Autumn harvest in Hovdala

M. was here, for most of September. We traveled all over Scania, the southernmost province of Sweden, and took occasional outings a bit further to the north.

What we came to discover is that Sweden is an incredibly beautiful country. Most people will say that this is weather-dependent, i.e. everything is more beautiful in the sun. However, I beg to differ, not the least because the few times we were caught in the rain while exploring the nature reserves deep in the forest were some of the best: that's when we tasted the most delicious apples, sighted does, were invited for cookies and tea in a castle-turned-hotel, and had some of the deepest naps, soaking wet on the bus heading back home.

As part of our roaming of the countryside, some time in late September we visited Hovdala - the site of a 16th century castle, for an autumn fair where locals showcased and sold their organic produce. Autumn is such a great season, one where we get to reap the rewards of our hard labor. Pumpkins and gourds, mushrooms of all shapes, colors, and sizes, and local apples were on display. I was particularly impressed by the locally produced honey, courtesy of the Adopt a Bee initiative. They recognize that bees are the key for maintaining biodiversity, due to their important role in pollination, so they work to raise awareness of the role of bees, increase their numbers, and make possible for the larger community to take part and contribute. We bought a jar of their honey and it was gone in the blink of an eye (I blame G. - she loved it and ate it all).

It was a really great and eventful day (G. got to feed and pet the animals, watch tent pegging competition, learn about ancient Swedish handcrafted toys), and we learned plenty about how passionate locals work to preserve their local food and crafts. Porcini soup with homemade bread and a merengue, almond paste, caramel and cream Hovdala cake, really sweetened the day. It all made me miss my garden and got me dreaming about all the new and exciting produce we will grow next year.

M. je vecinu septembra proveo ovdje sa mnom. Obisli smo citavu Skane regiju (jug Svedske), uz poneki izlet i nesto sjevernije.

Svedska je zaista lijepa, a nista to ne potvrdjuje vise od obilazaka manjih gradova i upoznavanja sa zivotom 'obicnih' ljudi. Neki kazu da je Svedska lijepa samo kad je lijepo vrijeme, ali, slucajno ili ne, neki od najljepsih nasih momenata desili su se dok smo kisnuli u sred prirodnog rezervata ili setajuci sumom. Tada smo probali najukusnije jabuke, posmatrali srne, bili pozvani na kafu i kolace u nekadasnji dvorac (sada hotel), i spavali snom djeteta, mokri i umorni u autobusu koji nas je vozio nazad kuci.

Pri jednom od takvih obilazaka posjetili smo i dvorac Hovdala - zdanje iz sesnaestog vijeka (tako dobro ocuvano i restaurirano da bi se postidio svaki nas historijski spomenik), u vrijeme odrzavanja jesenskog sajma domacih proizvoda. Jesen je divno godisnje doba u kojem napokon ubiremo plodove naseg napornog rada. Raznobojne tikve, gljive svih oblika, boja i velicina, i domace jabuke ukrasavale su brojne standove. Posebno me dojmila Adopt a Bee inicijativa koja ukljucuje lokalnu zajednicu u borbu za zastitu pcela, nudi domaci med i podize svijest o bitnosti pcela za ocuvanje biodiverziteta. Kupili smo teglu njihovog meda koji je bio odlican, i kojeg je G. pojela u tren oka.

Dan je bio zaista divan, sa mnogo raznolikog sadrzaja (G. je hranila domace zivotinje, gledala takmicenje sa konjima, ucila o starim, svedskim rezbarenim igrackama). Posvjedocili smo trudu i nastojanjima domacih proizvodjaca da ocuvaju svoje lokalne proizvode i zanate. Uzivala sam i u corbi od vrganja sa domacim hljebom i Hovdala torti od meringue kora, badema, karamele i kreme. U svemu tome meni je nedostajala nasa basta i radovala sam se svemu sto cemo saditi iduceg proljeca. Jos samo da M. pristane da izgradimo jednu staklenu kucicu (kao na slici).

The Joy of Foraging and a Porcini Risotto

Foraging. That's exactly how we spent most of late August/early September.

It was the perfect time of year for porcini mushrooms. A 70-year old friend and an experienced forager showed us around Hässeholmsgården, the forest near our house. In preparation, I also spoke to my father, an avid forager, and got instructions on how to tell poisonous from safe mushrooms, how to best pick them, and which recipes to try out.

But my first outing to the woods was disastrous. I came back home with a single porcini in my hand. The reason was that it is really necessary to train your eye to see the porcini on the ground as they are the true masters of disguise. Their cap is of brownish to gray color, which tends to blend perfectly with the color of fallen leaves. I even found some that literally looked as if they had purposefully used the leaves for cover and shade.

