Icelandic cooking, recipes and food

300 g smoked salmon 3 eggs, hard-boiled 2 tbs mayonnaise 4 tbs sour cream Dill Aromat or Accent (may be left out) Chop the salmon very finely, e.g. in a food processor, but do not process into a paste – there should be tiny pieces of salmon in the spread. Mash the eggs with a fork and mix together the eggs, salmon, mayonnaise and sour cream. Add a little Aromat and dill. Chill and serve with crackers or slices of white baguette.

3 layers of bread (refer to the first sandwich loaf post for more information) 200 g mayonnaise 100 g sour cream 5 hard-boiled eggs 200 g canned tuna 1 medium onion Aromat or Accent (may be left out or replaced with garlic powder) Mix together mayo, cream and Aromat. Mash the eggs with a fork and drain the tuna well. Chop the onion very finely. Mix everything together and layer between the bread slices. Also put some spread on the ends and sides of the loaf and decorate with tuna, egg slices, and salad leaves.

Party-sized cake For 3 layers of bread (refer to the first sandwich loaf post for more information)   150 g mayonnaise 100 g sour cream Aromat or Accent, to taste (may be left out) dash of garlic powder dash of freshly ground black pepper (may be left out)  150 g thinly sliced ham 5 hard-boiled eggs 1/2 can green asparagus Mix together mayo, cream and seasonings. Mash the eggs with a fork and chop the asparagus finely. Mix everything together. Put the spread between the layers of bread, spread mayo-sour cream evenly mixture over the loaf and cover with slices of ham. Garnish with, e.g. tomato roses, egg slices, cucumber, bell peppers, halved or quartered grapes, fresh parsley. Loaf Roll

Garnish: egg, cucumber, shrimps Continuing from last week's post: 4 layers of sandwich bread (rolls if you can get them - must be fully thawed before rolling them out) 300 g mayonnaise 200 g sour cream 300 g arctic shrimp 1/2 red bell pepper 6 hard-boiled eggs Aromat or Accent (may be left out or you can substitute garlic powder) I also like to use a teensy amount of freshly ground black pepper and a dash of garlic powder in shrimp fillings Different pattern, same garnishes  (plus grapes) Mix the mayonnaise and sour cream until smooth and well-blended. Thaw and drain the shrimps well. Finely chop the pepper, mash the eggs with a fork and mix everything together. Put the spread between the layers of bread. Smooth a thin layer of mayo-sour cream mixture evenly over the loaf and garnish, for example with large shrimps, egg slices and vegetables, e.g. bell peppers, cucumbers, tomatoes.  Lots of different garnishes!  

I had planned to post a sandwich loaf recipe much earlier, but I rarely make them and when I do, I don’t use a recipe, so I had to find a set recipe first. I finally did find it, in fact several of them, which I will be posting in the following weeks. Sandwich loaves, or ‘bread cakes’ (in Icelandic: brauðtertur ) as they are called in Iceland, are an enduring presence at Icelandic celebrations where cakes are served. While not an Icelandic invention (I think they may have originated in the USA , or possibly in Sweden ), they have been popular here for at least 50 years and there seems to be no stopping them. While the fillings change according to fashion and whim and we don’t use half as much mayonnaise in them as we once did, they continue to be a vehicle for cooks to display their talents with garnish, and a savoury palate cleanser in between nibbles of all the sweet stuff that's usually served at traditional birthday parties. They are generally made from white bread, and you...

I'm bringing this to the top because I wanted to add a note about the best mayonnaise to use in the recipe. While this is hardly Icelandic, I will say that Icelanders have a fondness for sandwiches filled with mayonnaise-based salads. Shrimp salad is one of the most popular. This is a healthier option that uses less mayonnaise. 2 slices of sandwich bread (I prefer whole-wheat, but French is just as tasty). When I intend to eat a sandwich like this while reading, I use pita bread. 1 small handful frozen arctic shrimp, thawed and drained 1 hard-boiled egg, sliced 1 slice sandwich ham (optional) mayonnaise (see note) pepper or fresh chives Spread mayonnaise on each bread slice according to taste. Put ham slice (if using) on one bread slice and top with egg. Top egg slices with shrimp, grind some pepper over it or sprinkle it with finely chopped chives and close the sandwich. OR Finely chop the ham and mash the egg with a fork. Put into a bowl with shrimp and 2 tbs mayonnaise. Give it ...

This is a cheap and easy tuna spread that is good on bread and crackers, in sandwiches and sandwich cakes. For some reason, spreads like this are called “salads” in Icelandic. Ingredients : 1 regular can tuna, well drained. I generally use tuna in brine or water, but tuna in oil can be used as well. The medium quality supermarket brands are suitable for this spread. When draining, cut off the lid of the can completely, hold it and upend the can to let most of the juice run off, then press the lid into the can to squeeze out as much liquid as possible. If you don’t, the spread will be soggy. 3-4 tbs mayonnaise, or more if you love the taste of it. I prefer to just use it as a binding agent rather than have the other ingredients swimming in it. Some of the mayo can be replaced with sour cream for a fresher taste – especially good if you use chives instead of onion. 1 hardboiled egg, chopped. I either put it twice through an egg slicer, once lengthwise and once crosswise, or if I’m not ma...

I’m feeling a little uninventive today, so I am going to post a recipe for a good sandwich I sometimes buy or make: roast beef. For 1 sandwich, take 2 slices of bread (white or whole-wheat), put one slice aside and top the other with 2-3 slices of cold roast beef. Smear some remoulade (scroll down to the bottom of the page to see recipe) on top of the roast beef, add 4-5 slices of pickled cucumber/gherkin OR a couple of slices of canned apricots, and about 2 tsp of French fried onions. Top with the other slice of bread and enjoy. I like this sandwich best when it’s newly made and the onions are still crunchy, but it is quite good even when they have gone soft. The version with the pickled cucumber is widely available wherever sandwiches are sold in supermarkets and highway diners in Iceland.