Pistachio Feta Coriander Dip

Rarely do I read through a list of ingredients where every single thing sounds great. It didn't happen this time either, but it was pretty darn close. I was leafing through Persiana, the cookbook by Sabrina Ghayour that's at the top of my christmas wish list, and I stumbled upon a creamy dip with pistachios, feta and coriander as the stars. It had dill as well, which I don't like at all, and I changed the quantities to go with what I had at home. The result was glorious! Mostly salty and lemony but with a lovely crunch from the nuts.. oh, I can't wait to make this again!

Pistachio Feta Coriander Dip

one small bowl 

50 g pistachios (unsalted) 

1 tbsp olive oil

140 g feta cheese

large handful of coriander leaves (or two handfuls, really. Lots!)

1/2 garlic clove 

1/2 tsp sambal oelek (feel free to use red chili instead, and as much as you'd like - I like things mild...) 

zest and juice from 1/2 lemon 

2-3 tbsp greek yogurt 

Use a food processor. Start with the nuts and the oil and process briefly until coarsely chopped. Add everything else, and pulse until lovely and creamy. Taste to see if you want to adjust the seasonings. Then serve. Eat. Enjoy. Lick from bowl. 

Lamb meatballs

I've done so many variations on lamb meatballs, really. These were inspired by the lovely Persiana cookbook by Sabrina Ghayour, which I found at my local library a few days ago. Her version contained pine nuts and raisins as well, but as I was out of pine nuts I had to omit those, and I'm not the biggest fan of raisins so I skipped that as well. But feel free to add in both! I changed a bunch of other things too, but loved the idea of adding cinnamon. My kids LOVED these - they're both pretty fussy eaters so I was thrilled that we could actually enjoy something together for a change. I 

Lamb meatballs

serves 4 (at least 2 adults, and 2 kids - I'd do more for 4 adults) 

500 g lamb mince

1/2 yellow onion, very finely minced

large handful of coriander, stalks and leaves, very finely minced

1 egg

zest of 1/2 lemon

1/2 tsp cinnamon

2 tsp cumin

salt 

Oil and butter for frying

Mix all the ingredients for the mince. Mix pretty well, it'll help the meatballs hold their shape and stay intact. Shape little meatballs, or any shape you like - I went for the fairly traditional oblong k�fte (kefta) but that's up to you. 

Heat the oven to 150�C. Fry the meatballs in butter and (or) oil, until well browned but then move them to the oven and let them cook through. (I check mine with a thermometer, and I want them to be at least 70�C.)

Serve, with anything - we ate tomato bulgur and pistachio-feta dip. 

Tomato Bulgur

One of my favorite fast food restaurants served different varieties of chicken, and side dishes. I always got the crispy chicken fingers, and for sides always a tomato bulgur salad and really good noodles. And a chilli aioli, too. Oh I loved that place. It's sadly no more, and I never did figure out exactly how they made their tomato bulgur salad. It was served cold, and a little bit like this one but with added raw red onion, tomatoes, red pepper and coriander.

This isn't that, exactly, but it's a really good base. We ate this with lamb meatballs - k�fte - and a yummy pistachio feta dip that I will soon tell you about.

Tomato Bulgur
serves 3-4

1 tbsp olive oil
1/2 yellow onion, very finely minced
2 tbsp tomato paste
1 tbsp butter
250 ml bulgur wheat
500 ml water
salt, black pepper

Heat the oil in a large frying pan (that you have a lid for). Fry the onion on medium heat for two minutes - it should soften but not brown. Add the tomato paste and stir well, fry for a few more minutes. Be careful, you don't want this to burn. Add the butter and when it's melted, the bulgur. Pour in the water and bring to a boil. Season with salt and pepper. Cover with a lid, lower the heat and simmer for about 20 minutes.

Special pop-up banquet - and a chance to win tickets!

Lidl is a grocery chain, present in several European countries. I mostly go there for their fun seasonal stuff, ice cream, and their really great fruit and veg department. I don't have a store very close to me, or I'd definitely shop there more often.

Last year, they partnered up with a famous chef to create a pop-up restaurant, to showcase their ingredients. This year, they have something even more special planned: a one night only pop-up banquet called Le Bon, on December 10. The chef is Titti Qvarnstr�m from restaurant Bloom in the Park, who was the first Swedish female chef to receive a Michelin star.

So - some facts. The banquet will be held at Globen Annexet, on December 10. Anyone can buy a ticket tomorrow, December 2, but you better hurry - they'll sell out fast. Titti will have 50 more chefs to help her serve everyone - 1300 guests! The proceeds from the banquet will go to cancer research, Barncancerfonden. The menu - and therefor the recipes - are secret until the big night, but after that I hope I can share them with you.



Careful readers might note that this is on the same night as the big Nobel banquet. If you're not invited to that - I know I'm not - this is your chance to go to another big, fun, spectacular party! I've been given the opportunity to give away two tickets to Le Bon. If you want to win, tell me your favorite party recipe in the comments. Two readers will win one ticket each. Last date to enter is Sunday December 6, and the winners will be contacted via e-mail shortly after that.

Happy first of Advent!

Today is the first Sunday of advent, which means christmas is coming. We've put all our lights up and have spent the afternoon baking saffron buns with grandma and grandpa. Yummy and fun. Have you tried Swedish saffron buns yet? I have tons of recipes for it - check out some of these.

Saffron buns with white chocolate

Almond filled saffron buns

Lucia buns - plain saffron buns

Today, we made half plain buns - lussekatter - and half filled with butter and almond paste.

A great burger place in Stockholm - Franky's Burger

I can really recommend a tiny little burger place in Stockholm - Franky's Burger. It doesn't look like much but it's really high quality. If you happen to be nearby, do make sure you drop by. The address is Sveav�gen 77.



Super juicy burger, crispy and delicious fries and a smoky, spicy chipotle dip. Highly recommended


Here's what it looks like - just a small shack.

Roasted butternut squash soup

So, Halloween came and went. We had  a really fun party for the kids and their friends - 14 kids in total. They really enjoyed "mummy sausages dipped in blood", "grape caterpillars", "icy gummyworms" (one little girl sat petrified for several minutes, believing those were real) and "graveyard muffins". Lots of fun!

However, we didn't carve a pumpkin. I couldn't find a good one in time, and then I sort of just ran out of time. We had some other decorations, but Titus was disappointed since he had looked forward to a pumpkin soup. (Not that you actually want to make soup from your carved pumpkin, but he doesn't know that...) So, last night I made this lovely soup instead. Very yummy! Well, I thought so at least - neither the kids nor the husband were fans. Oh well...

Roasted Butternut Squash soup

1 small butternut squash - peeled and cut into large dice
1 onion, finely diced
1 carrot, finely diced
olive oil
1/2 tsp ground coriander
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
about 1 litre chicken stock
100 ml cream
salt

Start by tossing the squash with a little olive oil and salt, and roast in a 200�C oven for 20-25 minutes. It should be lightly browned.

In a soup pot, heat some olive oil and saut� carrot and onion with coriander and cinnamon until soft - about ten minutes. Add the squash dice, and the chicken stock. Cook for at least ten minutes on low heat, make sure everything is nice and soft.

Use a blender, or an immersion blender, to make the soup completely smooth. Stir in a little cream if desired (always desired in my family), and season with salt and pepper to taste.

We served this with crispy fried bacon and sour cream and a nice sourdough baguette.