Fish soup - Norwegian Style

It has been awhile since I posted a recipe, so without further ado here is a Norwegian fish soup recipe (compliments of Svein Erik) that I think you will enjoy...

Clear Broth Fish Soup

Ingredients:

- 1 Bottle of white wine (A Gewürztraminer or a Chardonnay that is not "oaky" in flavor)

- A good fish stock, 1/2 pint per person (if you don't want to make your own, then you local fish shop is definitely the easy route to go)

- Potatoes (coarsely chopped into bite size pieces, can be any variety that you like)

- Carrots (coarsely chopped into bite size pieces)

- Red onions (coarsely chopped)

- 1 small celery root (peeled & cut into medium to small cubes)

- Butter (a stick of butter will do nicely, more if you prefer)

- Salt (add to taste)

- Pepper (add to taste)

- Coriander (coarsely chopped)

- Seafood (cut up into bite size pieces... Your choice on the type of seafood, basically any type that you enjoy eating... we used Salmon, Monk fish and Mussels for the Norwegian soup)

Step 1: To begin with, grab a large pot, dump in the chopped red onions and 1/2 stick of butter. Begin to sweat the chopped onions in the butter. Sweat, what's that. Well, I am glad you asked...

Sweat: Sweating is the process of releasing flavors with moisture and low temperatures. Fat, in this case, is used just to hold the non-volatile flavors as they're released from the onion. No browning takes place. The pan is covered so the lid traps steam, which condenses and drips back on to the onions. Some cooks cover the onions directly with a piece of foil or parchment, than add a lid as well.

And just so you know....

Sauteing: Sauteing uses a small amount of fat, and it's done in an uncovered pan. As fat reaches higher temperatures than water, cooking usually occurs quickly, and you can easily see the onions become translucent as they move from raw to cooked.

Step 2: Add the bottle of wine and reduce the mixture until you have about 1/3 of the liquid left in the pot.

Step 3: Add the fish stock, potatoes, carrots, celery root, salt and pepper. Bring to a boil and simmer, uncovered, for 10 minutes or more, until vegetables are fork-tender.

Step 4: Add Monk fish, simmer for about 3 minutes. Add the salmon, coriander and mussels, simmer until mussels open up (should only take a few minutes).

Last step: Serve in your favorite soup bowls with a nice bread suitable for dipping into the broth. Sit back and enjoy!

Spaghetti Bolognese Sauce Recipe

Here's a recipe, courtesy of http://www.foodnetwork.com/, that I have made twice in the last month. The first time around I made it with nutmeg and cinnamon, this version was prepared and enjoyed with a Navy family who had just arrived in Oslo. The second time around I prepared the sauce without those two ingredients. The second go around was enjoyed by the "Gentleman's Whiskey Tasting Club of Oslo", another story for a future posting.



Also of note, is that I did not include the heavy cream on both occasions. Chris commented that the second version (without nutmeg & cinnamon) was one of my best spaghetti sauces ever. Unfortunately, I forgot to take photos, maybe next time around. Here's the recipe for those who want to give it a go:

Spaghetti Bolognese Sauce Recipe

1 tablespoon olive oil
4 ounces bacon or pancetta diced
1 1/2 cups chopped yellow onions
3/4 cup diced carrots
3/4 cup diced celery
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
2 bay leaves
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 pound ground beef or ground veal
1/2 pound pork sausage, removed from the casings, or ground pork
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1 cup red wine
2 (14 1/2-ounce) cans crushed tomatoes and their juice
1 (14 1/2-ounce) can tomato sauce
1 cup beef or chicken stock or broth
2 teaspoons sugar
1/4 cup heavy cream
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
3 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley leaves
1 pound spaghetti
1 cup freshly grated Parmesan

In a large pot, heat the oil over medium-high heat. Add the bacon and cook, stirring, until browned and the fat is rendered, 4 to 5 minutes. Add the onions, carrots and celery and cook, stirring, until soft, 4 to 5 minutes. Add the garlic, salt, pepper, bay leaves, thyme, oregano, cinnamon, and nutmeg and cook, stirring, for 30 seconds. Add the beef and sausages, and cook, stirring, until no longer pink, about 5 minutes. Add the tomato paste and cook, stirring, for 1 to 2 minutes. Add the wine and cook, stirring, to deglaze the pan and remove any browned bits sticking to the bottom of the pan, and until half of the liquid is evaporated, about 2 minutes.

Add the tomatoes and their juices, the tomato sauce, beef broth, and sugar and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer, stirring occasionally, to keep the sauce from sticking to the bottom of the pan, until the sauce is thickened and flavorful, about 1 1/2 hours. Add the cream, butter, and parsley, stir well, and simmer for 2 minutes. Discard the bay leaves and adjust the seasoning, to taste. Remove from the heat and cover to keep warm until ready to serve.

