INTRODUCING::: Dill and cheese bacon potato Cornbread

sweet, savory, chewy,moist and delicious

I am a lover of all things bread. I just can not help myself. It is my favorite " go to" food at anytime of the day. The weather just opened up over Sweden and dumped our first real snow fall of the season. Lilla A is waiting ever so patiently to get out to the sledding hill with his best buddy his pappa. I am going to stay indoors and whip us up a pot of soup and add a little lover to the mix with my dill potato, bacon and cheese corn bread. 


This recipe is ever so veritable. With or without the bacon or the potato. Mix it up and make it as you desire. I add the bacon to give me a full meal and if I am serving with a large buffet meal. I keep it pretty simple and minus the potato and bacon. It is a good little lover, and it never disappoints! 


ingredients:


3-5 medium 350 grams cooked Cherie potatoes(waxy potatoes works best here)
125 grams corn flour
140 grams 6-8 slices- bacon chopped and fried to a slight crisp
60 grams sugar
400 grams white flour
2 tablespoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
3 medium shallots minced
225 grams unsalted butter/salted can be used, but don't add the 1 teaspoon as marked above
440ml full fat milk
400 grams of any hard cheese good melting like cheddar.
35 grams or about 3/4 cup of chopped fresh or frozen dill
3 large eggs lightly beaten


Directions:

organically grown and local produce is always the best 

boiled, cooled, peeled and sliced

• Measure out your flours
• set white flour in the fridge and let cool at least one hour as you prepare the rest of the ingredients (helps to keep the bread fluffy and not so dense)
• Scrub your potatoes and leaving the skin on boil in well salted water until cooked. Strain and let cool until you can handle them. Peel  all 3 and slice 2 into slices, and grate one potato and set aside
• Combine the chilled white flour, corn flour, sugar, baking powder, salt in a large bowel and set aside

Using a non-stick frying pan. Fry up your bacon and when it it is cooked to a slight crisp, but not burned. Remove and drain on a couple pieces of paper towels. When cooled. Chop into bite size pieces and set aside. *Reserve 1-2 tablespoons of the bacon fat and add your minced shallots and fry over a low heat until well caramelized, but not burned. Add a little butter to the pan if need be to help fry the shallots.Take off the heat and add to a small bowl to cool.

Adding the cooled butter to the milk/shallots, egg mixture

best to shred potatoes when completely cooled. 

It is important to let the mixture rest for the complete 20 minutes

Ready for the oven

• Add your chopped bacon to the "dry ingredients" and set aside
• melt your butter and add your cooled caramelized shallots  grated potato and add the milk
• lightly beat your 3 eggs and add to the milk,shallot,grated potato and butter mixture
• In a separate large bowel add half your grated cheese, dill and using a wooden spoon add your wet ingredients to the dry ingredients.Blend until just incorporated. Be careful to not over mix and let the mixture sit undisturbed for 20 minutes
• Preheat the oven to 180 degrees C/360 degrees F

Grease a long deep rectangular baking pan and add the mixture to the prepared pan.
Add the sliced potato slices in a unison manner to the top of the mixture and cover with the rest of the cheese bake for 30-35 minutes or until a tooth pick comes out clean. 

Light, savory, comforting and oh so me....

Lovely, and so good.

Cool and cut into large squares and serve slightly warm or at room temperature. use as any side dish and store any leftovers in the refrigerator. It is lovely sliced and toasted and served for breakfast for the next day.

The Junk.... That makes burgers go oooooooooooooo....Homemade Ketchup, b.b.q. sauce and the almighty burger sauce.

The spidazzzzzz......

Well this month marks my 1st Blog Birthday. Yeah to me!! It has been so much fun, and a lot of joyous work. I feel at times like I am neglecting It's all about the food. Please know that in my heart if I could I would  love to make my blog  a full time job.BUT... I am the major bread winner on this adventure,and so I will have to keep It's all about the food updated  as frequently  as possible for my loyal followers.

I have to give a shout out to all my visitors.WORLDWIDE!!Without you, I would not have a voice in the world of food blogging, and I thank you all for taking the time to read my blog and taking the time to pass the word around..

