Kanelbullar: Swedish Rolls

Almost three years ago I packed my bags and headed to Stockholm to visit a good friend of mine.  She was born and raised there but attended college in the states and I was fortunate to meet her during that time.  She had to move back home a couple of years later but we kept in touch with email and Skype.  I was lucky enough to visit her and her family during one of the warmest weeks in May they experienced in years.

View of Stockholm

I fell in love with the city.  It's a beautiful place and the city is formed by seven islands so it is surrounded by water.  The people were friendly and almost everyone spoke conversational English, so it was easy to get around and interact with her friends.  I went for 10 days so she would often work in the mornings or even a full day.  I could relax and explore the city before meeting her.  I quickly discovered that Swedes love their coffee as much as I do but that they don't have Starbucks.  The only Starbucks in Stockholm is in the airport.  What they do have is small shops that serve coffee and pastries.  And every shop had Kanelbullar, or cinnamon rolls which I loved.  Despite my avid sweet tooth I actually am not a big fan of big, gooey American cinnamon rolls.  But I fell in love with the Swedish version.  

They have cardamom which gives it a spicy flavor that the Scandinavians are known for in their baking and it is also popular in the Middle East.  I would suggest finding a local Mediterranean or Middle Eastern store to buy cardamom as it can be pricey on the grocery store shelves if they even have it.    The rolls also have pearl sugar on the top which you can buy at Ikea or online, mine actually came from Marshall's where my sister in law randomly found it.  

Delicious Swedish pastries

Ingredients

1 envelope active dry yeast (2 1/4 teaspoons)

12 tablespoons butter (1 1/2 sticks)

1 cup milk

1/4 cup sugar

1 teaspoon cardamom

3 cups flour

2 tablespoons butter, softened

2 1/2 tablespoons sugar

1/2 tablespoon cinnamon

1 egg, lightly beaten

Pearl sugar

Directions

1) In a pan or a pot, melt the butter. Add the milk, and heat until the the mixture is lukewarm.  If you have a thermometer, the idea temperature is between 100-110F.
 

2) Pour the mixture into a large heatproof bowl. Add the sugar, salt, and cardamom.
 

3)  Add the yeast, and mix until dissolved.  Let mixture sit for up to 10 minutes to proof the yeast.  If the mixtures becomes bubbly you know that your yeast is healthy.
 

4) Add the flour and mix. Turn the dough onto a floured counter and knead the dough until it is elastic, I discovered that the attachment that came with the Kitchenaid was for dough and used that instead.  It worked great!
 

5) Place the dough in a large bowl. Cover it, and let it rise for 30-40 minutes, until it has doubled in size. 

6) After it has risen, turn the dough onto a floured counter, and knead again. Use the remaining flour if you find the dough too sticky to work with.
 

7) Roll the dough out into a square about 1/3″ thick.  Create a rectangle that is approximately 12"x10".
 

8) Spread the 2 tablespoons butter onto the dough.  Mix together the cinnamon and sugar sprinkle mixture on dough.

9)Roll up the dough to form a log. Cut the dough into 20-24 pieces. Lay the pieces flat onto a baking sheet. You can also place the pieces in muffin cups or muffin tins.

10) Preheat the oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit and let the rolls rise for 20 minutes.
 

11) Once the rolls have risen, before baking, brush them with the beaten egg, and sprinkle them with pearl sugar.

12) Bake the rolls for 10-12 minutes, until golden brown.

Day 11: Trek Across Sicily to Agrigento

Thursday morning the 21st we woke up and got ready to leave Taormina.  We were sad to leave, since this had become one of our favorite parts of the trip.  We lingered over our Sicilian breakfast on the terrace before calling a cab to take us to the rental car company.  The only part of our trip we did not plan out before arriving in Italy was getting from Taromina to Palermo.   We had several options and after talking to the concierge in Palermo, we decided to rent a car and spend the day sightseeing.  Sicily has several sites with Greek ruins with the most popular being Agrigento which was about three hours southwest of Taormina.

