This Week's Flowers

I haven't bought flowers in a few weeks so I splurged a little and picked up some peonies yesterday. Peonies are maybe my favorite flowers. I say maybe because I also really love hydrangeas which are also coming into season right about now. The smell that peonies give off is so lovely. Peonies also look like fluffy clouds to me, fluffy clouds of cotton candy. Yum! Peonies are just all around wonderful!

The Little Paris Kitchen

Over the weekend, I watched all six episodes of The Little Paris Kitchen with Rachel Khoo. I absolutely love how simple Rachel's twist on French food and recipes are. On the show, she makes French classics such as a quiche lorraine, chouquettes, and croque madames. She is just so sweet and so fun and I absolutely love seeing and experiencing a bit of Paris through the screen. I just love Paris. Some of the recipes I really want to try are her boeuf bourguignon, her grapefruit pepper meringue tartlets, and her mini venison wellingtons.



And now, I really want Rachel's cookbook! Along with the Smitten Kitchen cookbook. Have you read either of those and how do you like their recipes? Do you have any favorite chefs or cookbooks?

Ginger Cookies

The boyfriend really likes ginger cookies and we've been using this recipe for ginger cookies for over a year now and we still love 'em! If you are into ginger, I think you will really enjoy these. Plus the oatmeal keeps the cookie soft and chewy, just the way I like my cookies!

The Boyfriend's Favorite Ginger Cookies
Makes 2 dozen cookies

120g unsalted butter, softened
3/4 cup unrefined cane sugar
1 tbsp or 20 g freshly grated ginger (adjust to your liking)
1 egg
4 tbsp honey
11/2 heaping cups of flour
1 heaping cup of rolled oats
2 tsp baking soda
2 tsp ground ginger (again adjust to your liking)

Preheat the oven to 340F/170C and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

Cream the butter and the sugar together in a bowl. Peel the fresh ginger and grate it finely over the bowl. Add the egg and cane syrup to the butter and sugar mixture and mix thoroughly.

In a medium bowl, sift together the flour, rolled oats, ground ginger, and baking soda. Add the dry ingredients to the wet mixture and stir until just combined.

Using a 1 tbsp scoop, scoop out the cookie dough and place it on the baking sheet. Place the baking sheet in the center rack of the oven and bake. Check the cookies at 8 minutes if you want a softer cookie or 10 minutes if you want it a bit chewier. They are ready when they are golden on top.

Enjoy your cookies with a nice cup of tea! Happy Thursday!

Møns Klint

On Saturday morning we got up early, packed ourselves a picnic lunch, and we drove about 135 km to Møns Klint. It was one of the warmest days of the year yet so it was perfect, plus I've been wanting to go there ever since I read this post from Traveling Mama.

At Møns Klint, or the Cliffs of Møn in English, there you will find chalk cliffs that stretch 6 km. The cliffs are really striking to see in person, especially as the bright white cliffs contrasts with the turquoise and blue water on the beach. For Denmark, these cliffs are pretty high and everyone looks small walking alongside them. We spent a few hours at the cliffs and it was cozy just sitting in a more quiet part of the beach, having some of our lunch and just taking in the breeze, listening to the crashing waves, and soaking up some sun. 

The boyfriend and I really enjoyed our time there and it is a wonderful place to go and escape the city for a few hours and enjoy some strikingly beautiful nature. 

MIrrors

Some glimpses into my week.

The boyfriend and I way, way, way before we met each other.

Sweet little strawberries.

Reading some Danish home interior magazines on a lazy afternoon.

Cake decorating on Thursday night at Craftenhagen.

I know you will not believe me, but well, we have another long weekend here in Denmark! Seriously. It's getting pretty ridiculous. We thought about taking a trip to Århus but I think we're going to drive down to Møns Klint tomorrow instead. I've been wanting to go there for awhile and since the weather is nice and we have time this weekend, why not!

How has your week been?

Balloons, Polaroids + Weddings

We had another long weekend last week. Thursday was a public holiday but the boyfriend had Friday off as well so it was a four day weekend for us!

