Advent tradition

Here in Sweden we have a annual tradition that comes around 1st Advent and some do lead up to christmas. We have a annual advent christmas fair, with local merchants selling their goods, shops are open longer so you can do your christmas shopping, try different foods-drinks-candies etc etc.

This year I was in Stockholm and went to Skansens christmas fair. Lovely day, brisk winds but oh so cozy to walk around the different stands sampling food and drinks. For me it is a tradition to keep, if it was only a bit of snow too it will definitly put you in the christmas mood.

We had lunch at Solliden before going home.

If you are able then this is a thing to see when coming to Sweden. But all around the country there are christmas fairs around the advent holidays.

:)

Cinnamon rolls

*René...this post is for you...*


As a kid I loved the days after school when you were greeted with the smell of fresh baked cinnamon rolls. Afternoon snack and a glass of cold milk with it.

*sigh*...those where the days....

Anyway as I got older I moved to U.s.a for a year and had a craving for some swedish cinnamon rolls, called home to get the recipe from my mom and got started. A big disappointment....although they smelled and tasted fairly good, they weren't my Mom's.
Tried them again years later and still couldn't make them like my mom did.

So a few days ago...I had the urge to bake (every excuse to use my little baby) and decided to try the cinnamon roll recipe again. I haven't been more proud of myself than I was today when I pulled out the first batch from the oven.

They....looked and tasted like my Mom's!! Hallelulja!!!! :)

Did a twist to one half of the dough and used Nutella instead of cinnamon and sugar. Yum....

The recipe I won't share...since it is a family one...at least not yet anyway.

If you have a cinnamon roll recipe on hand use it and switch out the cinnamon and sugar and use Nutella instead...

In the midst of christmas shopping...

Today I had one goal on my agenda: CHRISTMASSHOPPING!! Namely gifts...
I have this crazy schedule and work pretty much all the time and when I do get a day off it is dedicated to run arrends.

So today I walked in to town and had my mind on finding christmas gifts...

....not sure if I were that successful though.

First stop to fill up on facial items at Bodyshop and got a free bodybutter!! (nice)
next stop the bookstore and found gifts for two of my gift list people.
Now remember the number: 2

After that I needed to fill up my tea supply aswell so into the teashop and got some more. And I tell you, I can spend the entire day in there!! Oh...AND....spend tons and tons of money! (psst....Santa....a giftcard would be nice aswell)

Then I started having a hard time remembering what it was I needed to buy....my head got all blurred out.
So after a quick stop to fill up on some wine...I walked home.

And guess what...I came home with 2 gifts....still have 4 left!!

Have I mentioned that I hate shopping when I don't know what to get??!!
NO....well now I have.

Anyway, I came home and spent 2 hours in the kitchen baking these munchies:

The ones in front are Cranberry muffins, the ones in the back are Sourcream Gingerbreadmuffins!!

You will find the recipe for the Cranberry muffins right HERE

Guess what...

...I am now going to brew some tea and eat one of these gorgeous munchies!!

Have a cold one!

In honor of fall

Woke up early today, don't ask me why..cause I ended up going to bed late too.

Strange!

And on my day off too!!

Hmm...very strange.

Besides that I after eating breakfast and in the midst of doing laundry had this craving.

I wanted something juicy and something fall related.

Oh and something sweet!!

So in honor of fall I made a juicy appelspongecake. YUM!!!

I have posted the recipe before, click HERE

Just switch the raspberries for peeled apples cut in thin wedges and sprinkle with cinnamon and pearlsugar.

I also did half sugar and then two heaped tablespoons of honey in this batch.

Again...YUM!!!

Note...check the cake a few minutes before the due time is up....I over did it a bit and the bottom got a bit dry. But hey it went down anyway!!

Going into sugarcoma now!