View from our balcony

Of course being in Europe meant that it was much cheaper to rent a manual.  Since I have regularly driven a stick most of my driving life, I became the designated driver.  We rented a little European car, the Fiat Panda.  The car was easy to drive but I was white knuckled driving down the mountain on a little two lane road from Taormina.  Once we got on the highway I was able to relax a little and start enjoying our adventure.  And it was definitely an adventure.  The little rental office in the town square of Taormina did not have a GPS and our phones weren't set up for data so we were depending on paper maps and the Sicilian signage, which we quickly discovered stunk.

Side of the highway

Sicilian countryside

 After a few hours we reached the town of Agrigento but we were struggling to find the Valley of the Temples.  We decided to stop at a gas station to fill up on gas before trying again in a new direction.  The pumps were automatic and the husband put in a 50 euro bill to fill up the car.  The Panda took about 35 euros so he went in to get change from the attendant.  The guy finally managed to get across that the pumps were separate from his store and the guy in charge of gas didn't come in until 2.  At that point it was only 11.  The husband asked if we could go back to the station after we finished at the ruins since we were due nearly $20 in change, I laughed and said there was no way we'd ever find it again.  

The quick gas break seemed to help us reorient and we finally found the Valley.  We made our way through the ruins at the bottom of the hill, which was the corner of the Temple of Castor and Pollux.  From there we reached the a road running through the temples and stopped for a quick, greasy lunch that was mostly Sicilian street food.  At this point it was getting late in the day and I was worried about reaching Palermo before dark.

Ruins of the Temple of Castor and Pollux

We made our way through the Temple of Hercules and stopped to admire the Temple of Concordia which is one of the best preserved Greek temples.  At that point it was getting late and we decided to head back to the car instead of trekking to the Temple of Hera which we were able to see out in the distance.

Temple of Hercules

Temple of Concordia

Temple of Hera

Once back in the car we were turned around several times trying to find our road to Palermo.  It was stressful for both of us trying to find the signs and determine which way we wanted to go.  And then all the sudden, the husband yells, "There it is, stop!"  Yes, we had inadvertently found the gas station.  The husband marched out and found a guy with a money apron, who I can only assume was in the mob.  I could see in my rear view mirror that he was arguing with the guy, I could tell the guy was trying to get out of paying him but the husband came back with every penny of his change.  I still don't know how we ended up back there, I would've sworn it was miles from where we were.  

We set out again and finally found a road that hugs the western coast of Sicily.  I did not get to enjoy the sunset as much as my passenger did, but he did take some pictures for me to see later.  After the sun went down we had about another hour to Palermo through the mountains.  The roads were not as well lit as I would've liked, but that may have been for the best since I'm pretty sure we were hugging the side of the mountain and there wasn't much between us and a sheer drop down.  Eventually we found our way to Palermo and we realized we would not be able to return the car before the Hertz closed.  We had paid for the car for 24 hours and decided to just head to the hotel and return in the morning.

Sicilian sunset

In Palermo things got a lot worse before they got better.  The hotel we were staying in is a small boutique hotel and we passed it several times because the sign was small and we were stressed.  The drivers in Palermo make DC drivers look nice.  There were motorbikes weaving in and out of traffics and lanes would just end.  Once I stalled at a light because a motorbike startled me so badly that I lost the clutch, which of course set of a chorus of horns and cursing behind us.  I was mentally exhausted and near tears by the time we finally parked illegally outside the hotel.  The husband went in and found the owner who offered to park the car for us, which I gratefully accepted.

We checked into our super modern hotel room at the Palco Hotel with a view of the Opera House.  The owners were lovely people who went out of their way to make us feel welcome.  By the time we got settled in, it was late and we were ready for dinner.  The hotel owners recommended a restaurant in a little pedestrian alley a few block away.  The weather was nice enough that we could sit outside with our jackets and enjoy the musicians playing in the streets and the atmosphere.  The food was authentic Sicilian and there was no English on the menu so we ended up just selecting a few items and we enjoyed all of it.  We ordered house wine of course and after a few glasses and the food the stress of the drive melted away.

Antipasta

Squid

Thai Curry Tofu

The experimentation with tofu continues in our house, this time with some Thai Curry Tofu.  I found a recipe I liked online and used it a couple of weeks ago.  It came out alright, it was nothing special.  Last week I used it again adding additional veggies and spices and was a lot happier with the final product.  Like all curry it's great for using those veggies that are going to go bad, in our case it was carrots and mushrooms.  I'd think this would be great with broccoli, kale or most other veggies that might be starting to turn in your kitchen.  

