Scandinavian food isn’t all about pickled herrings and open sandwiches (all right, we’ve included one of those) — you’ll find plenty of healthy grains, tasty flans and comforting puddings too. Here Brontë Aurell, who co-founded ScandiKitchen café in London together with her husband, Jonas, showcases three of their favourite dishes. “We love that our customers are a mix of Scandinavian expats and locals who are just interested in good food,” she says.
Seafood salad on sourdough toast
This mix of prawns, creamy dressing and dill on toast is one of the most popular appetisers or light lunches in Sweden. The original recipe uses only mayonnaise, but this lighter version with crème fraîche is really delicious. It also makes a great filling for baked potatoes, or you can serve it with a green salad.
Serves 2
Ingredients
• 3 tbsp mayonnaise
• 7 tbsp crème fraîche
• 2 tbsp fresh dill, finely chopped, plus extra sprigs
• 2 tbsp fresh chives, finely chopped
• 1 shallot, finely chopped
• ¼ tsp grated lemon zest
• ¼ tsp fresh grated horseradish (or from a jar, but check the strength)
• ¼ tsp Dijon mustard
• A squeeze of lemon juice
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 200g cooked prawns (or a mixture of prawns and crayfish tails)
• To serve:
• 2 large slices of sourdough bread
• Butter for spreading
• A few rocket leaves, to garnish
• Lumpfish roe (optional)
Method
1. Mix all the ingredients together for the topping, folding in the seafood carefully. Leave in the fridge for a few hours.
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2. Toast the bread lightly and butter. Add the rocket leaves, then half the topping to each sandwich just before serving. Decorate with a sprig of dill or some lumpfish roe, if using.
Traditional Danish apple trifle
When I was growing up in Denmark, our garden was full of apple trees and my mother would make this dessert a lot — we always had cases and cases of fruit to get through in the autumn months. A spoonful sends me straight back to her warm kitchen.
Serves 4
Ingredients
• 1kg tart apples, such as Bramley or Granny Smith, peeled and cored
• 140g caster sugar
• Seeds from 1 vanilla pod
• 100g butter
• 120g dried breadcrumbs
• 300ml whipping cream
Method
1. Cut the apples into bite-sized pieces. Add them to a saucepan with 4 tablespoons of sugar, 200ml water and the vanilla and cook over a gentle heat until completely soft (about 20 min). Add more water if needed. Leave to cool completely.
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2. In a frying pan, melt the butter, then add the remaining sugar and stir. Add the breadcrumbs and keep stirring until the mixture is toasted through. Be careful — the breadcrumbs burn easily.
3. When crispy, remove from the heat and spread on a plate. As the breadcrumbs cool, use your fingers to ensure they don’t stick in clumps.
4. Whip the cream until stiff peaks form. To make the trifle, begin with a layer of apple, then breadcrumbs followed by a layer of cream. Add a thicker layer of apple and finish with the breadcrumbs, saving a few for decoration. Top with the remaining cream and breadcrumbs.
Beetroot tart with fennel and dill
I just love the purple beetroot with the fresh green dill — it brightens up the lunch table. The tart works well warm or cold and is lighter than traditional quiches because it uses less dairy filling.
Serves 6
Ingredients
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• 3-4 fresh beetroots, about 300g, or a 250g pack of ready-cooked beetroots
• 200ml plus 1 tbsp crème fraîche
• 100ml milk
• 2 eggs
• 200g feta cheese, crumbled
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1 tbsp fresh dill
• 1 fennel bulb
• Olive oil
• 2-3 tsp balsamic vinegar
• 50g walnuts, lightly crushed
• For the pastry:
• 150g butter
• 150g plain flour
• 100g wholegrain rye flour
• A pinch of salt
• 1 egg yolk
• 4 tbsp cold water
Method
1. If using fresh beetroots, put them in a large saucepan of water and bring to the boil. Cook for 30-40 min, depending on their size, until soft. Rinse in cold water. The peel will come off easily when you rub them with your fingers. Set aside.
2. To make the pastry, cube the butter and crumble it with the flours and salt (this can be done in a food processor). Add the egg yolk and water and without working the dough too much, quickly shape it into a ball. Put in the fridge for 30 min.
3. Roll out the dough and carefully line a 28cm fluted, loose-based pie tin. Prick the bottom of the case with a fork in several places. Leave to rest for another 15 min in the fridge or freezer.
4. Heat the oven to 160C fan/gas 4. Bake the crustin the middle of the oven for about 10 min. Meanwhile, mix the crème fraîche, milk, eggs, crumbled feta, salt, pepper and half the dill in a bowl.
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5. Remove the fennel core and slice thinly. Add a little oil to a saucepan and sauté on a low heat for 5-6 min. After another few min, add a few teaspoons of balsamic vinegar.
6. Remove the crust from the oven. Scatter the fennel across the base and add one third of the crème fraîche mix. Thinly slice the beetroots and arrange all across in neat layers. Add the remaining crème fraîche dressing on top and half of the walnuts. Return to the middle of the oven for 20-25 min. When done, sprinkle the remaining dill and walnuts on top. Serve warm.
Extracted from The ScandiKitchen Cookbook by Brontë Aurell (Ryland, Peters & Small £20). To order a copy go to timesbookshop.co.uk. Free UK standard P&P on orders over £25. Special discount available for Times+ members
