Icelandic cooking, recipes and food

6-10 fresh herrings, heads removed, gutted and cleaned 2 tbs flour 2 tsp salt ½ tsp ground white pepper 100 g butter or margarine If the herrings are large, butterfly them, otherwise leave them whole. Heat a frying pan with the butter. Mix together flour, salt and pepper and dredge the herring in the mixture. Fry the herring in the pan until golden brown. Serve with cooked potatoes and white sauce with vegetables This recipe also works with mackerel. From 160 fiskréttir by Helga Sigurðardóttir

“All the housewives in the country should be on the habit of acquiring at least one barrel of salted herring for the winter. The barrel must be stored in a cold place, for if the herring goes rancid it will not make good food. It is our duty, Icelandic housewives, to ensure that more is eaten of the herring than is now the case, this wholesome, fine food, which is caught in such abundance off our shores.” Foreword to the chapter on herring dishes in 160 fiskréttir (160 fish dishes) by Helga Sigurðardóttir. Helga Sigurðardóttir was Iceland’s version of Mrs. Beeton. She was not only a cook book author whose books can be found in many Icelandic homes, but also a cooking teacher . Several of the recipes on this blog originally came from one or another of her cookbooks, whether altered or unchanged. In the following weeks I will be posting a selection of dishes from this book, beginning with that gem of a fish, the herring. 2 salted herrings 2 bunches fresh dill, chopped 200 ml whit

Blackcurrants have come to be regarded as a superfood. They are very high in vitamin C, as well as being a good source of potassium, iron and pantothenic acid (vitamin B5). They are also very tasty. When I was growing up, my grandmother's house was surrounded by a hedge of blackcurrant bushes. I loved being able to go out into the garden and pick the ripe berries off the branches and pop them straight into my mouth. 1 kg blackcurrants 100-200 ml water 500-600 g sugar Rinse the berries under cold running water and drain well. Put in a cooking pot and bring to the boil. Cook for about 5 minutes, or until the berries burst, stirring occasionally. Remove from the heat and stir in the sugar until melted. Pour into sterilised jars, filling them completely and closing them while the jam is hot. Should keep for a year, but if you want to make sure, add a preservative.

I love redcurrants , both cooked and raw. I usually make redcurrant jelly , rather than jam, but the jam is good too, especially with smoked ham. I sometimes make jelly from a mixture of redcurrants and stone bramble berries, which has a beautiful ruby-red colour and tastes delicious with strong cheese, and on the side with lamb and all sorts of game. 1 kg redcurrants 500-600 g sugar Rinse the berries under cold running water and drain well. Put in a cooking pot and bring to the boil. Cook for about 5 minutes, or until the berries burst, stirring occasionally. Remove from the heat and stir in the sugar until melted. Pour into sterilised jars, filling them completely and closing them while the jam is hot. Should keep for a year. To make redcurrant jam with a preservative, use 1 kg redcurrants 350 g sugar 1/2 tsp salicylic acid (or other preservative) Make the jam as instructed above, them mix in the preservative before putting the jam in the jars.