Struesel Muffins

Ingredients
2 cups unbleached flour
1/4 cup sugar
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 egg
1 cup milk
3 tablespoons melted butter or cooking oil

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Lightly grease muffin pan or use paper liners.
2. In large bowl, sift or thoroughly stir together flour, sugar, baking powder, salt and nutmeg. Make a well in the center.
3. In medium bowl, beat egg with milk and melted butter. Pour egg mixture into flour mixture, stirring just until dry ingredients are moistened.
4. Fill prepared muffin pans about two-thirds full.
   

Streusel

In small bowl, combine 1/3 cup unbleached flour, 1/3 cup brown sugar and 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon. Cut in 2 tablespoons cold butter with pastry blender or 2 knives till mixture is crumbly. Top each muffin with 1 tablespoon full of streusel mixture.

Bake

20 – 25 until golden brown and top is bubbly

Makes 1 Dozen Muffins

Optional – Add one cup of fresh or frozen berries to batter before baking.

Best Brownies Ever

Ingredients
1-cup butter

3/4 cup baking cocoa

2 cups granulated sugar

4 eggs

2 tsp vanilla extract

1-cup flour

1/2 tsp salt

3/4 cup Nestle Tollhouse Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips

Directions:

Pre-heat oven to 350°

Grease the bottom and sides of a 9 x 13 x 2 inch pan very well.

1. In medium bowl, melt butter in microwave.
2. Add cocoa and blend well.
3. Add sugar and blend well.
4. Add eggs one at a time beating well after each addition.
5. Add vanilla, flour and salt. Do not over beat!
6. Stir in ½ cup chocolate chips.
7. Spread evenly in pan
8. Sprinkle other ¼ cup chocolate chips on top.
9. Bake at 350° for 30 minutes.

Cool completely before cutting into squares.

Oven Baked Sweet Potato Fries

Ingredients

4 medium to large sweet potatoes, washed and peeled

3 tablespoons olive oil

2 teaspoons each salt & paper or 2 teaspoons Chef's Brand Organic French Fry Seasoning

1 gallon size zip style plastic bag

French Fry Baking Sheet or Regular Cookie Baking Sheet

Directions

After peeling the potatoes, using a French Fry Cutter contraption or a very sharp knife cut the sweet potatoes into 1/4" wide strips of even length as much as possible so they look like, well you know, french fries!

Place all the fries into the large plastic bag. Add the olive oil and seasoning and shake.

Spread fries out on baking sheet in single layer. Do not overlap.

Bake in a 450 degree oven for 15 minutes. Take pan out and flip fries over with spatula or tongs. Bake another 10 minutes. If you want them crispier, bake another minute at a time until they are how you like them.

Taste test and season them a bit more if needed when still warm. Be careful! They are hot inside.

Experiment with what seasonings you like. Chili powder, other herbs and garlic all work well too.

Dip in ketchup, chili sauce, ranch dressing, whatever you like!

Risgrøt - Rice Porridge

This porridge can be served as a main dish, in large soup plates, with milk or fruit. It is also an excellent dessert when you are serving left-overs and you don't have enough for a meal. My Nana would use a box of Danish Dessert by Junket (see pic below) in either Strawberry or Raspberry flavor and add in the same type whole fruit and pour it warm over the cold porridge. Another friend of mine of Norwegian descent said she mixes the leftover porridge with whipping cream or "Cool-Whip" and puts sliced fresh fruit on top. My favorite is warm with cinnamon and raisins with a cool trickle of milk on top for breakfast! Enjoy!

Ingredients
2 tablespoons butter
1 1/4 cups dry white rice
6 cups whole milk
2 teaspoons cinnamon
2 teaspoons sugar
1 or 2 eggs
1/2 cup raisins (optional)

Directions
Melt butter in heavy saucepan and stir in rice, which has been rinsed first in cold water and then three times in hot water. Add milk and place over as low heat as possible. Stir occasionally, and add more milk if necessary. Add raisins if you wish at this point. Let it simmer for about an hour and a half or until velvety and smooth. Salt accordingly to taste, and stir in eggs, which have first been worked into a little of the porridge.

Mix cinnamon and sugar together.

Serving Ideas
1. Place porridge in soup plates, with a lump of butter in the center and sprinkle with cinnamon and sugar.

2. Place cold porridge in small bowls and mix warm Danish Dessert and berries, pouring some of fruit mixture on top of the porridge.

The Story of Kjøttkaker

With love from Tanta Kirsten M. Michaelson Walker

No Scandinavian home is without their favorite recipe for kjøttkaker, especially during the Holidays. No smörgåsbord is complete without their debut. There are many, many versions of this one recipe and each family has their favorite and swears theirs are the best! I am sure that it is the love and time that goes into making them that makes them so good and very popular at any pot-luck or dinner buffet. Most of the differences between the recipes are due to adjustments in the type of meat used and/or the amount of spices mixed in.

I learned how to make kjøttkaker from my mother Carol. She learned how to make them from her mother Elsie Mildred Pedersen Schevling who undoubtedly learned from her mother Anna Johanna Loeve Pedersen or Grandma Pedersen. My mother patiently showed me how to mix it all up, roll them to just the right size and shape and then how to brown them to perfection. I could not wait to eat a couple as my treat for helping.

Kjøttkaker should be small and bite-sized. My late step-father Vincenzo Joseph “Jim” Gaudio or Pa, would say as he teased my mother Carol or Bestemor, “They’re small because they are the ones the Italians threw away!”

The meat section at the grocery store will sometimes sell pre-packaged “Meatball Mix” and this is the blend that is needed. Or, just ask the butcher to make up a pound of each of the meats for you. If budget is a concern, use all ground chuck. Not as rich, but still good.

God jul og Godt Nyttår!

Love, Tanta

Ingredients

1 pound each of ground chuck, veal and pork (total 3 pounds)
1 c. unseasoned bread crumbs
1 c. cream or whole milk
2 whole eggs, beaten
1 tsp. Salt
1 tsp. Pepper
1 tsp. Ginger
½ tsp. Nutmeg
1 stick butter
2 c. flour
2 c. beef broth or 2 beef bouillon cubes dissolved in 2 cups boiling water
2 tbsp. onions, finely diced

Directions

1. In a large mixing bowl, soak the bread crumbs in the milk.
2. Add the 2 eggs, mix well.
3. Add salt, pepper and spices. Mix.
4. Mix in the 3 different meats with your hands or a wooden spoon. This is easier to do if the meat is chilled. I wear clean rubber gloves as I find that when I need to rinse them off hot water does the trick easily and I really don’t like touching the goopy meat mixture! If meat is a bit sticky, add a little bit more of the bread crumbs so they hold together.
5. Place large flat bottom skillet on medium heat and add 2 tbsp. butter.
6. Roll into balls (Ping-Pong or smaller size) and fry in butter in skillet, turning gently occasionally. Do not put too many in the pan at one time. As they brown up on each side move them to a shallow 2 ½ - 3 quart casserole or chafing dish.
7. Heat two cups of beef bouillon or beef broth in saucepan or microwave safe measuring cup.
8. When done frying, turn heat to low, scrape up beef bits off bottom of pan, add onions.
9. Add beef broth to scrapings and stir well to make gravy. If too thin, you can add a slurry of flour/water to it to make a bit more. Mix 1 cup water with 3 tbsp. of flour well and then add it to the drippings so you don’t get lumps.
10. Pour gravy over the kjøttkaker and keep warm until serving.

Makes approximately 75 meatballs
Serve hot as an appetizer with toothpicks or over broad buttered egg noodles.