Alright, so I’m back

by Dianna on November 20, 2012

How rude of me to start up this blog, and then just disappear for a few months.

Now let me tell you why.

Shells and stones

But first let me clarify……

No, this isn’t a picture of some weird seafood recipe here from Denmark. No food in this post. But quite a few rocks.

Not that rocks have anything to do with my absence. I just thought you should have something to look at.

Well, for the past 3-4 years my back have been a nuisance. I’ve always had a weak back, ever since I was a child. And then for some reason it got really bad a few years ago.

I had 3 weeks of not really being able to move a whole lot. The problem was in my lower back, and I even got 2 injections from my doctor. I don’t like needles, so I’m glad it was in my lower back. That meant I couldn’t see the needles.

Stones in water

Since then it’s been a mixture of good periods and bad periods. But never as bad as those 3 weeks. Thankfully!!!

Then in September it got worse again. I could still move, but my back was hurting a lot more. And I got tired very easily. I couldn’t stand up for very long, without more and more pain. After putting makeup on, I had to sit down and take a rest.

Cooking (which you have to stand up for) became painful, instead of enjoyable. I did try to cook and photograph something for the blog. I just rushed through the whole photography part, as my back was hurting so much it make my whole body shiver. And that’s all the energy I had that day.

So I decided I had to take a break from the blog. I kinda had to.

For a while there I was sleeping 10 hours every night. And I took naps. Both of which are so unlike me. One night, when going to bed, I realized it had only been 13 hours since I got up. And I spent an hour of them taking a nap. Now, that’s just depressing. And a waste of time.

Stones under water

So in the last few months I’ve been to see my doctor 3 times.

I’ve been to the hospital to have X-Rays taken. I’ve never tried that before, so that was kinda exciting.

In the waiting area there was about 4-5 old people. So I smiled at them, and thought “So I guess these are my kinda peeps now”. I’ve since been told that people of all ages get X-Rays taken, and it was  just a coincidence everybody there was 40-50 years older than me.

But I do sometimes feel like I move like an 80-year old woman.

When I got the results from the X-Rays, the doctor named 4 different things which are wrong with my back. And then she said these sweet words “No wonder you’ve been in pain”.

That kinda stopped me from thinking (almost constantly), that maybe I’m just weak and whiny. Turns out I’m not. And I have the X-Rays to prove it.

Well, actually the doctor has the X-Rays to prove it.

So now I’m waiting to hear from the hospital. My doctor has referred me to a specialist there, but you always have to wait and wait to get an appointment or results.

It truly is a waiting game. And you have to have patience. Patience is one of those virtues I don’t have. I’m just being honest.

Anyways, food coming later this week. And hopefully on a regular basis from now on.

Wax the Dog by the water

Final words.

No, that isn’t my dog. But I do know it.

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Brothy Garlic Soup with Cabbage and Carrots

by Dianna on September 7, 2012

Brothy Garlic Soup with Cabbage and Carrots
Whenever a recipe calls for a whole garlic, then I’m hooked. I remember once making a sauce with 40 cloves of garlic in it.Yes!!! 40!!!

What is it about using massive amounts of garlic that’s so exciting?? Or is it just me that’s get excited about lots of garlic?

And roasted garlic. Love, love, love.

But this isn’t about roasted garlic. It is about slicing up a bulb of garlic, and making a wonderful brothy soup with it.

Brothy Garlic Soup with Cabbage and Carrots

I don’t always know how to feel about soup. I have a tendency to think of it as boring food. Especially soup with lots of vegetables. Boring!! Healthy in that “Oh no, do I have to eat this” kinda way.

But whenever I make soup, I always like it. And then I think “Why don’t I make soup more?” Then a couple of days go by, and I totally forget how much I liked it, and I’m back to “Boring, vegetable soup”.

Tomato soup on the other hand, always love it. Even the stuff that comes out of a can. Yeah, I’m all about the finer things in life.

Brothy Garlic Soup with Cabbage and Carrots

This soup is delicious. I enjoyed it everytime I had a bowl of it. It’s got vegetables in it, and I didn’t find it too healthy-tasting. It’s brothy, no cream (which is something I like in soup). And it’s easy to turn it into a vegetarian meal.

I had it with freshly baked buttermilk biscuits with butter (whoa, that’s a lot of b’s) the first day, and with crusty bread the second day.

There’s cabbage in it. That kinda sounds like a warning, it’s not. Unless you feel that way about cabbage, that you need to warned about it. Then please, consider it a warning.

I used what I believe is called Oxheart cabbage. It might be called something else, if so, I would love to hear. Here we call it (directly translated) pointy cabbage. Oh yeah, we have a way with words.

Anyway, you can see a quarter of the cabbage in most of the pictures. So maybe you recognize it. But you can use just about any kind of cabbage you feel like.

