WEEK #3
Now in Sweden the Holiday is celebrated throughout December and traditionally until St. Knut's Day on January 13. The main celebration and exchange of gifts in many families takes place on Christmas Eve. The Lucia Day is celebrated during Advent, on December 13. The Celebration comes from stories that were told by the Monks who first brought Christianity to Sweden. The most common story that was told is about St. Lucia...she would bring food to the Christians in Rome that were hiding in the catacombs under the city. She would wear candles on her head so she would have her hands free to carry things. Lucia/Lucy means "Light". St. Lucia's day is celebrated by a girl dressing in a white dress with a red sash around her waist. She also has crown of candles on her head. The Crown is made of Lingonberry branches which are evergreens and symbolizes new life in winter. The Schools also choose a girl to play St. Lucia in a procession and carols are sung. They also choose a National St. Lucia and she visits hospitals and old age homes and sings a song about St. Lucia and handouts of Pepparkakor...which is a type of gingersnap cookie....also other popular foods are eaten...Lussekatts. its a bun flavored with Saffron and dotted with raisins. It's usually eaten for breakfast.
I know everyone wants to know this recipe. It is a little complicated but it is the Holiday. You also have to convert out of the metric if you are not use to it. ....so here it is.
Recipe: Swedish
saffron buns (lussekatt or lussebulle)
INGREDIENTS
|
INSTRUCTIONS
1.
Let the raisins soak in rum or some
other liquid (at least 30 min)
2.
Melt the butter, pour in the milk and
heat up to body temperature (37°C or 100°F)
3.
Grind the saffron with the teaspoon of
sugar in a mortar and add to the milk
4.
Crumble the yeast into a separate
bowl, add the pinch of salt, the sugar and the lukewarm water then stir it
together
5.
Pour in the milk and add the egg while
stirring it together
6.
Place all the above used ingredients
in a stand mixer
7.
Add the flour gradually while stand
mixer is stirring on low speed. You might need to add more flour to make it
possible to work with the dough without it sticking to all of your fingers.
8.
Then add most of the raisins to the
mixture but leave a few for decoration (32 raisins if you make 16 buns)
9.
Work the dough with the stand mixer
(or by yourself if you don't have one)
10. Cover the bowl and let the dough rise
for 1 hour or a little more (up to 1½ hours)
11. Heat up the oven to 260°C (500°F)
12. Cover a baking tray with parchment
paper
13. Flour a working area and then knead
the dough gently a few times
14. Split the dough in 16 pieces and roll
them to long thin strips that you then curl in an S-shape, but make a few extra
circles to make them look better than in my picture
15. Place them on the baking tray with
around 1 cm space between (we want them to grow together a little to keep them
juicy)
16. Place one raisin in each end of the
bun and press it in so it does not stick out, but is still visible
17. Place a kitchen towel over the tray
and wait for 10 min before brushing them with a whisked egg
18. Put the tray in the oven for roughly
4-6 min (watch them carefully since the size of the buns and your oven might
change the required baking time. They should receive a light brown colour)
19. As soon as you take them out, cover
with a kitchen towel and let them cool down
So with the spin of the Globe we are in Italy. See how easy it is to explore the World. I remember when I was in High School. We had this tremendous Globe in our History Class room and before the day started....I would spin the Globe and just put my finger down on this spinning icon of travel. Where ever it stopped my friends and I would research where it stopped. See even back then I was dream traveling. So now back to Italy. Did you know that on Christmas Eve it is common not to eat meat. Sometimes not even dairy. Often a light seafood meal is eaten and then people go to Midnight Mass services. The types of fish and how they are served varies between different regions in Italy. Now I have quite a bit of family and friends that celebrate this way and let me tell you...all the different fish and they way they are prepared is simply delicious. It is known as the Feast of the Seven Fishes. It is such a popular tradition in Italian-American families since it had come over from Italy that it now seems it is more popular here in the U.S. than in Italy. Just to give you an idea of what fish is prepared...there are Clams, Sardines Calamari...even eel...and yes Baccala(salted cod). How did this Feast get started there are many schools of thought. Some think it represents the 7 days of creation while others say it represent the seven Holy Sacraments...either way it is a tasty way to celebrate. Also in Italy they have the Christmas Witch....Yes I said Witch. La Befana... Italian folklore there is an old woman who delivers gifts to the children throughout Italy on Epiphany Eve. Which is January 5. Befana leaves their socks with candy and presents if they are good...but if they are not...a lump of coal is left. Gee...where did we hear that? Anyway...Not only does she do this, she also sees the floor before she leaves. Now that is my idea of gift giving...How did La Befana come to be in Italian Folklore? Well I will tell you. This Hag like broomstick riding image of witch stared years and years ago. As the story is told...it started with the birth of the baby Jesus. Befana was always cleaning and sweeping when the Magi happened upon her door in search of the Baby. Befana, too busy with her chores turned them away. She then noticed a bright light in the sky. She thinks this is the way to baby Jesus. To this day she searches for the baby arriving at homes of young children and leaving gifts for good young children because it is said that the Christ Child can be found in all Children....
So I suppose you would like to have a recipe of one of the fish from the Feast of the Seven fishes. Now this is the recipe I talked about on my Podcast. I hope you have been listening and enjoying our Holiday Special. This recipe is a favorite food of myself and my husband.
Calamari.....YUMMM
Serves 4-6 as an appetizer
You will need the following:
vegetable oil, for deep frying
1 pound clean squid with tentacles, bodies cut into 1/3 to 1/2-inch-thick rings
1 cup all purpose flour
1 cup semolina flour
salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 cups marinara sauce
2 lemons cut into wedges
1 pound clean squid with tentacles, bodies cut into 1/3 to 1/2-inch-thick rings
1 cup all purpose flour
1 cup semolina flour
salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 cups marinara sauce
2 lemons cut into wedges
1. Pour enough oil into a heavy large saucepan to reach the
depth of 3 inches. Heat over medium heat to 375 degrees F.
2. In a medium bowl, combine flours, salt and pepper.
3. Working in small batches, dredge the squid in the flour
mixture to coat. Carefully add the squid to the oil and fry until crisp and
golden brown, about 1 minute per batch.
4. Using a slotted spoon, transfer to paper towels to drain.
5. Serve with marinara sauce and lemon wedges.
ENJOY!
Well I sure hope you are tuning into my podcast. You can subscribe to it for free. You can find it real easy on I-tunes/Stitcher/Buzzsprout. You can also visit my website at www.zeemichaelsontravel.com and you can let your imagination run wild. If you want to visit any of these places that we talk about or something you see on my website, give me a call and I will help you Make Your Travel Dreams Come True
Well I sure hope you are tuning into my podcast. You can subscribe to it for free. You can find it real easy on I-tunes/Stitcher/Buzzsprout. You can also visit my website at www.zeemichaelsontravel.com and you can let your imagination run wild. If you want to visit any of these places that we talk about or something you see on my website, give me a call and I will help you Make Your Travel Dreams Come True
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