An Unusual Candy in the Dordogne

On a recent trip down to the Dordogne valley, I experienced a Perigord treat beyond my senses.  Yes, it's cotton candy on a skewer, with a foie gras center. Was it good you ask? Surprisingly, it was!

On a Date in Scandinavia: A Perfect End

Here is the last entry of Kat & Johan's sojourn in Sweden...

photo courtesy Hotel Skansen

Spending our last days in Båstad was the perfect end to our tour. The second wedding we attended was celebrated at the magnificent Norrviken Gardens that has an array of different gardens inspired by the Italian Renaissance. We stayed at Hotel Skansen that is known for its world famous tennis matches and also its bath house (the Kallbadhus) that is 60 meters out into the water.

After 10 days of literally gorging we did not have the power to drive all the way home to Frankfurt and had to stop in Lubeck, Germany for a break. Sitting outdoors admiring the architecture of the city, a vintage BMW Isetta car pulled up. We sure wished he could have driven our full bellies home in his little caravan. 

To go to the beginning of this sequential story, go here!

All photos and text: Katerina Alm

On a Date in Scandinavia: Mölle's Harbor Cove

Here we continue to follow Katerina and Johan Alm on the road in coastal Sweden...

The drive up to Höganäs Municipality from Malmö is picturesque, provides a beautiful coast side tour and only takes about an hour. A few minutes north of Höganäs is the town of Mölle, a 19th century fishing village that is known for its scenic harbour and permiscous bathing at the end of the 19th century when men and women started swimming together. Perched upon the top of this village is the Grand Hotel Mölle where we happily perched ourselves for a few days. The view looking over the harbour is incredible and a sea view room comes highly recommended.

In the area you can visit Kullabergs Nature Reserve where you can do botanical walking, bird watching and mountain climbing. The area is also known for their ceramic especially the salt glazed Höganäs jars and pitchers. There are many potters and artists around selling thier crafts. A short drive away is also home to Sweden's Iittala Outlet where famous Finnish kitchenware and pottery can be found at discount prices.

These three images courtesy of Iittala

Lunch in the harbour -traditional swedish Räkmacka (open faced shrimp sandwich)

Pan seared scallops over white asparagus with local herbs and lobster bisque at Grand Mölle

Paired with Alsace Sylvaner 2007 from Kuentz-Bas

Locally caught fish that was delicious!

All photos and text: Katerina Alm

On a Date in Scandinavia: Sweden's Southern Countryside

Here we continue to follow Katerina and Johan Alm on their Scandic road trip adventure!

We attended a beautiful wedding where we celebrated in Öland at Borgholms Slott  a castle that was built in the 12th century and has a spectacular view over the Baltic sea. All the eating, drinking and dancing in Öland  left us ready to dive further into southern swedish gastronomy. We drove south to Österlen's countryside where we stayed at Karlaby Kro which is part of Countryside Hotels Sweden .

The Karlaby Kro Hotel in the Österlen countryside

Countryside Hotels has 39 hotels spread across the most beautiful regions of Sweden and I highly recommend it for choosing a hotel with charm and personality and not to mention great food in this part of the world. Emma, a passionate Swede who runs the show at Karlaby brings service to the next level. Not only did she describe each meal to us in great detail and know every grape variety of all the wines served, but also left us a personally written info letter with lots of recommendations on what to do in the area. The three course dinner with wine pairing at Karlaby is a must, rest assured you will not be dissapointed. 

Seared bass with fennel, green field peas and bouillon of chive and salmon roe

Breast of sirloin of veal with beets, horseradish, marjoram and lovage with bouillon of lemon

In the area we visited:

• Mandelmanns organic herb & vegetable farm 

• Ales stenar located at one of the most southern tips of Sweden which is a "megalithic" monument consisting of a 67 meter long stone ship and is said to be created around 1400 BP.

Ales stenar is well known for its organic bakery and restaurant Vendel where we enjoyed a delightful Mackerel sandwich on homeade organic bread with locally pressed Kivik apple juice.

Stay tuned... more to come!

All text and photos by Katerina Alm

On a Date in Scandinavia: Seaside in Denmark

Here we follow Katerina and Johan Alm, Canadian and Swedish expats who live, work and met in Frankfurt. They recently got married in Italy and have a passion for food, wine, travel, skiing and fashion. Katerina is an avid cook and freelance travel/gastro-blogger in her spare time. Jump in their car and join them on their Scandic road trip adventure!

 

Upon receiving two invitations for weddings in Sweden that happened to fall on 2 consecutive weekends, a Scandic road trip was in order. Our idea was to first drive up from Germany to Öland, the second largest island in Sweden (located on the South East side of the country), then make it over to Båstad ( on the south west side of Sweden just north of Denmark). The planning included finding some countryside bed and breakfasts and hotels along the southern Swedish coast to tour within 10 days.

According to a recommendation from one of the Swedish brides, a small town called Charlottenlund just north of Copenhagen, was not to be missed. Charlottenlund is an affluent suburb of Copenhagen that was once home to Danish architect Arne Jacobsen who designed many buildings in the area. Nestled onto the coast of a former fishing village is the Skovshoved Hotel which dates back to 1660, which was the first stop of our tour. The Skovshoved Hotel is a recent member of the Historic Hotels of Europe list and it's restaurant is recommended by the Michelin Guide. The hotel offers picturesque views onto the sea, has only 22 rooms and a very personalized chic and cozy atmosphere. The restaurant was our favorite part of this visit.