If you’re worried about the garlic being too much, it is a whole garlic. Then relax, it’s actually really mild. And delicious. Did I say that already?

Brothy Garlic Soup with Cabbage and Carrots

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Brothy Garlic Soup with Cabbage and Carrots

Yield: 4-6

Brothy Garlic Soup with Cabbage and Carrots

What You Need

  • 1 bulb garlic
  • 1/4 cabbage (I used oxheart)
  • 3 tablespoons olive oil
  • handful of thyme
  • 2 baking potatoes, about 1 pound
  • 2-4 carrots, depending on size
  • 6-7 cups of chicken stock (use vegetable stock for vegetarian option)
  • salt and pepper
  • 1 tablespoon of lemon juice
  • parsley, chopped

What You Do

  1. Divide the garlic into cloves. Peel them, and slice them thinly.
  2. Chop the cabbage into thin slices.
  3. Heat the oil in a pot (big enough for the soup and with a lid).
  4. Cook the cabbage gently for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until softened.
  5. Add the whole thyme stalks and garlic, and cook for another 5 minutes.
  6. Peel the potatoes and carrots, and dice them. Not too big, and not too small.
  7. Add them to the pot, and stir it around with a wooden spoon.
  8. Add the stock, and bring to a boil. Let it simmer for 20 minutes, with the lid partially covering it.
  9. Season it with salt and pepper, and add the lemon juice.
  10. Turn of the heat, and let it sit for a few minutes.
  11. Chop the parsley.
  12. Serve in bowls, with parsley sprinkled on top.

Notes

http://diannaskitchen.com/2012/09/07/brothy-garlic-soup-with-cabbage-and-carrots/

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Gooseberry Crumble

Gooseberry Crumble

by Dianna on August 31, 2012

Gooseberry Crumble

So this is what I did with the rest of my gooseberries. And it works with any kind of fruit or berry.

I could totally go for a mixture of apples and blackberries right now.

Or maybe peaches.

Gooseberry Crumble

But I do also love it with just apples. My mom used to make this crumble with apples a lot, when I was a child. It was her go-to recipe, and people always loved it.

People didn’t really do crumbles like this in Denmark then. Come to think of it, I’m not sure that has changed all that much. Actually I can only remember one person, besides me and my mom, who has ever made me a crumble.

Back to this recipe. My mom’s childhood friend, Preben (here I go again with the weird names) moved to England, found himself a wife there (Julie), and then they moved back to Denmark.

And since Preben and Julie, and my parents were friends, I’m guessing Julie made crumble for them. And that’s how my mom go the recipe.

Preben and Julie also had a son, Martin. He’s about my age, slightly younger. We used to play together a lot. I even got pictures to prove it.

Martin had a bad habit. He was a biter. He bit me so hard once, it made a tear in my top.

Hopefully he’s better behaved now.

Gooseberry Crumble

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Gooseberry Crumble

Gooseberry Crumble

What You Need

  • 1 pound gooseberries
  • 1/4 cup sugar
  • 1-2 tablespoons cornstarch
  • 1-2 tablespoons elderflower cordial
  • 1 cup flour
  • 1/3 cup cold butter, cut into pieces
  • 1/2 sugar

What You Do

  1. Preheat oven to 375 F/ 190 C.
  2. Top and tail the gooseberries.
  3. Mix them with sugar and cornstarch.
  4. Add the elderflower cordial.
  5. Transfer to a buttered oven-proof dish.
  6. Mix the flour and butter with a pastry cutter.
  7. Add the sugar, combine well.
  8. Top the gooseberries with this mixture. Press it down, we're not going for a loose crumble.
  9. Bake for 40-50 minutes.
  10. I served it with sour cream, sweetened with a bit of sugar. And added a little vanilla and a splash of elderflower cordial.
http://diannaskitchen.com/2012/08/31/gooseberry-crumble/

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Crunchy Peanut Butter Hummus

August 24, 2012 Appetizers
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A new season of Junior Masterchef has just started here. I didn’t watch the first season, but felt like giving this one a go. I find it very inspiring how children can have such a passion for cooking. And they really got talent. A 13-year old girl made me feel like a total loser cook, [...]

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Mint Syrup

August 17, 2012 Condiments
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Ok, so I said my mom doesn’t believe in growing anything in her garden that you can actually eat. Well, she does have a few things. And I mean few. But a couple of years ago, I got her to plant two mint plants. And they have spread like crazy. But she doesn’t seem to [...]

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Gooseberry Fool

August 17, 2012 Desserts
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Welcome to Dianna’s Kitchen. Just opened! I’ve actually never cooked anything with gooseberries before. I’ve loved them ever since I was a child, but rarely get to eat them. As a child I only remember one place where I got to eat them. It was at my Grandma Betty’s brother’s house. His name was Svend [...]

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