What I love - Part Four

I truly really do enjoy food...and by the look of me you can tell, sad but true! (good song btw)

Anyway, I am not hiding the fact that I love food nor do I hide that I hate my figure. AND I don't hide the fact that I would love to be one of those who eat and eat and never gain an ounce.
I have to really consider eating too much of anything before I put it in my mouth. I swear it either goes to my hip, thighs, belly or wait for it.....wait...BUTT!

You think that will stop  me?! No, not at all. I just get up early in the morning and sweat those extra pounds off...

Alright enought complaining and on to the food... (starting to get hungry)

Here is just a few of my favorites:

I could live on pasta alone if it didn't end up on my thighs, butt, waist or hips...

Love Pizza, not just any pizza though. The ones I had in Italy were divine!! (mouth is salvating)

Anything that has been cooked on this goes down with a flash! Okay...maybe not anything, but most food goes down. (would love this grill, I mean it has it's own winecooler!!! Neat!)

Applecrumble pie...especially my mom's! Yum...but any fruit pie is okay too.

Everyone who knows me know that I am addicted to this!! Have to have it atleast once a week!

Mouth is now drouling!!

Finally...
anything that comes from this food chain is absolutely breathtakingly divine. Everytime I go to the States, this is one of the stops I make to or from a shoppingtrip. If I can go everyday for lunch and dinner I would be a happy girl!

But then I would also be a poor and fat girl too...

With this I leave you to a long night of yummy dreams...

Night!

Greed and glutony

It seems that every year I do go over to the States to visit the Manley's I almost always end up in IKEA. I know...why would I, a Swede, go to IKEA when I am on vacation in a different country?!?!
It all ends up with me never keeping my mouth shut!!! :) (it gets me in trouble...)

It all began in 2001 when I volunteered to paint a whole floor over at the Manley's when they were on vacation in Spain. (it almost cost me a friendship...Marion remember?!)

Luckily it didn't!

Then someone spoke of an idea of turning their basement into a dungeon....(not me)
But I did lend my imagination and again volunteerd to do the job.

Yieks..what is up with that!!!

Then someone complained that after their kitchen got a new paint the cabinets stood out and looked a bit missplaced. Guess who opened their mouth and said that a new white paint job would do the trick??!

(before the white coats of paint)

(after)

yeah...me.... I seriously need to check my mouth into rehab or something.
Think this was in 2005 or something.

Then we did all sorts of DIY's around the outside...
Like planting a vegetable garden, which then the year after we cut down after it becoming a djungle! :)

Last year, it all began again....I had the previous year (2008) offered to help Miz Meg and Thomas to paint their rooms. (and I can not say NO to those faces)
So off we went and in the process we needed some new furniture for one of the rooms....ergo...IKEA!

I however believe that René only wants to go to Ikea because of these little yummies:

I honestly do belive that!! (I mean she couldn't bribe me to go to IKEA with these)

Now this is where I go greedy....see we got a 6-pack of cinnabuns and ate one each at IKEA. Which leaves 4 left....me...I said that we should just stay and finish the other 4 aswell!

But no René said that wouldn't be fare to the ones we left at home, cause they couldn't get some.

This is where most would feel sympathy and say..."yeah you are right, what were I thinking?!"

Not me

I said, "They don't know that we bought them, so they wouldn't miss out!"

Which gave a look from miss René....:))

When it comes to sweet stuff, I am a GREEDY person!

All in all, I don't mind doing the DIY's and interior decorating! I have had a blast through out the years and wouldn't trade them in for anything!

So...with that said...René...I would gladly help with the kitchen this fall! (I will most likely be willing myself to be bribed with the goodies in the last photo!)

;-)

Lost in Facebook and Broccoli cheddar soup

Seriously...how can you miss a heavy downfall of rain?!?! That is what I did...and I was just sitting a few meters away from the window!! Very funny!!

