I don’t actually know that I have ever had potato salad in Scandinavia before. I don’t think that I have, so I can’t really tell you if this is authentic or not, but the combination of sour cream, light vinegar and dill made me think of Scandinavia, so I went with the theme. It’s definitely not like my other potato salads, which lean toward the Southern German or French styles. Nevertheless, this was very yummy and light, not heavy on the mayo or greasy. And yes, even in a pandemic, you can splurge and have smoked salmon for lunch. On a Wednesday. Just because.
Käsespätzle to me are like a nice, warm security blanket. Sort of like Mac & Cheese to American kids, this is something that German kids grow up with. There are dozens or hundreds of recipes, each person probably has their own variation. It’s often on the “kids menu” in restaurants, and does double duty as the vegetarian dish. This is my version, with caramelized onions and Ementhaller cheese (you could also use Gruyer) — and of course, freshly made Spätzle.
I thought that I would post one more “Savory Bake” for the Bake-a-Long Topic of the week (we’ll switch to the last topic tomorrow), so here is a photo of my breakfast. The actual baking part of this post are the spectacular Cheddar Chive Buttermilk Biscuits. I have been trying and trying to make the perfect biscuit for a long time — flakey, light and most importantly, easy to make. Turns out, these fit the bill and could be great as a dinner roll with soup, as the basis for a sandwich or in my case the absolute perfect thing for a bacon-egg-and-cheddar muffin for breakfast. These are definitely going to be my go-to from now on. You could also swap out the chives for finely minced scallions or parsley and cheddar can be with gouda. Aaaand, while I’m talking substitutions … don’t have buttermilk? Add a teaspoon of lemon juice or white vinegar to regular milk and let sit for 10 minutes … voila, buttermilk!
Bake-a-Long “Savory Bakes” contribution #1: Chicken Curry Pot Pie. This one isn’t much of a looker, I will admit. I rolled the pastry too thin and it started breaking from the edge of the skillet. That said, what it doesn’t have in looks, it definitely has in taste!
My mom has an expression that roughly translates as “sideways through the refrigerator”; what it means is take all your leftovers and smaller ingredients and make a meal out of it. Well, these days, I have all sorts of random bits and bobs in the fridge — a few carrots, a potato and onions, a package of boneless chicken thighs in the freezer and some pantry staples. I ended up making a yummy chicken curry last night and turned it into a pot pie for lunch (and dinner) today. It’s very yummy, even if it isn’t pretty.