Meanwhile, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the pasta and return the water to a low boil. Cook, stirring occasionally to prevent the noodles from sticking, until al dente, 8 to 10 minutes. Drain in a colander. Add the pasta to the sauce, tossing to coat. Add 1/2 cup of the cheese and toss to blend. Divide among pasta bowls and serve with the cheese passed tableside.

Spring Fever

Woke up this morning and the sun was out! Chris had made the suggestion yesterday to have a picnic on Saturday and "Lo and behold" the weather cooperated with our plans. OK, so the temp was only 51 degrees, but it is winter in Norway. So, I got busy in the kitchen early this morning making preps for our "at the beach" picnic.

I "par boiled" some bratwurst, then threw it on the grill for about 20 mins... added some boiled sauerkraut - yummy! I also made some of my Mom's delicious macaroni salad, nothing better for a picnic lunch. A few weeks ago I had also run across a nice guacamole dip recipe, so I made some of that...throw in a couple of Coronas and "Bam!", we had ourselves a rockin' lunch time spread.

Before I forget, here's the guacamole dip recipe:

2 Avocados (soft enough to mash with a fork)

1/3 cup onion, chopped

1/2 Jalapeno pepper, chopped fine

1 medium tomato, peeled and chopped

1 tbls fresh lime juice

1 1/4 tsp sugar

1/4 cup sour cream

Mix all the ingredients together and you've got yourself a nice dip!

So, we hopped on public transport (Bus #30 to Bygdoy Island), stopped at Huk Beach and enjoyed the sun and views of the water. Not a bad way to start the weekend!

Paella Pan and recipe

Look what showed up in the mail today!









It is a Christmas present for me from Chris. On a side note, mail delivery is often hit and miss around here, with the average delivery time between 7-14 days from the States. Of course you have the odd delivery that takes over two months, and the unexplainable delivery that arrives in under a week. You would almost have to believe it was loaded on to the truck as soon as we hit the web page's "submit order" button. Yes, we do a lot of our shopping online. And occasionally ask family and friends to ship stuff for us. Prices are truly obscene over here. For example...
- Simple dinner for two - $80
- Average price for a single beer in a bar - $11.
- A gallon of gas - $9
- A hot dog from a convenience store - $6
- A coke from a convenience store - $3.80

Not all is doom and gloom, and we are lucky enough to be able to order reasonably priced American goods from the commissary in Germany... but overall I would say it is hard to find a good deal when it comes to shopping for food, clothes and those daily must have items.

Sorry, side tracked again....back to my gift.

I love to make paella, especially the recipe I am about to share with you.




It is simply delicious and fun to make. However, it is labor and time intensive so make sure you set aside ample time and a Corona beer or two (always seems to help the time flow quickly). Not to mention, just like darts, you put on your "A" game after a few beers to relax. I much prefer this chicken recipe over a seafood paella, but I have to admit we have had some excellent seafood paella over the years. In particular at a small Mom and Pop restaurant in Rota, Spain during one of our holiday adventures. And the Sangria was "muy" good as well! Speaking of Sangria here is my favorite Sangria recipe that I got from a retired navy buddy of mine (Long live Jimbo!). I could pass along some stories about him, but we are keeping this blog at the "PG-13" rating for our younger audience. And funny enough during my tour in Norway I found out the Sangria ingredient "Cuarenta Y Tres" is made in the home town (Cartagena) of one of my Spanish buddies that lives here in town. Enjoy and Viva la Sangria!

Latest Recipe

Generally speaking, I like to explore the world of cooking, especially when the mood strikes me or I need to de-stress from the day's work. My interest in cooking really started during my college years when I took on a part time job in a small restaurant/ice cream parlor in Maryland. Nothing fancy, just your typical short order type food (sandwiches, soups, and breakfast items). I wouldn't consider myself an inventive cook, but rather I love to scan the hundred or so cookbooks we have in our kitchen for that one recipe that peaks my interest. I am also inspired by my travels, where I usually pick up a cookbook for Chris while I am in a particular foreign country. I was especially pleased with my rendition of a German "Schnitzel" that I prepare every once in awhile. Speaking of "Schnitzel", we recently took a trip to Germany to see the Christmas markets and had some wonderful "Schnitzel" and "Bratwurst", but that posting will have to wait until we recover the photos from our recent "hard drive" crash. Luckily, I had backed up most of our stuff on an external hard drive so the loss of data at this point is minimal.

Anyway I digress, back to the recipe located above. This is one of my favorite Mexican recipes and it goes well with a nice Margarita on the rocks or a couple shots of Tequila. And for those of you who care, I prefer to use Jose Cuervo Gold in my Margaritas. The enchilada recipe is simple, takes very little time to prep and will not disappoint those who are tired of the same old, uninteresting Mexican chain-food restaurants. Don't worry about finding the exact chiles listed in the recipe, go for your favorite chiles and substitute away. The only other comment I have is that I prefer a nice English cheddar for the cheese portion of this recipe. But again, go for what you like. Bon appetit!