Author Archive for Thora
THE LAND OF FIRE AND ICE – LITERALLY
Greetings everyone. I do hope I find you well and happy. I have a few announcements – yes don´t I always… First off – we have migrated back to Iceland for the summer or possibly longer. Volli will fly back and forth but I´m thinking of staying a while with the kids. Many reasons and all of them good.
APPS, COCKTAILS, BBQ AND RESTAURANT RECIPES
I know things have been a little bit slow here at The Basic Cookbook but I blame that on April and my stupid health concept… Just kidding… but all jokes aside things have been kind of crazy here in the Bahamas.
STEAMED SALTED COD
Until quite recently Icelanders always prepared their salted cod for eating by cooking it in water. Of late chefs in Iceland have been developing different methods, many of which have become very popular, since they have proved to draw out the flavor of the fish and have really turned this formerly quite humble food item into gourmet fare. Here is one method developed by one of Iceland´s best chef´s and one of our best friend Siggi, who runs a highly esteemed restaurant on the top floor of a high-rise in the Reykjavík area in Iceland.
STEAMED MUSSELS WITH GINGER AND CHILI
The first time I tasted this dish was at the remote area of Snæfellsnes – Iceland. There is a glacier there – called Snæfellsjökull which is one of the most famous sites of Iceland, primarily due to the novel A Journey to the Center of the Earth (1864) by Jules Verne, in which the protagonists find the entrance to a passage leading to the center of the earth on Snæfellsjökull.
SEMI RAW TROUT WITH WAKAME SALAD
This salad is not really a salad – it´s more like heaven on a plate! It´s ridiculously good and quite easy to make (although I have no idea what most of these ingredients are – but then again – I´m not the chef here!). I have however tasted it and it is beyond words – so here is the recipe – I really hope you give it a try.
THIRSTY ANYONE? ONE CANTALOUPE GRANITA COMING UP!
I made a promise last week to do a number of drinks here on The Basic Cookbook. I´m not backing out of that by any means – and I promise that the drinks will be mind blowingly amazing and sure to make you giggle just a little bit!
DELICIOUS PEAR AND ALMOND CAKE
So since the theme of April is “All things healthy!” I thought it would be appropriate to share this ridiculously delicious pear and almond cake. See… the pears and almonds are super healthy so it´s kind of a no brainer – right?
THE BBQ FEAST
It´s been two amazing weeks of shooting the next batch of video tutorials! The theme this time was BBQ! So last night we had some ribs, grilled chicken, some grilled apricots (I think) with mascarpone cream…
EGG FRIED RICE
I have a thing for rice! – But it took a long time coming. You see – my parents (whom I love and admire) weren´t the greatest chefs on the planet (they´ve improved a lot over the years). Back in the days there were a few taboos at my childhood home: For one we weren´t allowed to use salt.
THE PARIS VIDEO
I just remembered this morning that I never shared the video from Paris. It´s really beautiful and well done I have to say (remember – I was at home with the kids :).
But here it is – I hope you watch it and hey – maybe we can all go next year…
xxx Thora
EGGS BENEDICT ON A SUNDAY MORNING
I remember the first time I had Eggs Benedict! It was on a Sunday morning back in the days when the Chef was still trying to impress me. I was on one of my visits (this is way before we moved in together and his place – the ultimate bachelor pad – had a drum set instead of a dining room table!). I had slept in (those were the days) and was awaken by the incredible smell of Hollandaise sauce. There was also a mimosa and of course the Eggs Benedict. It was one of the most magical mornings in my life.
THINGS ARE MOVING AND SHAKING!
Hello you wonderful foodies out there. I´m so excited that I might burst (it´s either excitement or greed – or both). For the last two days we’ve been super busy shooting the new videos. The theme – as I’ve mentioned before – is BBQ and so far we’ve shot some amazing dishes.
BANANAS IN COFFEE BEAN SYRUP
Since I technically grow bananas I thought it would be highly appropriate to share this delicious banana dessert. It combines so many of my favorite flavors: banana, cinnamon, espresso and lemon!
GRILLED SHRIMP WITH ASIAN BARBECUE SAUCE
Good news! We are finally getting ready to shoot some new video tutorials! I´m so happy that words really can´t describe it. What it means is that I get to sample amazing food all day long! We are starting with BBQ. Why? Well – because we are in the process of creating our first App for the iPhone and the iPad …
MY FAVORITE DAY OF THE YEAR!
Once a year there is a day where you can eat chocolate buns all day long. I call them buns for a lack of a better word but this day is a tradition in Iceland and I celebrate it (or try to) wherever I´m in the world. The only problem is that they are kind of tricky to make and last year… well that was a sad story.
RUSTIC TART WITH APPLES AND PLUMS
Ok – I know it´s kind of crazy starting the week off with a tart but hey – you only live once. This recipe is simple, not too sweet and I absolutely love it. It will be a healthy week though – I promise… but a freshly baked tart – with a nice cup of coffee is something to kick the week off just right…
PARIS: THE ROUND UP
As I´ve probably mentioned before the Paris trip was amazing. Kind of hard for me to describe it accordingly since I wasn´t there but looking at these pictures makes me very proud. They are taken during Volli´s cooking demonstration where he made shredded cod – an amazing home-style dish that me and the kids love and it´s so easy to make that even I have mastered it. I´ll definitely post that recipe this week.
CRÉME BRULÉE
My and Volli have one thing in common (well, actually a few others but bear with me): we like simple food – but for very different reasons. Volli likes things to be straight forward which is kind of how he is but me… well I just lack the skill to create anything complicated in the kitchen – so the simpler the better.
GRILLED BEEF & THAI-NOODLE SALAD
I´m pretty sure that the last ten days have not been as skinny jeans friendly and I thought the would. There I was – planning my alone time …
MY WEEKEND INDULGENCE: WATERMELON BLOODY MARY
It´s Saturday and it goes without saying that I´m not in Paris! That wont stop me from enjoying life to the fullest so I dug up this drink recipe that I love. It is a fun and simple twist to the original Bloody Mary and I highly recommend it…