I went out early this morning to get my hair done, which is btw...very curly! Came home and well sat down by the computer and was just going to check out some things....and right there...that is when time moved to quickly and I missed the heavy rain outside.
Although I should be glad that I wasn't outside in it. :)

Have had the worst cravings for Broccoli Cheddar soup, especially the one from Panera Bread!! My god I wish I had some right now. To still my hunger or craving or no...it was hunger...I checked out their website and to my excitement they have returned their creamy tomato soup!!! I sooooo LOOOOOOVVVVEEE that soup. And then it hit me...I am not going to be able to eat it! Cause I am way, way across the atlantic. :((

Just because I am in a sour mood...(I am hungry....really hungry), I am going to tempt you with some yummy pictures....(oh I am sooo cruel....hehe)

                               (photos from Panerar Bread)

When there is nothing to eat.....

Then you whip this little dish up! :)
One day last week I sure did not feel like cooking...so what to do you ask?? Well I mainly opened my fridge and looked at what I got and what would be the most greasiest and quickest. And that is when I remember a recipe Pioneer Woman posted on her website. She made this cheese/olive bread that looked oh so divine. Natually I don't like olives...I know....shoot me! :)
So I just whipped up a substitute.

The ingredients: (whith no measurements....since I just dumped them all in a bowl and didn't bother)
red onion (I used 1...did remember that one)
bell pepper (any color would work), I used a fireroasted one in a jar
cheese
butter
mayonaise
pesto...since it was already in the fridge :))
pepper and some salt

Oh...and a loaf of bread...I used a italian kind

Mix all the ingredients in a bowl....the butter is best if it is soft.
Cut the loaf in half and then go ahead and spread the mixture on both half.
Put on a pan and in the oven it goes for oh....20 minutes at about 225 celsius

Absolutely, terribly, and most of all divine...that is the feeling when your lips touch base with this one! :))

Check out Pioneer Womans recipe that was inspired for this one....HERE

I did say I was hungry...right...?!?!

Well...I challenged myself to do or to make something different. You know...to try something new, broaden my horizon! :)

So I found this recipe for Zucchini patties....OH MY GOD!! :)

here is what you need: zucchini (or squash works too), eggs, milk, thyme ( I used oregano..), salt and pepper and oil.

1. The recipe says...to sift the flower...but....I don't do that!:) In one bowl I mixed the flower and added parmesan cheese for flavor...stirred it with a fork (my version of sifting)

2. Then mix in the eggs (which you have beaten together already)... the recipe says a bit at a time...but was too hungry and poured everything in...works too! :)

3. then add the milk...that I did do a bit at a time...since you might not use all the milk. The texture should be thick and smooth. Put that aside when done.

4. Rinse the Zucchini and shred/grind (hmm...not the right word) it coarsly over a bowl which have a papertowel in the bottom. This way some of the fluids will get into the papertowel = not so juicy anymore.

5. Now for the fun part...Mix the grated (that's the word I was looking for) zucchini, thyme or whatever herb you have nearby, salt and pepper into the eggmix/batter. Mix really well. Here you can also add som dried chili if you want it to be a bit more spicy

6. Heat the oil in a thick fryingpan. In spoonfuls drop the zucchini mix into the hot oil. (use caution!!!) I tablespoon makes a normal size pattie, a half makes a small one so...just eyeball it! :) They should get about 3-4 min on each side...but then again..it all varies from oven to oven. But goldenbrown is what you are aiming for!

7. put the patties on a papertowl to dry off. Serve warm!!! ( although lukewarm is great aswell...you can eat them with your fingers then! :) )

I dipped them in garlic sauce...you can take whatever you wish or like.

This recipe says that you will get from 16 to 30 patties...but....I think I got just 15...all about the sizes you prefer!

You can mix in any herbs or spices to your liking.

Recipe:

just about 1½ dl flour

2 eggs (beaten)

4 msk milk

300g zucchini...or one normal size

2 msk fresh thyme (or whatever herbs you have hanging around)

salt and pepper

1 msk oil (I used a bit more)

Enjoy!!! :)