Sunday Buffet

It's been a while since I last had a food cavalcade, here are a few new recipes I've tried since then - the cauliflower-carrot soup, pumpkin-spinach-quorn dish and pumpkin cake, raspberry-lemon cake not included - above is a delicious super simple side dish with crispy potatoe wedges and carrots with fresh herbs and sunflower seeds (I've now realised that almost any dish can become a worthier dish with them small ones included, the seed equivalent of carrots one might say). A dish which can be described in a three letter word spelled *y.u.m*. Served with grilled halloumi as always being a lovely partner.

On Skye I didn't only buy soaps, I also found a cookbook about porridge only. From health food to desserts and everything in between. I'm not sure if porridge should be concider a particulary Scottish dish, it's fairly common in Sweden too (I like mine with apple sauce and milk), though be as it may, this cookbook is a gem if the other recipes are anything like this delicious vegetarian oatmeal flan with fetacheese. Such nicely combined flavours, I filled my oatmeal pieshell with courgettes, carrots, mushrooms and fresh herbs and it was truly lovely. Why I haven't made it again yet I have no idea.

I found a promising recipe for cep and mushroom pasta in the morning newspaper Dagens Nyheter (DN, The Daily News), that turned out to be one of the most flavourless and boring meals I've ever had. Such a disappointment and neither more herbs, salt and pepper could save it. Conclusion - things written in DN should be taken with more than a pinch of salt.

Another recipe that didn't turn out well at all, this veggie pie (leek, mushroom, broccoli, paprika, carrots and garlic) had a crust that was leathery and a filling that lacked a whole lot to be desired in flavour and creaminess. Not a good one and I honestly don't think it was the cook's fault. Recipe is gone with the wind, I think I got it from a thing called Internet. Conclusion - do not trust the Internet.

Yes, this carrot soup Indonesian style was just as yellow, at least, irl, a creamy, carroty loveliness - of course it was delicious. And such a pretty and healthy perk me up dinner for gloomy dark evenings. Recipe in that favourite all vegetarian cookbook of mine from Ulriksdal's Castle Garden Café.

Which is also where I found the recipe for this colourful vegan dish of spicy egg noodles with soy, paprika, carrots and onion. Quite a nice and easy to make one.

And for dessert there's plum-vanilla jam with walnuts. A jam that sounds and looks nice, but with a recipe that was just way off. With a lot of work I managed to make something half decent of the consistency, but for my palate it was far too sweet and with a weird tang. If it had been good it would have been heavenly with vanilla ice cream.

Recipe from the classic Rosendal Garden Café cookbook, IMHO one which is of lovely coffeetable book kind to glance through and be inspired by, but with many recipes that well, don't do too well when turned into something to actually eat. Might it be a kitchen witchery book to get folks to go there and eat more often instead of try out recipes at home?

The supposedly sticky chocolate cake that adamantly refuse to get sticky with me, recipe from Chokladfabriken (The Chocolate Factory). I've learnt my lesson, I'll stick to making hot cocoa to drink.

This cardamom bread is an easy peasy lifesaver - of sorts - if you want to whip together something quickly with guests arriving soon - or for a tea and movie evening in the sofa. It's been ages since I made it last, but oh my was it a pleasant reunion of the cardamom bread kind some weeks ago...

Cardamom baked apples with sunflowerseeds, nice, easy to make but I must say eating an apple sprinkled with cardamom straight work at least as well. At least.

Another recipe from Chokladfabriken that didn't turn out too well, the measures were weird, the chocolate muffins ended up dry and boring and not at all as the moist chocolate delights I had anticipated. So I really should stick to those cups of hot cocoa, I hear you chocolate book.

I'm no fan of cookies myself. The only reason I made these chocolate chip walnut cookies from a new cook/bakebook I got - Tate's Bake Shop - is that I lacked something for guest purposes and this recipe striked me as an easy one to try out. They didn't turn out to be new cookie favourites of mine, but the guests loved them. The added walnuts to the recipe was my not very original idea. I bet sunflower seeds would have been even better...

Simple applepie with crunchy top, rather nice, especially with the added sunflower seeds. Of mouthwatering looks. Although the crunchiness of top was less than expected or desired.

~ Interested in a recipe, give me a virtual nudge ~