The weekend started off with brunch at our place with a few of our friends. We served this leek and mushroom quiche, pan roasted potatoes, bacon wrapped asparagus, and some melon and berries. To decorate the dining room a little, I bought a pack of mixed green balloons from Søstrene Grene and just hung them upside down from the ceiling.

On Friday, we went to the boyfriend's parents house to help them with some painting and sort through the boyfriend's old things. Like baking, painting was really nice and relaxing. We found the boyfriend's old Polaroid camera a few weeks ago at the house and on Friday he found a pack of film! It expired in 2001, but we thought we'd try it anyways. So far, out of the five pictures we've taken, we've only had two where you can actually see something in the photo. But now that we know the camera still works, we're looking into buying some film from The Impossible Project. Friday finished off with helping my friend S prepare for her wedding the next day, followed by ramen with I at Kung Fu II and then going to a party that L threw at her apartment. A great Friday!

Saturday was the best. We spent the morning moseying around and then in the afternoon we hopped on a bus to go to church for our friend's S and K's wedding blessing and then into the city afterwards for their reception and party. Their wedding is the best one I've been to yet. Everything was so thought out from the home made gluten free wedding cake S's mother-in-law made to the wine that K imported himself for the party to the fun music the band was playing all night to the hot dog stand they hired for a late night snack. Plus, some of my dearest friends here in Copenhagen were there too - making it a night to remember! S and K's wedding was a wonderful celebration of their love and relationship and I got teary eyed listening to some of the speeches and songs that their family and friends prepared for them. They are so loved!

On Sunday we went back to the boyfriend's parents house to finish up some painting and cleaning before having dinner with his family. All in all, a busy, full, and a really fun weekend! I love weekends like that. Weekends that are full of spending time with family and friends, they are the best! 

Therese Sennerholt Prints

I really like the prints from Therese Sennerholt. I am a sucker for good quotes and simple design and she does exactly that. If you read any Scandinavian blogs that feature interiors and homes, I'm sure you have seen some of these prints already then.

I have seen Therese Sennerholt's prints for sale in stores while we were in Stockholm last summer but I haven't really seen them here in Copenhagen. While I was at Notre Dame this week however, I saw that they sold a few of her cards.

I love using cards as art work. They are the same designs, just in smaller form! I plan on switching out a few of the photos or the older cards I have in the gallery table and incorporating one of my new Therese Sennerholt designs!

*The first two photos are from http://www.theresesennerholtshop.se/

Going Bananas

Another weekend is over? Each day, week, month goes by so quickly. I was talking to the boyfriend this weekend about how quickly the years have gone by. I mean, in three years, I will be going to my high school's ten year reunion! What happened? I still remember high school like it was yesterday but somehow I have gone through four years of university, plus another two years in Sweden getting my master's, and now I've lived in Copenhagen for almost a year. Crazy.

But back to our weekend, it was great! The sun was shining, we had dinner with some friends on Friday night before going to see a band that they like, Rumor Said Fire, play at a campus party at Copenhagen University. Saturday was spent hanging out with my friend H at her table at a flea market and having ice cream and sitting at a cafe by the lake with I. On Sunday morning I baked a loaf of Smitten Kitchen's Jacked Up Banana Bread for breakfast. The boyfriend and I went into the city to do a little more shopping for some new work clothes for him and spent the rest of our afternoon doing important things such as Danish homework (ha!). And the grand finale to our weekend, the boyfriend's favorite dessert (tied with abemad/fruit salad with cream) - banana "ice cream"!

I am now sharing my third banana bread/cake recipe with you! When I took this loaf of banana bread out of the oven yesterday, I thought it would be dry. The crust looked really dark and there really wasn't much liquid in the recipe. It was delicious when we had it warm yesterday with some butter. I was a little skeptical this morning when I had a slice of the banana bread but it was still incredibly moist. I also really like the addition of spices in Smitten Kitchen's recipe, but it might not be for everyone if you don't like strong spices. I just love bananas and can always have more banana bread!

