On the weekend, I organized our weekly menu.  It is something I had not planned while we were on our Christmas Break.  Things are usually more relaxed and we are doing activities and visiting friends and family. It wasn’t a difficult task to do, however, it does take some time to make it varied.  I have to look at the school’s menu and not have any repeats or too many servings of rice for my son.  This week’s menu has been a mixture of pesto chicken casserole with cauliflower, today’s Broccoli Soup and a side dish of oven-baked pancake and then tomorrow Fat Head pizza or Kebab (a cozy Friday favorite) and fish caught in Norway by my husband.

Thursdays lunch in Sweden, according to my husband, is traditional Pea soup and Pancake day.  He has eaten such a lunch every Thursday for most of his adult life.  I planned today’s dinner, to satisfy his pancake craving and my son’s of Creamy Broccoli soup (the only broccoli dish he actually loves).

Since starting our gluten-free way of eating, due to my son’s celiac diagnosis, I have searched the world-wide-web for healthier recipes to heal my son and satisfy his love of everyday foods.

Living in Sweden, it has become quite easy to organize this way of eating and living.  Around 1-2% of the population has a celiac disease diagnosis, it is especially higher in children.  So there are lots of products available to assist in baking and making gluten- free simple.

Gluten-Free Oven Pancake

As I am following a low carb and high-fat (LCHF) way of eating, I wanted to incorporate that into our daily recipes as well.  There is a great website, 56kilos.se.  Åse Falkman Fredrikson is a wife, mother of 5 and a great inspiration to the LCHF way of life and to me in making real food that is healthy and gluten-free.  Her website is in Swedish but an amazing resource of recipes and information.  As I now live in Sweden and understand Swedish, I can navigate the website quite easily.  Google translate, however, does not work so great… but for recipes, it is pretty easily understood.  Her oven pancake recipe is amazing and easily prepared.  Now and in my future recipes, I will list ingredients in English and Swedish, just in case anyone from Sweden or other English speaking countries want to test them out.

Oven pancake is not a sweet dish, it is a savory one.  It is a fast and easy addition to a soup that is not a sandwich or a salad.  I had never heard of a pancake made in the oven before I moved to Sweden, but it is a great invention by my fellow Europeans.  The pancake usually has a sweet/tart jam accompanying it – Lingonberry.  It is available at IKEA’s food sections.  This time, I have made my own with Lingonberries that were picked this fall from the local forest.

I usually have cooked bacon (strips or chopped) and shredded cheese as a staple in our house.  It is an easy addition to meals to add flavor and richness.  Åse’s Oven Pancake recipe is flavorful and easy to make on a weeknight. I usually double the recipe to have for leftovers or a snack (mellanmål) before my son’s hockey, floorball or track and field practices (or evening snack when he has been especially active some days).  I have adapted her recipe a little with more bacon and cheese.

Ingredients

• 100 grams cooked chopped bacon (50g for the bottom and 50g for the top)
• 500 grams cottage cheese (keso)
• 1-deciliter heavy cream (vispgrädde 36%)
• 2 eggs (ägg)
• a handful of shredded cheese, about 50 grams or even a little more if you like.  I chose Edam cheese (edamerost)
• 1 Tbsp psyllium husk (fiberhusk). This is great for gluten-free baking and helps thicken and bind your pancake, but it definitely not essential.

Directions

1. Turn on your oven to 225 degrees Celcius (400 degrees Fahrenheit)
2. I already had chopped and fried the bacon the night before as we had the leftover chicken casserole for dinner. I had shredded the cheese as well with my food processor from a block form, as then it will not have any fillers or unwanted additives.
3. Add half of these ingredients to the bottom of your baking dish.
4. Mix the cottage cheese, whipping cream, eggs and psyllium husk with an immersion blender until the batter is smooth and then spread it out over the bacon and cheese in the baking dish.
5. Sprinkle the remaining cheese and bacon over the top.
6. Bake for about 20 minutes, until the top is golden brown.
7. Serve with Lingonberry Jam. We have our homemade version.  Otherwise, substitute cranberries or just eat without it, which is how I do it.

Place bacon and cheese in the baking dish

All the other ingredients

Place those ingredients in the bowl.

Mix with an immersion blender.

Pour into dish and top with bacon and cheese.

Broccoli (and cauliflower) Soup

When my son was in preschool, there was a soup they made occasionally for their lunch – Mullesoppa.   It was a great easy soup when they were hiking out in the forest to their campsite. I wondered what it was, as he said how much he loved it.  It was especially nice when they had an oven-baked pancake with it.  When they gave me the recipe and it was mainly made with broccoli, I was completely surprised.  I have made this at home a few times a year with great reviews from the little one (and my husband).  The original recipe had potatoes as well.  I have substituted those with cauliflower and extra cream to make this an even more special soup, especially on cold Swedish winters.

I usually chop the vegetables during my weekly menu prep.  However, if you are short on time, you can use frozen vegetables as well.  Otherwise, this is a very simple and easy weeknight meal to have.  Especially, if you have an immersion blender (stavmixer).  It makes the process even easier.  I have a Cuisinart Quick Prep, but any type will work.

Ingredients

• 250 grams broccoli
• 250 cauliflower (blomkål)
• 50 grams butter (smör)
• one clove garlic (vitlök)
• 1/4 tsp onion powder (lökpulver)
• 1 tsp salt
• 5 dl water (even faster if you use an electric kettle to warm up first)
• 2 dl heavy cream (vispgrädde 36%)

Directions

1.  Melt the butter in a large stockpot and add the garlic, onion powder and half of the  salt.
2. Stir the spices in the melted butter and then add the broccoli and cauliflower.  Stir.
3. I like my vegetables roasted or fried a little, that is why I add the water after a few minutes of sauteing the vegetables in the butter.  Then add the 5 dl of water (preferably hot water from the kettle).
4. Cook for approximately 15 minutes until the vegetables are soft.
5. Using an immersion blender, pulverize the vegetables until they are pureed.
6. Add the 2 dl of heavy cream and the other half of the salt.  Then mix again with the blender.
7. Done.  Enjoy your soup.

* The soup is even nicer with some bacon, grated parmesan cheese, crème fraiche or other garnish of your choice on top. Yum!

Butter and garlic together

Saute the veggies

Mix when done.

Add the cream and enjoy.