Very clever.

Over time, I got much better though. Soon, we were coming home with bags full of mushrooms after only a couple hours in the woods. I made porcini omelettes for breakfast, porcini risottos for lunch, and puff pastries with porcini mushrooms and Jerusalem artichokes for dinner.

G. always went with us as well, but even though she learned a lot about telling which mushrooms are poisonous or inedible, she rarely helped with foraging. Her fascination lay with baby frogs, which she would catch, play with, name, use to scare our aunt, plead to bring home, etc.

Veci dio druge polovine augusta i pocetka septembra proveli smo u sumi tragajuci za vrganjima.

To doba godine je idealno za branje mladih vrganja. Poznanica koja sa svojih 70 godina i dalje vrlo aktivno skuplja jestive plodove sume, nas je uputila gdje i kada da trazimo vrganje u sumi pored naseg grada. Prije prvog branja razgovarala sam i sa ocem, strastvenim ljubiteljem i dobrim poznavaocem gljiva, te dobila savjete o raspoznavanju otrovnih od jestivih gljiva, njihovom branju i, kako on kaze, lovackim receptima.

Medjutim, moje prvo branje zavrsilo je neslavno. Dosla sam kuci sa samo jednim vrganjem u ruci. Potragu nam je otezalo vec opalo mokro lisce koje su vrganji vrlo spretno ''koristili''. Kapica vrganja je sivkasto-smedje boje i izvrsno se stapa sa jesenjim pokrovom lisca, tako da je za njihovo primjecivanje potrebno izuzetno iskusno i trenirano oko. Kasnije sam nalazila i neke koje kao da su namjenski koristile lisce kao zaklon.

Veoma mudro.

Nakon nekog vremena (i dosta naprezanja ociju), popravila sam se. Uskoro smo se vracali kuci da korpama prepunim vrganja, i to nakon samo par sati setanja sumom. Iz dana u dan pravila sam omlete sa vrganjima za dorucak, rizoto za rucak, i lisnato tijesto sa sa vrganjima i cicokama za veceru.

G. je uvijek isla s nama, i iako je naucila mnogo o razlikama izmedju otrovnih, neotrovnih i nejestivih gljiva, nije nam znacajno pomagala u samoj potrazi za gljivama. Fascinirale su je male zabe kojih je suma bila prepuna. Ona bi ih hvatala, igrala se s njima, davala im imena, njima plasila nasu tetku, molila da jednu ponese kuci, i tako ukrug.

I am sharing the risotto recipe with you since it was my family's favorite for this autumn. It is based in part on Mario Batali's risotto recipe. Since most of our foraging trips were in late afternoon, the light was not very good for on-the-spot mushroom photography, but you can find one here on my Instagram page. I am thrilled and thankful that our early autumn was blessed with the porcini feast. Another one of nature's gifts to cherish.

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S vama cu podijeliti recept za rizoto - omiljeno jelo s vrganjima u mojoj porodici. Djelimicno je baziran na rizoto receptu americkog kuhara italijanskog porijekla (Mario Batali). Zaista sam sretna i zahvalna sto smo ove rane jeseni uzivali u gozbi od vrganja. Jos jedan nesebicni dar prirode.

Risotto al Porcini

Ingredients

2 cloves garlic, diced
1/4 cup + 2 tbsp olive oil
1 medium onion, diced
2 cups Arborio rice
500 g porcini, cleaned and cut lengthwise
3 1/2 cups chicken or vegetable stock, hot (I use plain hot water combined with 1/8 tsp of mixed herbal spices)
2 tbsp butter
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmigiano-Regiano, plus more for shavings
salt, black pepper


Method

Heat oil in a skillet over medium heat, and fry the garlic bits for 30 seconds (do not let them burn). Add sliced porcini, 1/4 teaspoon salt and 1/8 teaspoons black pepper. Fry until the liquid that porcini releases has all but evaporated. Remove from heat. Transfer porcini in a cool bowl to prevent further frying in a hot skillet. Heat 1/4 cup olive oil in the same skillet. Add onion and cook until translucent. Add two cups of rice and stir until opaque and translucent.

Add 1 cup of hot chicken or vegetable stock and salt, and cook until almost all water is absorbed. When the final 1/2 cup of stock has been added, stir in the fried porcini. Add butter, and stir until melted. Finally, ad parmigiano cheese and stir. Rice should be creamy but firm. Warm up serving plates in the oven. Serve risotto alongside fresh parmigiano shavings and herbs.