The Skovshoved restaurant draws inspiration from classic dishes with origins in Italy, France and Spain. We ordered and enjoyed the sensory tasting menu with wine accompaniments. I especially liked the fresh bread. It was served in a wooden box on top of warm rocks with a stone slab carrying fresh whipped cream butter sprinkled with green salt. The chef refused to give up their secret recipe and only disclosed that it was very slowly baked in muffin tins. The dark bread was dense, moist, homey and comforting. Luckily they served a another version at breakfast too!

Fresh baked Danish brown bread

Fresh oysters served on ice with grilled lemons and toast

Cabbage soup with broccoli purée, parmesan cheese and a bacon consommé

Slow roasted Lamb filet with grilled celeriac, celeriac mousse, with a burgundy and rosemary reduction

Thinly sliced pineapple with Anna's compote, salty caramel sauce, bourbon vanilla ice cream garnished with limette leaves

Seawinkle Beerenauslese 2007 from Velich Winery

Buffet breakfast on the terrace. I am one to taste a bit of everything and... I went back for more bread!

Restaurant Terrace at the Skovshoved Hotel

All photos and text by Katerina Alm

Mes Petite Cherries in a Galette with Almonds

I love cherries. I've been waiting all winter long to hand pick cherries in the Spanish sunshine. On a recent trip to the Andalusia region, we hiked the Sierra Nevadas and picked pocket ( shirt, shoes, anything!)  fulls of cherries dripping off the abundant trees scattered throughout.  If you are in the mood to make a scrumptious little dessert, try making some Cherry-Almond Galettes.

INGREDIENTS

2	Organic butter puff pastry sheets, rolled to 1/4 inch-thick

Cherry compote

2 1/4 cup (approx. 200g)

cherries

1/4 cup (60g)

organic cane sugar

Almond crumble

1 cup (approx. 100g)

blanched almonds

1 tbsp

organic cane sugar

Soured cream

2 1/2 cups  (approx. 250g)

crème fraîche

1/2 cup (approx. 150ml)

whipping cream

2 tbsp

pure icing sugar, sifted

1 tsp

vanilla extract

1	Preheat oven to 425 F (220C). Cut six 5 1/2 inch (14cm) rounds of the puff pastry and place on a parchment paper-lined oven tray, top with parchment paper and another baking tray and bake until deep golden (10-15 minutes).
2	For cherry compote, halve and pit cherries, leaving 8-12 whole. Combine with sugar in a saucepan and stir over medium heat until sugar dissolves and liquid seeps from cherries (3-5 minutes). Keep warm.
3	For almond crumble, roast almonds until golden (2-4 minutes), chop in a food processor until coarsely ground, add sugar and pulse to combine.
4	For soured cream, whisk crème fraîche, cream, icing sugar and vanilla in a bowl to soft peaks, cover and refrigerate.
5	Serve puff pastry rounds topped with cherries and almond crumble scattered over and soured cream on the side.

Trail of Crumbs on The Kitchn

Our friend and lovely fellow photographer, Leela Cyd, featured us on The Kitchn this week. She asked us to send in our favorite breakfast recipe for her Breakfast with a Blogger column. Check out the recipe here... YUM.

photo: Leela Cyd Ross

Simple is Good at Les Pères Populaires

When we first moved out to the 20th arrondissement, we were stoked to find a bustling, friendly bar just around the corner.  At once very non-Parisian in it's relaxed, inclusive vibe, yet indicative of  the established trend in eastern Paris of more easygoing venues, Les Pères Populaires offers some of the best priced drinks and food amid vintage furniture, music posters, full bookshelves, and a foosball table.  The name loosely translates to "the fathers of the people", a roll they fill quite deftly.

For me, the formule midi is the golden nugget of this establishment.  As soon as noon rolls around, a mixed hoard of people who live or work in the in the neighborhood serenely descend to see what is on offer.  

The menu changes every day, offering one starter, one main course, and one dessert.  Thus, ordering is easy: you can have one, two, or three courses.  It is here that I learned that a lack of options can be a supreme luxury.

The food, like the place, is a little eclectic (why, no matter what dish, are there always sesame seeds on the plate?), but very french at its core.  The fist course is usually a salad featuring a certain vegetable or cheese, or a soup if the weather is cold.  The main course varies from fish to fowl to meat, and always has a simple but interesting vegetable side.  No matter what it is, there is always some extra tasty garnish detail, like an under-the-radar dab of tapenade or coulis.  This is probably related to the chef's talent for undeniably delicious sauces, which no piece of meat leaves the kitchen without.  Today, our main course was spiced, sauteed chicken with coriander in a light jus, with roasted tomatoes, and an écrasée (crush) of potatoes and watercress.  Desserts are often a variation on a pot de crème, or something like the vanilla fromage blanc with strawberries featured on the menu in the photo above.  After many, many meals, I have never left unsatisfied.

Even though they don't serve full dinners, you can always get a planche of meat and cheese or a baguette sandwich in the evenings and enjoy drinks until around 2am.  As this neighborhood moves along with its thorough makeover (one block away, Rue D'Avron just saw a yearlong renovation end with adolescent trees planted along one side, and large planters installed on the other) I'm certain Les Pères Pop will continue to take care of the neighborhood appetites, and grow in notoriety accordingly.

Les Pères Populaires
46 Rue de Buzenval
Paris, 75020
01 43 48 49 22
Weekdays 9am-2am
Weekends 10am-2am 
Les Pères Pop on Myspace