Jacked Up Banana Bread (adapted from Smitten Kitchen)
Makes one loaf

3 to 4 ripe bananas, mashed
1/3 cup or 75g salted butter, melted
3/4 cup light brown sugar
1 egg, beaten
1 tsp vanilla
1 tbsp bourbon (optional, I did not add this as we didn't have this at home)
1 tsp baking soda
pinch of salt
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
pinch of ground gloves (again, did not have this at home so I skipped it)
1 cup all purpose flour
1/2 cup white whole wheat flour

Preheat oven to 350F/175C. Line a bread pan with baking paper or grease it well.

With a wooden spoon, mix butter into the mashed bananas in a large mixing bowl. Mix in the sugar, egg, vanilla and bourbon, followed by the spices. Sprinkle the baking soda and salt over the mixture and mix in. Add the two flours last and mix until incorporated.

Pour mixture into the pan and bake. Check the loaf at 40 minutes and take it out if it is ready or keep baking until a tester comes out clean. Cool on a rack and then slice and serve!

Happy Monday!

Sweet Miss Etoile

I really like Miss Etoile's products. Every time I am on the home and kitchen floor of Magasin, I stop and spend a few minutes at the Miss Etoile section. Miss Etoile is a Danish home decor, crafts, and accessory company. I especially love their sweet and whimsical teacups and plates. I'm totally wishing for one of the mugs with the eyes on them with the handle as the nose.

Miss Etoile had a lagersalg/outlet sale this week and I picked up a little dish that I've had my eye on and a little butter plate as well as two round paper lanterns. I could have bought more (there were teacups and bowls and some home decor items) but I thought the boyfriend wouldn't have liked so much of it because Miss Etoile's products are really girly, so I passed on a lot of things. But then I came home and showed him their website and he said he liked them! So maybe next time?

I will be using this little Bon Appetit dish for little sweets. I think they would be perfect for lining up a row of homemade macarons! And this little butter dish with the lid is just adorable. I can't wait to have people over for brunch and use it! Party decor is generally pretty expensive here in Copenhagen. Miss Etoile does sell paper lanterns, tissue paper pom poms/flowers, and crepe paper decorations as well but I think they are a little overpriced in the stores. But, because I picked everything up at the lagersalg, I only spent 50kr/$9! So next time Miss Etoile has another lagersalg, I am definitely picking up some teacups and other pretty serving ware!

Making Dulce De Leche at Home

There are a few things that I would like to make with dulce de leche. There's cupcakes with a dulce de leche buttercream, or there's brownies with dollops of dulce de leche, or just having some apple slices with dulce de leche is enough for me to want to buy some! Dulce de leche can be (pretty) easily found at most of the larger grocery stores here in Copenhagen but knowing that it is really easy to make yourself, I have only bought a jar of this wonderful stuff once. If you love anything caramel, you will love dulce de leche.

Dulce de Leche (recipe adapted from David Lebovitz)

1 can sweetened condensed milk

pinch of sea salt

Preheat oven to 425F or 220C.

Pour the can of sweetened condensed milk into a shallow baking dish. Stir in a pinch of sea salt.

Place the baking dish into a larger pan and pour hot water into the pan until it reaches halfway up the side of the baking dish. 

Cover the baking dish snuggly with aluminum foil. Bake for at least an hour, and until you reach the amount of caramelization you are looking for. In the recipe, David recommends keeping it in the oven for an hour and 15 minutes, but I found that the dulce de leche was not caramelized enough for me so I kept it in for 2 hours. Also check every half hour or so to make sure that there is enough water in the pan! 

Once the dulce de leche is nicely browned and caramelized, remove it from the oven and let it cool slightly. The dulce de leche might come out slightly lumpy so whisk until smooth. 

Store in the refrigerator until ready to serve. Warm gently in a water bath or in the microwave before using. 

I have a feeling that brownies with dulce de leche will be happening sometime later this week!