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Risotto al Porcini

Sastojci

2 cesnja bijelog luka
1/4 mjerice + 2 kasike maslinovog ulja
1 luk srednje velicine
2 mjerice Arborio rize
500 g vrganja, ociscenih i narezanih po duzini
3 1/2 mjerice pileceg ili povrtnog temeljca
2 kasike maslaca
1/2 mjerice narendanog svjezeg parmezana
sol, crni biber


Priprema

Zagrijte ulje u dubokoj tavi i proprzite nasitnjeni bijeli luk. Dodajte vrganje, 1/4 kasicice soli i 1/8 kasicice crnog bibera. Przite dok tekucina koju vrganji puste u potpunosti ne ispari. Przene vrganje prebacite u zdjelu. Ugrijte 1/4 mjerice maslinovog ulja u tavi u kojoj ste przili vrganje. Dodajte luk i przite dok ne postane providan. Dodajte dvije mjerice Arborio rize i mijesajte drvenom kasikom dok riza ne postane sjajna i kristalasta.

Dodajte 1 mjericu vruceg temeljca i 1/2 kasicice soli, i kuhajte uz mijesanje dok se sva voda ne upije. Nastavite dodavati jednu po jednu mjericu temeljca, cekajuci uvijek da se voda upije prije dodavanja naredne mjerice. Nakon sto dodate zadnju 1/2 mjerice temeljca, umijesajte przene vrganje. Dodajte maslac i mijesajte. Na kraju dodajte i parmezan. Riza treba da bude kremasta ali cvrsta. U toploj pecnici zagrijte tanjire. Servirajte rizoto sa parmezanom i svjezim biljem.

The Tree House

Walking in the woods can simultaneously be calming and exciting. I often get overwhelmed by the grandeur of nature; the sense of other things out there that are larger than I makes me turn inward and ponder my role in it all. At the same time, the potential for adventure (will we see any animals?, will we discover new plants?, or, in particularly extreme cases, what if we get lost?) pushes me forward to walk the new grounds with a racing heartbeat.

The forests are beautiful, simple yet grand, and it is easy to experience a sense of belonging among the trees.

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Setnja sumom moze istovremeno biti i umirujuce i uzbudljivo iskustvo. Suma (i sav zivot koji vrvi u njoj) je odusevljavajuce grandiozna. Spoznaja da je svijet prepun stvari koje su vece od mene ucini da se zapitam koja je moja uloga i sta zelim da bude moja uloga u svemu tome. U isto vrijeme, vodi me osjecaj uzbudjenja: hocemo li naici na divlje zivotinje?, hocemo li otkriti nove biljke?, ili, u ekstremnim situacijama, sta ako se izgubimo?

Suma ocarava svojom jednostavnoscu. Ja svaki put osjetim da joj pripadam.

On a lovely, warm summer day, just a few days after I arrived back to Sweden, my family suggested that they take me out for a hike. We'll show you the tree house, G. promised, excitedly. I accepted, excitedly. I believe she would love to live in a tree house, if only it were possible.

We set out for a hike and the road takes us to the shores of Finja lake (Finjasjon). We take in the sight of the calm, dark blue lake, and proceed to walk up a small hill. G. chases butterflies as we climb. The south of Sweden is stubbornly flat, and yet I was surprised with the view at the top: endless green and golden valleys and hillocks spread far in the distance (You can see entire Sweden from here, M. would later joke).

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Nekoliko dana nakon sto sam se vratila u Svedsku, moji su predlozili da napravimo izlet u prirodi. Pokazat cemo ti tree house!, obecala mi je G., sa uzbudjenjem. Ja sam prihvatila sa vjerovatno jednakim uzbudjenjem.

Na dvadeset minuta voznje biciklima od naseg grada nalazi se Finja jezero. Odmorili smo se na obali mirnog jezera i nastavili do obliznjeg brda. G. je trcala za leptirovima dok smo se peli uzbrdo. Jug Svedske je tvrdoglavo ravan, i, iako sam to znala od ranije, kad smo stigli na vrh ipak sam bila zatecena: beskrajna zelena i zlatna polja prostiru se u nedogled (M. ce kasnije u sali prokomentarisati: Odavdje vidis citavu Svedsku.).

The tree house was almost at the top of the hill, right at the entrance to the forest. It doubles as a restaurant, blending well with the surrounding nature. We walked in the woods behind it; the sun was peeking through the tall tree branches. Finally, we ended at a flat, sun-kissed hilltop.

G. ran around, her laughter echoing in the stillness around us. She is calling for us, telling us that she has discovered an apple tree. It is perfectly ripe and we pick some of its fruit. Delicious and refreshing. There are also blackberry bushes all around. An unexpected feast.

