A few things come to mind when you think of Scandinavia... snow...
There is something so intriguing to me about Scandinavia in wintertime. Everything seems to be covered in a fresh blanket of snow for as far as the eye can see. When flying in it's almost impossible to tell where water meets land as everything is untouched, frozen and dusted in snow.
In summertime, the southern parts of Scandinavia begin to thaw and the most amazing things emerge.
One would be the arctic cloudberry. It's almost as elusive as the ice queens and trolls that live in Norway. By the way, I don't believe they don't exist! Cloudberries can survive extreme arctic temperatures and in summertime ripen under the Midnight Sun. When ripe they look almost like yellow raspberries. Their flavor is hard to pin down - they definitely taste a bit like a berry, but add hints of pineapple. Like a wild mountain strawberry you can taste the "wilderness" in a cloudberry. They are hard to find and nearly impossible to cultivate. Their fruit bearing time is so short lived that apart from countries close to the arctic circle you are probably looking at experiencing cloudberries via jam.
Various places sell it online and in London you can always get a jar at the Scandinavian Kitchen. It's delicious warm over ice cream or as an addition to a cheese plate. I thought I would pair it with another Nordic staple - rye.
CLOUDBERRY RYE CRUMBLE BAR
This recipe is adapted from Good to the Grain by Kim Boyce. Boyce's book does not disappoint. Each thing I try becomes my new favorite. As she suggests the recipe is versatile and any fruit spread would work. The rye and cloudberry jam is an irresistible combination. Please read through as this recipe is multi-step. This recipe makes 12 servings.
For the Shortbread Rye Crust -
- 1/2 cup rye flour
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1/3 cup dark brown sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 4 ounces unsalted butter, melted and cooled (plus extra for buttering the pan)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
For the Rye Crumble Topping -
- 1 cup whole rolled oats
- 3 Tablespoons dark brown sugar
- 1/4 cup + 2 Tablespoons rye flour
- 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
- 3 Tablespoons sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt (original calls for 1 teaspoon, but found it to be a bit too much)
- 3 ounces unsalted butter, melted and cooled
- 1 1/2 cups cloudberry jam
Spread the jam over the shortbread crust when it comes out of the oven for the first time. Sprinkle the crumble mixture over top. Bake in oven for another 50-55 minutes or until the crumble topping gently browns.
When the pan has cooled just enough to handle run a sharp knife along the edge to loosen any cloudberry jam that may have stuck to the side of the pan. Remove the ring of the springform pan. Once cooled dust with powdered sugar and cut into 12 wedges or your desired shape.
Serve plain or with a bit of loosely whipped, unsweetened cream. If you have trouble finding cloudberry jam, any berry or stone fruit jam would be delicious with the nutty rye.
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