Delicious memories

I remember many years ago I had the opportunity to go with my family and some Dutch friends to a luxurious private game farm in South Africa. The excitement before the trip was insurmountable and rightly so.

It is an experience that I remember clearly...for several reasons: firstly, in my young and impressionable mind who hadn't experienced many of the luxuries of the world, the opportunity to stay in a luxury chalet with an amazing view, fantastic service and a private outdoor shower.

The other thing I remember was the private safaris that we had, with our very own private (and oh so handsome) game ranger. The safaris were full of many laughs and fun times together with my family, with cosy tea-times on top of hills with fantastic views. Another thing I remember from this trip was the beautiful animals that we saw, we got about 6 m away from a mommy cheetah with 4 cute little cubs and we went walking through the bushes tracking elephants and learning how to put a "bush-thinking" cap on.

Finally, one of the last things that have stayed with me from that trip was the delicious food that we got to feast on. It was on this trip that my passion for food really started awakening. It was on this trip that I tasted the most delicious soup of my life - Butternut and orange soup. Since then I have been on a mission to recreate this soup and I have finally gotten close enough to be able to share the recipe. Be prepared for the best soup of your life! Butternut is one of my favourite vegetables to use, as it has so much flavour. It isn't that common here in Sweden, but lately I've been able to find it at most of the big grocery stores. This is what a butternut looks like:

Butternut and orange soup:

(This recipe makes enough to feed many people)

To see this recipe in Swedish click here.

1 butternut
1 onion
2 garlic cloves
50g butter
1 celery stalk
½ red chilli, finely chopped
2 cups (5 dl) chicken (or vegetable) stock
½ orange, zest and juice
1 tsp ground nutmeg
1 pinch cinnamon
1 pinch white pepper
1 bay leaf
½ tsp curry
1 dl cream

1. Roughly chop the onion and celery. Sauté them lightly in the butter together with the crushed garlic and chilli in a big pot.
2. Peel the butternut and chop into large cubes. Put the butternut in the pot together with the stock, orange zest and juice and all the spices. Boil for about 30 minutes until the butternut is soft. Remove the bay leaf and blend until smooth.
3. Season with Salt and pepper. Stir in the cream just before serving.

I hope that you enjoy this soup! What is your favourite soup?

Have a great day!

Love,
Heidi

Salmon and avocado tramezzini

A few days ago I was showing a friend of mine from varsity some pictures from home and it made me miss the sea and the sand and the sun. One of the things I love most about South Africa is going out to a lovely restaurant and eating a delicious light lunch...like, for example, a tramezzini. A tramezzini is kind of like a big pita bread, filled with many varieties of fillings and grilled until it is crispy. Here in Sweden, we don't get any tramezzinis, so I decided to experiment and make my own. I used a pita bread, filled it with smoked salmon and avocado and fried it in a pan until it was a delicious golden brown...it turned out great! The closest to home I've been for a while;-)



To see this recipe in Swedish click here.

Here's the recipe for 4 people:

4 pita breads
8 tbsp cream cheese
8 slices of smoked salmon
2 ripe avocados
½ red onion, finely chopped
½ lemon
Some fresh dill
Pepper and salt

1. Spread 1 tbsp cream cheese in each pita bread. Put one slice of salmon and a few slices avocado in each.
2. Fry on medium heat for about 5 minutes on each side, until the bread gets golden brown.
3. Put on a plate. Put some more cream cheese and salmon on top of the pita, together with some more avocado, some red onion, lemon and some dill. Season with salt and pepper.

Enjoy!

Love,
Heidi