We rest here, munching on apples and watching the sun set. On our way back home, I realize I have left my jacket behind. G. remembers I dropped it on the ground when I was helping her reach for the apples. We drive back and I climb the hill alone while they all wait for me at the bottom.

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Tree house se nalazi na samom vrhu brda, na ulazu u sumu. Koristi se kao restoran, i svojom gradnjom ne narusava prirodni ambijent. Setnju smo nastavili kroz sumu i izasli na osuncan plato na vrhu brda.

G. trci uokolo a njen osmijeh odjekuje u tisini koja je oko nas. Doziva nas, otkrila je drvo jabuke sa savrseno zrelim plodovima. Uberemo nekoliko plodova, socni su i osvjezavajuci. Otkrivamo i grm zrele kupine u blizini. Neocekivana gozba.

Napravimo pauzu ispod jabukovog drveta, uzivajuci u jabukama i posmatrajuci zalazak sunca. Pri povratku kuci, shvatim da sam negdje zaboravila jaknu. Gabi se sjeti da sam je spustila na tlo kad sam joj pomagala da ubere jabuku. Vozimo se natrag do podnozja brda, i dok one ostaju u podnozju, ja se sama penjem uzbrdo.

The sun has already set and a bluish shadow is covering the grass. It is eerily quiet and I hear nothing but my footsteps in the grass; the nature is getting ready to rest for the day. As I am walking to where the apple tree is, I spot my jacket from the distance and breathe a sigh of relief. Someone has found it and hung it on a nearby bush. My heart warms at the thought of a kind stranger.

My jacket in hand, I run down the hill.

Thank goodness you found your jacket, says G. while showing me the photo of the moon that she just took. Thank goodness for this lovely day, I think to myself.

*****

Sunce je vec zaslo i plava sjena prekriva travu. Jezivo je tiho; priroda se sprema za pocinak. Iz daljine ugledam drvo jabuke i na grmu pored, okacena na grani bijeli se moja jakna. Neko nepoznat ju je nasao i okacio na granu grma. Nasmjesim se na pomisao o ljubaznom strancu.
Sa jaknom u ruci, sjurim niz brdo.

G. je sretna jer sam pronasla jaknu. Smijesi se i pokazuje mi fotografiju mjeseca koju je upravo napravila. Ja sam zahvalna na ovom divnom danu.

Apple and Walnut Bundt Cake


Ingredients

2 1/2 cups flour
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 vanilla bean
3 eggs
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 1/4 cup olive oil
3 cups grated apples
1 cup roasted, chopped walnuts


Method

Preheat the oven to 200 C (325 F).

Roast walnuts for 5 minutes in a warm oven, stirring occasionally. Whisk oil with sugar, and add eggs, one at a time. Mix in vanilla seeds. Sift dry ingredients (flour, salt, and baking soda). Add to the mixture. Fold in apples and walnuts.

Coat the bundt pan with oil, carefully greasing every nook and cranny. Sift the flour all over the bottom and the sides of the pan. This will help the cake not stick and come out of the pan easily when baked. Bake the cake for 45 minutes. Cool for 30 minutes before removing from the pan. Sprinkle with cinnamon sugar, and serve. Note: I used mini bundt cake pans, and one medium size pan. The measurements in this recipe are meant for a standard size bundt pan.

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Bundt torta sa jabukama i orasima


Sastojci

2 1/2 mjerice brasna
1/2 kasicica soli
1/2 kasicice sode bikarbone
1 stapic vanilije
3 jaja
1 1/2 mjerice secera
1 1/4 mjerice maslinovog ulja
3 mjerice narendanih jabuka
1 mjerica przenih, nasitnjenih oraha


Priprema

Zagrijati pecnicu na 200 C (325 F).

Proprzite orahe u toploj pecnici (oko 5 minuta, uz povremeno mijesanje). Rucno umutite ulje sa secerom, i dodajite jedno po jedno jaje, uz mijesanje. Dodajte i zrna vanilije. Prosijte, ili pomijesajte, suhe sastojke (brasno, sol i sodu). Dodajte ih prethodnoj smjesi i umutite. Umijesajte jabuke i orahe.

Pazljivo nauljite posudu za pecenje bundt torte, prekrivajuci uljem citavu povrsinu. Nakon toga pobrasnite nauljene dijelove. Na ovaj nacin torta ce se nakon pecenja lakse odvojiti od posude. Pecite tortu 45 minuta. Ohladite je 30 minuta prije vadjenja. Pospite mjesavinom cimeta i secera, i servirajte. Napomena: Ja sam koristila manje kalupe i dobila osam manjih tortica i jednu tortu srednje velicine.