Norwegiancrowns Recipes

NORWEGIAN CROWNS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
• Press the hard cooked egg yolks through a sieve, into a mixing bowl.
• Add the sugar, salt and uncooked egg yolks, and beat thoroughly with mixer.
• Add the butter and flour alternately in small amounts, mixing in after each addition.
• Cover and chill until stiff.
• Roll the dough into ropes 1/4 inch in diameter and 5 inches long.
• Form rings by crossing the ends and pressing slightly.
• Dip, first into egg white, and then into the sugar, and place on cookie sheets with some space between them (the book does not say whether to grease the sheets or not, but I would do so, if not using silpat or parchment).
• Bake at 400 degrees F for 8 to 10 minutes, but check slightly earlier to make sure they aren't browning too fast.
• Remove from sheets and cool on racks.

NORWEGIAN MEATBALLS (VIKING SOUL FOOD STYLE)

Steps:

• For the Norwegian meatballs: Small dice the yellow onions, or grate on a cheese grater on the largest holes. Warning: The cheese grater method is effective, but you'll likely have a tearful experience!
• Combine butter, 1 teaspoon salt and the grated onions in a small pot. Cook on medium-low until onions are browned and smelling sweet, about 1 hour. Remove from heat and allow to cool.
• Chop up rye bread by hand or in a food processor until crumbly, but don't obliterate it. Add heavy cream, whole milk, and rye breadcrumbs to a pot. Heat gently on low until breadcrumbs have absorbed dairy and are softened and aromatic, then remove from the heat.
• Grind allspice berries and black peppercorns together in a spice grinder until fine.
• Combine rye breadcrumbs, eggs, flour, caramelized onions, remaining teaspoon salt and the spices in a large mixing bowl. Mix together until a smooth paste forms, then incorporate the beef and pork, squeezing with your fingers to make sure the starchy ingredients break up into the meat. At the same time, make sure not to overwork the mixture, as that would yield tough meatballs.
• Let stand at least 2 to 3 hours in the fridge, then roll into balls. We roll our meatballs to 1 1/2-ounces each, but all you need to do is make sure your meatballs are consistently-sized, so they cook at the same rate when they hit the oven.
• Preheat the oven to 550 degrees F, preferably on convection. Roast meatballs until well-browned on the outside, about 10 minutes in a convection oven or 12 minutes in a conventional oven.
• For the surkal: Thinly slice cabbage (1/4-inch thick) with a knife or mandoline. Avoid cutting into the core; you just want the purple leaves.
• Toss cabbage and salt together in a large bowl and allow to sit.
• Combine white sugar, cider vinegar, red wine vinegar, ground caraway seed, bay leaf and 3 cups water in a large pot, then bring to a boil. Pour over cabbage and cover, then refrigerate for about 1 day. This will help lessen the harshness of the vinegars and soften the cabbage.
• After 24 to 36 hours, remove bay leaf and stir cabbage mixture to make sure caraway is well-distributed.
• Refrigerate until ready to eat.
• For the Gjetost cheese sauce: Melt the butter in a pot on medium heat and brown slightly. Add the flour and whisk well. Allow the roux to brown on medium-low heat until it reaches a rich golden brown color; it should smell nutty. This takes 20 to 30 minutes.
• Add the milk gradually in increments, whisking vigorously as you go. If you happen to have an immersion blender, run it through and get rid of any lumps. Reduce heat to low and watch carefully, whisking often and making sure the bottom doesn't burn. You want to see bubbles popping up to the surface every few seconds.
• Add the Madeira, white wine, salt and nutmeg. Cook until the sauce has thickened slightly, about 40 minutes, then grate the Gjetost cheese into the pot.
• Allow the sauce to cook gently and continue to thicken for about 1 1/2 hours. Be sure to whisk the bottom occasionally to get up any browned bits. If you have one, get your immersion blender in there and run it through until smooth and velvety. When finished, sauce should be the consistency of thick gravy and taste of toasty bread and goat cheese.
• Allow to cool for a half hour or so, then place in the fridge if you aren't going to use it right away.
• For the meatball lefse wrap: Preheat the oven to 500 degrees F.
• Halve 2 of the meatballs and roast until lightly browned, about 5 minutes. Toast a piece of lefse in a nonstick pan or better yet, on a lefse griddle, on both sides. Remove toasted lefse to a cutting board. Begin layering: 1/2 cup shredded green cabbage, 1/2 cup surkal/pickled cabbage, the heated meatballs and finally about 1/3 cup warm Gjetost cheese sauce. Roll it tightly like a burrito. Cut in half if you're sharing, but you probably won't want to.

NORWEGIAN PUDDING

Steps:

• For the pudding: Heat the milk, cream and sugar in a medium saucepan over medium-low heat. Heat until just barely simmering, then remove from the heat.
• Meanwhile, melt the 10 tablespoons butter in a medium pot. Sprinkle the flour evenly over the butter and cook, whisking constantly, until the mixture browns lightly and smells nutty, 3 to 4 minutes.
• Gradually ladle the warm milk mixture into the pot, whisking constantly, until incorporated and the mixture comes to a visible simmer and thickens, 3 to 4 minutes.
• Remove from the heat and stir in the vanilla extract.
• For the spiced sugar: Combine the sugar, cinnamon and nutmeg in a small bowl and stir. Set aside.
• Serve the pudding warm, drizzled with melted butter and a generous sprinkling of the spiced sugar.

NORWEGIAN CABBAGE ROLLS

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Grease a baking pan.
• Heat butter in a skillet over medium heat; stir in onion. Cook and stir until the onion has softened and turned translucent, about 5 minutes.
• Transfer onion to a large mixing bowl and add beef, cooked rice, cream, egg, parsley, potato starch, 2 teaspoons salt, pepper, caraway seeds, ginger, nutmeg, and cloves. Mix to combine in an even consistency and refrigerate filling until needed.
• Bring a large pot of generously salted water to a boil. Place 1 head of cabbage in the boiling water and parboil until bright green and leaves are softened, about 2 minutes. Carefully remove cabbage with tongs or a large fork. Repeat with remaining head of cabbage. Allow to cool, about 10 minutes.
• Remove outer leaves from the cooled cabbage. Lay 1 leaf flat on a work surface and cut out the stem. Spoon a generous 2 tablespoons of filling into the center of the leaf. Fold the corners at the stem end diagonally over the filling, fold the sides over, and roll up like a tiny burrito. Place in the prepared baking pan. Repeat to make remaining cabbage rolls until filling is used up.
• Add water to the baking pan until it is halfway up the sides of the cabbage rolls.
• Bake in the preheated oven until beef is cooked through and no longer pink, about 40 minutes.

NORSKE KRONER - NORWEGIAN CROWNS COOKIES

Steps:

• Mash hard cooked egg yolks very finely; cream with uncooked egg yolks, salt and sugar.
• Add butter and flour alternately, a little at a time.
• Cover and chill until stiff.
• Preheat oven to 400°F.
• Roll dough into strips 1/2" in diameter and about 5" long.
• Shape into rings, crossing the ends.
• Dip in egg white, then in sugar.
• Bake for 8 to 10 minutes.

NORWEGIAN COLESLAW

Steps:

• Shred cabbage and toss with salt. Cover and refrigerate at least 2 hours. In a saucepan, heat sugar, vinegar, mustard and celery seeds. Cook until the sugar dissolves, about 10 minutes. Cool completely. Add to the cabbage along with remaining vegetables; toss. Cover and refrigerate at least 1 week before serving. Keeps for 4-6 weeks in the refrigerator.