. Cook pancakes on greased skillet (I used the griddle side of my Griddler). Ladle batter by 1/4 cupfuls into skillet. Cook pancakes until bottoms are golden brown and bubbles form on top. Turn pancakes over and cook until bottoms are golden brown.
5. Optional: serve with preserves or fresh berries 

Omega-3 Cakes

I love sardines. Yes, I do. They are an excellent source of omega 3 fatty acids and are fairly inexpensive. I also recently learned that sardines and herring are the same fish, they only difference is the size--sardines are small and herring are large. Fascinating!

I was trying to come up with a quick and easy dinner for tonight and was reminded of a recipe from a wonderful friend. She made this dish while we were at HEART and it was one of my favorite meals. I was one of her helpers in the kitchen and I saw how simple yet delicious these fish cakes are. They are so versatile; you can mix whatever spices you like in them or top them with sauce or dip. I decided to eat them with some endive which provided a nice crunch and some color.

I used my mini cookie scooper to portion out perfectly sized discs and cooked them in some coconut oil in my new baby cast iron skillet. This provided the perfect crispness on the outside of the fish cakes and they cooked up very quickly.

Enjoy this simple and extremely nutritious dish!

Havely's Fish Cakes

• 1 can of fish (sardines, salmon, tuna)
• 1 egg
• Salt and pepper to taste
• ~1-2 Tbsp flour (wheat, rice, or buckwheat)
• Spices (I used some fresh garlic, turmeric, smoked paprika, cumin, and cayenne pepper)
• 2 Tbsp frying oil (coconut, lard, butter)

1. Mix all ingredients (except the frying oil), breaking up the fish with a fork.
2. Cook in oiled pan over medium heat for a few minutes on each side

Inspiration: The Hazel Room

I just got back from a three week stint in the pacific northwest. I spent the first week in Seattle at the Nutrition and Health Conference, then two more weeks rotating at Swedish Family Cherry Hill and the Seattle Indian Health Board. The weekend in between I spent in Portland with a dear old friend. I had a great time, I love the city of Seattle and everyone in the residency was amazing, but it is really nice to be home.

I basically went on a culinary tour of both cities. My clinics were so conveniently located that I could walk/bus to so many wonderful restaurants. I've listed some of my favorite places I visited below:

Seattle:
Macrina Bakery
Serious Pie
Cascina Spinasse
Sitka and Spruce
The Walrus and the Carpenter
Ba Bar
Salumi
Canlis
Paseo
Maneki
Saigon Deli

Portland:
Pok Pok
The Hazel Room
Broder
Olympic Provisions
Tasty n Sons
Boxer Sushi

Wow, looking at that list, I realized how much I ate. All of those places are absolutely wonderful and I highly recommend all of them. One of the dishes I really enjoyed and was simple enough I thought I could create was at The Hazel Room. The restaurant is a cute little place with boozy tea drinks, baked goods, and a fantastic brunch menu. I had a skillet dish with two sunny side up eggs, fennel, onions, bacon, baguette, arugula, fleur de sel, and gruyere. It was so simple, yet so yummy. I was determined to make it at home.

I stopped by the restaurant supply store today and picked up a cute mini cast iron skillet, perfect for making over easy eggs. I omitted the bacon in my dish, just because I didn't have any, and it tasted just as delicious. The only thing my version is missing is the scrumptious homemade buttermilk biscuit on the side. This dish is so simple and perfect for brunch or dinner. It's very filling and definitely a recipe I will keep on file.

Egg Skillet with Fennel and Arugula
inspired by The Hazel Room

• Oil to grease skillet
• 2 eggs
• 2 Tbsp butter
• 1 Tbsp brown sugar
• One bulb fennel, sliced
• 1/2 yellow onion, sliced
• large handful of arugula
• grated cheese (gruyere, parmeasan...)
• sea salt and fresh ground black pepper
• a few slices of toasted baguette

1. Heat skillet on medium-high. When the skillet is hot, add the oil. Add the two eggs and flip when ready to make two perfect over easy eggs. 
2. Add the butter to a separate pan. Heat until the butter stops foaming then add the sliced fennel and onions. Mix in the brown sugar. Continue to toss until the onion and fennel are soft. Season with salt and pepper.
3. Add the fennel/onion mixture on top of the eggs in the skillet. Top with the rinsed arugula and grated cheese. Sprinkle some extra salt and cracked pepper on top and serve with the crusty baguette.