Ingredients:

1 package of extra firm tofu, drained and cubed

salt to taste

1 tbsp butter

1 small onion, chopped

1 pepper (red, orange, green)

1 carton of mushrooms

1 carrot

3 cloves garlic, minced

1-10 oz can coconut milk

2 tsp curry powder

black pepper to taste

 1 tsp ginger

1 tsp red pepper flakes

1/4 cup cliantro or parsley

1) Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add tofu cubes, season with seasoned salt and fry until golden on all sides, stirring occasionally, about 15 minutes. Remove tofu from pan and set aside.

2) Melt butter or margarine in the same skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and other veggies; cook and stir until tender.  Add garlic and cook for another minute. 

3) Stir in coconut milk, curry powder, ginger, red pepper flakes, more salt, pepper and parsley. 

4) Return the tofu to the skillet. Simmer over low heat for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.

5) For this recipe we used the same Thai noodles as for the Orange Tofu but anything from brown rice to quinoa should work great.  Serve tofu over your choice of carbs and enjoy!

Orange Tofu

When the husband and I first started dating I started introducing him to healthy cooking.  He's a great cook but he grew up in the mid-West where red meat and bacon grease are staples.  Slowly I introduced him to ground turkey and vegetarian meals which he embraced and made part of his style.  He did balk a little the first time I suggested tofu but eventually got on board and was a good sport about experimenting with it.... I suspect he was still trying to impress me. 

The first few times we made tofu it came out terribly.  We somehow missed the whole part where it needs to be drained and we didn't understand how to cook it.  After a few attempts, we perfected the Hungry Girl Tofu Stir-Fry and have made it probably once a month for the past couple of years.  Last week I decided to finally branch out to a new tofu recipe.  When we order Chinese food I love Orange Chicken, so I decided to do a recipe that mimics the sauce to marinate the tofu.  I checked out a lot of different recipes, most of which had a 1/4 cup of brown sugar which I was not interested in.  I finally found this one that used honey instead and we both enjoyed it.  I actually forgot to buy broccoli at the store and I wish I had, I think it would go great with the meal.  

For this recipe we used Thai noodles that we already had in the pantry to serve the tofu on but rice or quinoa could also be used.

Ingredients:

• 1 tablespoon cornstarch
• 1 tablespoon warm water
• 3/4 cup orange juice (about 2 large oranges)
• 1 tablespoon finely grated orange zest
• 1/4 cup soy sauce
• 3 tablespoons rice vinegar
• 3 tablespoons honey
• 1 teaspoon hot chili sauce or sriracha
• 1 pound broccoli florets
• 3 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 1 pound firm tofu, weighted, drained, and cubed
• Noodles, rice or quinoa
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• Sesame seeds to taste

The first step is preparing the tofu.  There are multiple ways to do it, but this is what we do that works for us.  We slice it in half lengthwise so it is not as thick and firms up better while cooking.  The two slices are put inbetween two paper towels and cans from the pantry are put on top for at least half an hour.   We then slice it into smaller pieces to cook.  We used Thai noodles to serve the tofu on, rice or quinoa could also be used.

Draining the tofu with cans from the pantry

• 1)  First make the sauce to marinate the tofu in.  In a bowl, whisk together cornstarch and warm water. Add orange juice and zest, honey, soy sauce, rice vinegar and hot chili sauce. 
• 2) Steam broccoli for 2-3 minutes until broccoli turns bright green but is still very firm.
• 3) Heat oil in a very large nonstick pan or wok over medium-high heat. 
• 4) Add tofu to pan and cook,browning on both sides, about 6-8 minutes total on each side. 
• 5) While tofu is cooking, prepare noodles, rice or quinoa using the instructions on the box.
• 6) Add garlic and cook for 30 seconds. 
• 7) Add broccoli and orange sauce and stir to combine. 
• 8) Cook until sauce begins to bubble and reduces slightly, an additional 2-3 minutes.
• 9) Stir in sesame seeds.
• 10) Divide among 4 bowls on top of your carb of choice.

Raw tofu

After about 6-8 minutes of browning

Tofu simmering in the orange sauce

Orange tofu