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 

Good Morning!

We had an eventful morning at the college of medicine today. Luckily, I brought some delicious treats for my CBI group so we were able to all mellow down a bit. Yes, my sticky buns saved the day (or so I'd like to think). I think the paper plates were actually used more than my baked goods, we drew a hormone time chart, feedback regulation, and a graafian follicle on them.

These sticky buns are incredibly easy to make and create a product which seems like you spent hours on it. I woke up at 8am this morning and these were ready to go by 9. That's how quick and easy they are. I modified the recipe by Ina a bit. I cut down the butter some (shocking, I know!) and substituted chopped dates for the raisins. I don't really like raisins (except for those cute golden ones), and I had dates on hand, so that's why I threw those in. You could substitute anything you'd like. I'm sure it would taste great with some dried apples or cranberries or with nothing at all. Also, I completely forgot to add cinnamon and they turned out great, but I think they would be even better with cinnamon.  The secret to these little bites of joy are puff pastry. They are absolutely perfect for sticky buns because they are so light, flaky, and buttery. The perfect combo with some sweet sugary glaze, dates, and pecans. Have a package on hand in the freezer for those surprise overnight guests or when you feel like creating something amazing in the morning.

Sticky Buns
adapted from Easy Sticky Buns by Ina Garten

• 1 stick unsalted butter, room temperature
• 1/3 c. packed light brown sugar
• 1/2 c. chopped pecans
• 1 package (2 sheets) frozen puff pastry, defrosted

For the filling

• 2 Tbsp. unsalted butter, melted
• 2/3 c. packed brown sugar
• 3 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/2 c. chopped dates

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Spray a 12-cup standard muffin tin with non-stick spray and place on a sheet pan lined with parchment paper.

Combine 1 stick of butter with 1/3 c. brown sugar. Place 1 rounded tablespoon of the mixture in each of the 12 muffin cups. Distribute the pecans evenly among the 12 muffin cups on top of the butter and sugar mixture.

Lightly flour a wooden board. Unfold 1 sheet of puff pastry and brush the whole sheet with the melted butter. Leaving a 1-inch border on the puff pastry, sprinkle each sheet with 1/3 c. of the brown sugar, 1 1/2 tsp of the cinnamon, and 1/4 c. of the chopped dates. Starting with the end nearest you, roll the pastry up snugly like a jelly roll around the filling, finished the roll with the seam side down. Slice the roll into 6 equal pieces and place each piece, spiral side up, in 6 of the muffin cups. Repeat with the second sheet of puff pastry to make a total of 12 sticky buns. 

Bake for 25-30 mins, until the sticky buns are golden brown on top and firm to touch. Allow to cool for 5 minutes only then scoop out with a spoon and invert. Scoop up the extra sugary sauce and pecans and spoon on top.