Friday Five: The Recipes

Peparkakor (Swedish Ginger Cookies)

1 cup butter
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 egg
2 tablespoons dark Karo syrup
3 cups flour
3 teaspoons cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground cloves
1 teaspoon ground ginger
2 teaspoons baking soda with 1 teaspoon water

Cream butter and sugar. Add egg and Karo syrup. Sift together dry ingredients and add to butter/sugar mix. Roll very thin and cut out in Christmas shapes. Bake at 350 until golden brown. Cool on wire rack. Makes lots and lots.


Parisian Wafers (aka "Bastard Cookies")

Wafers:
1 cup butter
1/3 cup heavy cream
2 cups flour

Filling:
1/4 cup butter, softened
3/4 cup confectioners sugar
1 egg yolk
1 teaspoon vanilla
Food coloring: red and green

Whip butter and cream until light and fluffy, then add flour. Roll out and cut into very small rounds (about the size of a quarter or slightly larger. This is time consuming and finicky and results in the "bastard" nickname, but it's worth it in the end.) Place on a cookie sheet and poke each wafer twice with a small fork. Bake at 375 until slightly golden brown.

Mix filling ingredients, whipping until smooth. Divide into two parts and tint one half green, the other half red. When wafers have completely cooled, place filling on the inside of one wafer and top with another wafer. Makes lots and lots. If you don't lose your mind first.


Swedish Meatballs

3 slices of white bread
1 cup milk
2 1/2 pounds leanest ground beef
1 pound ground pork (NOT sausage meat)
3 eggs, well beaten
1/2 cup onion, finely minced
1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper

Soak bread in milk until it falls apart. Stir. Mix all remaining ingredients and add milk/bread mixture. Stir well, until completely combined.

Form meatballs the size of a golf ball. Brown in frying pan (cast iron is best), turning often, and place in casserole dish. Bake at 350 for 45 minutes. Serves about four people.

Two options for gravy:
1.) Old School Gravy - add water to the frying pan when all the meatballs are done, bring to a boil, and then thicken with flour*. Add beef bouillon, salt, and pepper to taste. This can be added to the casserole dish and baked with the meatballs in the oven, or served separately.

2.) Easier Gravy - add one can of Cream of Mushroom soup to the frying pan when all the meatballs are done, and 2 cans of water. Bring to a boil and thicken with flour. Add salt and pepper to taste, if needed. Best if baked with the meatballs in the oven.

*If you are unaware of the miracle that is Wondra flour, be sure to get some before making gravy. No more lumps.