Scandinavian flavours for festive season

I dream of having a Swedish smorgasbord one year for our Christmas lunch, and perhaps we will when the whole family gathers and can help me. My recipes today, with this in mind, are for you to enjoy over the festive season. My thoughts have turned to the food of Scandinavia this week as my daughter and granddaughter have just returned to live in Denmark.

Laxpudding is a traditional Swedish dish of salmon, sliced potato, onion and dill with an egg custard and lashings of butter. The ingredients are layered together in a gratin dish and baked in the oven. It is a great way to use any leftover pieces of salmon that you may have in the fridge after Christmas. Although usually made with gravlax, other kinds of salmon can be used - hot or cold smoked salmon, fresh or cooked salmon or a combination. I have cut back on the amount of butter that is often served with laxpudding and enjoy it instead with a squeeze of lemon.

Despite its simplicity, laxpudding is an elegant and delicious dish that can be served for a family meal or when entertaining. Serve it with peas and rye bread or with a pickled cucumber salad or leafy greens. You can easily increase the quantities for more people.

Pickled cucumber salad - Danish agurkesalat - is a very popular salad in Scandinavia. It is clean and crisp and excellent with salmon, poultry, pork and frikadeller (meatballs). It is one of the salads served as part of a Swedish smorgasbord and in Denmark it is also used as a garnish on open sandwiches and hot dogs. I find it a refreshing addition to our Christmas table and will make it again this year.

Risalamande, also known as ris a l'amande, is a creamy rice pudding with almonds that every family will enjoy on Christmas Eve in Denmark. It is served chilled with a warm cherry sauce and is absolutely wonderful. You can make it a day ahead or in the morning on Christmas Eve so the ingredients have time to mingle. You could certainly leave out the almonds and alcohol for small children.

There is a charming custom associated with risalamande. One whole almond is buried in the pudding and the person who finds it will not only have good luck in the New Year, but will be given a gift, called a mandelgaven. This could be a marzipan pig or a chocolate heart.

There is likely to be fun and games and even cheating when the risalamande is served, especially when children are present. The person who finds the almond may keep it hidden in their cheek until all the pudding has been eaten. They will then reveal the almond and are given the gift. For the children there may be extra almonds hidden in the pudding or there will be a gift for each of them.

This reminds me of the anticipation and excitement we felt when we searched for the silver coins in our Christmas pudding when I was a child and, we got to keep the money!

Risalamande - rice and almond pudding

Serves 6

4 cups whole milk

1 small pinch of salt

1 vanilla bean, cut lengthways with the seeds scraped (or 1-2 tsp vanilla extract)

½ cup arborio rice

¼ cup sugar

¼ cup slivered almonds or chopped blanched almonds

3 drops almond extract (optional)

1 cup 35 per cent cream

1-2 tbsp sherry

1 whole almond to hide

Rinse out a heavy-bottomed saucepan with water (this stops the milk catching), add the milk, vanilla bean pod and seeds and bring to the boil. When the milk boils, add the rice and stir constantly for five minutes. Turn the heat down to low and cook for 45 minutes, stirring from time to time. Use a heat diffuser on gas as the milk can easily catch.

When the rice is cooked and the milk has become creamy, take it off the heat. It should be a loose mixture and will thicken as it cools. Stir in the sugar, almonds, vanilla extract and almond extract (if using). Tip into a shallow bowl big enough to take the whipped cream as well, and cool to room temperature in the fridge.

Whip the cream with the sherry to soft peaks and fold into the rice pudding. Taste and adjust the sweetness and flavouring if needed. Cover with plastic wrap and chill. Serve the cold risalamande with warm cherry sauce.

Cherry sauce

500 g cherries, pitted or not

½ cinnamon quill

1 cup water

¼ cup sugar to taste

1 squeeze of lemon juice

2 tsp arrowroot slaked with 1 tbsp water

1 tbsp kirsch or other cherry liqueur (optional)

Heat sugar, cinnamon stick and water slowly in a saucepan and stir to dissolve. Turn the heat up a little and boil for five minutes to make the syrup. Add the cherries, cover and simmer for five minutes. Taste for sweetness and adjust as needed. Add a squeeze of lemon to balance the sweetness. Add the slaked arrowroot and simmer for two minutes until thickened and clear. Stir in the kirsch if using. Serve the cherry sauce warm with the cold risalamande.

Laxpudding

Serves 4

5-6 medium potatoes (750-800g)

1 onion, thinly sliced

2 tbsp butter or sunflower oil

250 g sliced gravlax, cold or hot smoked salmon or fresh salmon

2 free-range eggs

200 ml milk or half milk and half cream

sea salt and freshly ground pepper

1 bunch dill, chopped and sprigs for garnish

1 lemon to serve

If using gravlax and it is very salty, soak for a few hours in milk and water first. Place the whole potatoes in a pan of cold water with salt and cook until tender. Drain and, while still hot, peel and then slice fairly thinly. Fry the onion gently in one tablespoon of the butter or oil until soft. Lightly beat the eggs with the milk, or milk and cream, and seasoning.

Grease a 20-22 centimetre gratin dish or deep pie dish with butter or oil and line with baking paper if you want to lift the pudding out of the dish for serving. Preheat the oven to 180C fan, or 200C regular.

Laxpudding is assembled in two layers of potato, onion, salmon and dill with another layer of potato on top. Arrange a third of the sliced potatoes in the bottom of the dish and spread half the onion slices over this and then half the sliced salmon. Sprinkle with plenty of chopped dill, and a pinch of salt and pepper. Repeat the layer and then add the final layer of potato. Press the potato firmly down in the dish with your hands.

Pour the custard all over the pudding and dot with the remaining butter or drizzle with oil. Bake for about 40 minutes or until set and turning golden. Let stand for five or 10 minutes and then, if removing, lift out of the dish on to a board or plate. Serve cut into slices with lemon wedges and peas or a green salad. Garnish with fresh dill sprigs.

Pickled cucumber salad - agurkesalat

Serves 6

2 telegraph cucumbers

3 tsp sea salt

Pickling dressing

½ cup white-wine vinegar

1½ tbsp castor sugar

½ tsp sea salt, if needed

¼ tsp white or black pepper

2 tbsp chopped dill or parsley

Scrub the cucumbers and then top and tail. Score the skin lengthways with a fork or part-peel in strips if you want to.

Slice cucumbers very thinly onto two dinner plates and sprinkle salt between the layers. Stack the cucumber plates one on the other, put two more plates on top to act as weights and leave for two hours. Drain the cucumber slices and pat dry on paper towels.

Meanwhile, mix the pickling dressing ingredients together and pour over the cucumber slices and strew with half the chopped dill or parsley. Chill for two to three hours. Lift the cucumber out of the pickling liquid with a slotted spoon and place in a serving dish. Sprinkle on the rest of the chopped dill or parsley as garnish.

>>Diana Lampe is a Canberra writer, dlampe@bigpond.net.au