Let's talk condiments. Mustard, salad dressing, mayo, chili sauce, hot sauce, hoisin sauce. I can go on for my love of "extras" it seems to  never end... I love the things that make my food go..." Oh, now were talking." Ketchup, burger sauce and b.b.q sauce are the quintessential three amigo's of a good burger.
Of course most grocery chains have heeps of products to choose from, but have you ever made your own? A nice little treat to give your food an extra zing, and I promise your mouth is going to thank you.

Adapted From Liselotte Forslin's new cookbook Junk Food  available only in Swedish http://www.adlibris.com/se/product.aspxisbn=918586143X

Sweet Home Ketchup


2 cans of  whole tomatoes ( 400 grams each)
2 00 grams/ apple cider vinegar¨
2 bay leafs
1 pinch of ground cinnamon(or more to taste) 
2 whole cloves
100 grams/ raw sugar(unrefined sugar) use brown if you must
100 grams tomato paste
2 tablespoons potato starch/corn starch
salt, water


Directions:

apple cider vinegar, tomato paste,potato flour,died bay leaf, cinnamon, cloves and raw sugar

1. Open the tined tomatoes and strain the juice from the tomatoes into a bowl. set the juice aside for another use. In a medium heavy bottomed saucepan. Add your apple cider vinegar, bay leafs, cinnamon and cloves, raw sugar and bring to a slow boil. 

slow cooking(I used two cans of crushed tomatoes instead of whole. I used what I had

you can use corn starch if you wish

2. Add the tomatoes, tomato puree and 1 teaspoon of salt. Let the vinegar and tomato mixture come to a simmer with out a lid for at least 45 minutes. Stirring  occasionally to prevent the mixture from burning on the bottom of the pot. After 45 minutes remove the bay leafs and the cloves.

soooooo beautiful!!

3. Using a hand held mixer or a Cuisinart. Puree into a fine sauce. (NOTE: I strained mine and took out all the left over seeds and skins and bits.) Add back to pan(if straining) and turn down heat to low, and add the cold water and potato starch mixture to your tomato mixture and stir until well blended. If it becomes to thick, thin out with some water. Until you get the consistency you desire. Taste, taste, taste is all I can say. I added a few more pinches of both cinnamon and ground cloves as well as some sea salt flakes and freshly ground pepper. MMMMM... good!




Holy Smoke of B.B.Q. sauce Swedish Style


gives 200 grams
300 grams ketchup
3 tablespoons dark brown muscovado sugar or brown sugar
2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
2 tablespoons of spoked paprika powder
2 grated fresh garlic cloves
1 tablespoon mustard powder
1 teaspoon chili flakes
1-2 teaspoons hickory liquid smoke for my Swedish readers: http://www.kryddlandet.se/search.aspx?searchterms=liquid+smoke

what I like to add in my burgers. A quick mince in the Cuisinart a few tablespoons of the Smokey B.B.Q. sauce= mmmm 

Directions:
In a small saucepan add all the ingredients and let come to a simmer. Let cook uncovered for 5 minutes, adjust taste if needed. Let cool. Store in the refrigerator. Add a few tablespoons to your favorite hamburger meat mixture and grill. Fantastic spice and taste.


Dressing Chili style
gives 300 grams

if you have these at your availably PLEASE use them!!

Blend 2 tablespoons of Hellman's mayo(if available)* with 200 grams cream fraiche/sour cream, 3 tablespoons of your favorite chili sauce. 1 tablespoon of relish and 1 teaspoon of Dijon mustard  and salt to taste. Mix all together and let sit in the fridge for at least one hour before serving. Soooo yummy!!

If you can not find "fresh lovely tomatoes this time of year.. These will do as well.

Happy burger making and if you are ever so fortunate to live in the sun, please go out and grill some burgers tonight. I hope you give these a try. So nice on any type of burger, from full beef, pork, veal, turkey, salmon, ostrich, and veggie. The three amigo's of burger bliss will not disappoint.