A magical, make-belief Midsommar!
Guess what guys...my finger crossing, waiting and wishing paid off! Jeanna found her phone (I knew she would!) so I can finish the Stockholm round up.
I now had so many photos that I thought I better break them up a bit for you. Starting with what was the highlight for me, the midsummer feast that was recreated for me by Anna and Jeanna.
After a long day of wandering, sightseeing and of course eating on day one of my Stockholm adventure, we returned home to start preparations for our mini make-belief-midsummer.
While Anna took to the stove to boil the potatoes and bake the cheese pie...
...as well as get the ice cream machine started for homemade vanilla ice cream,
Jeanna and I got down to business. Flower-crown-making-business.
Since (despite my "royal connections") I had never worn a crown of flowers, let alone made one, I left the making to the Swedish-midsommar professional, and watched and learned.
Like most Swedes, Jeanna has had a lot of practice at making these so she was a bit too quick for me to capture in focus.
Or perhaps the lack of focus had something to do with whatever was in these glasses...I did however pay enough attention to learn the tradition behind the making of the floral wreaths; the girls are supposed to pick seven different types of flowers in the midsummer night, place them under their pillow and they will dream of their future husband.
Well I have a bone to pick with you Anna and Jeanna! Why did we only pick two types of flowers for me??? No wonder I didn't find my Swedish prince! Guess they don't want me to get married. Ah well, no time to dwell on such things! :)
Along with my crown, the ice cream was finished, and Jeanna and I got the best job in the kitchen, licking the bowl.
Anna packed our picnic-pack, and we made our way down the hill to her neighbourhood park beside the water...
...To set up our midsummer-feast!
Including, new boiled potatoes, fish-roe, two types of herring (dill-pickled and don't remember the other one...), garlic bread, fresh red onions and chives, smoked prawns, 'filmjölk' and of course, the cheese pie!
The cheese pie is made from a special Västerbotten cheese, named after the region where it is produced in the far North of Sweden. I couldn't describe what the cheese looks like since I only saw the grated version that was mixed with cream, eggs, s&p before going into the pastry shell. But flavourwise, it is reminiscent of parmesan, just slightly tangier. It definitely packs a cheesy punch! But at the same time it is addictive.
So while we loaded up our plates with potatoes, herring, the 'filmjölk' (better know as 'fil', a kind of Swedish sour cream that is less sour) which gets mixed with the chives and onions one round, we always returned for a slice of pie the next.
This was accompanied by rosé bubbles, which continued to refresh our palate...
I now had so many photos that I thought I better break them up a bit for you. Starting with what was the highlight for me, the midsummer feast that was recreated for me by Anna and Jeanna.
After a long day of wandering, sightseeing and of course eating on day one of my Stockholm adventure, we returned home to start preparations for our mini make-belief-midsummer.
While Anna took to the stove to boil the potatoes and bake the cheese pie...
Jeanna and I got down to business. Flower-crown-making-business.
Like most Swedes, Jeanna has had a lot of practice at making these so she was a bit too quick for me to capture in focus.
Or perhaps the lack of focus had something to do with whatever was in these glasses...I did however pay enough attention to learn the tradition behind the making of the floral wreaths; the girls are supposed to pick seven different types of flowers in the midsummer night, place them under their pillow and they will dream of their future husband.
Well I have a bone to pick with you Anna and Jeanna! Why did we only pick two types of flowers for me??? No wonder I didn't find my Swedish prince! Guess they don't want me to get married. Ah well, no time to dwell on such things! :)
Along with my crown, the ice cream was finished, and Jeanna and I got the best job in the kitchen, licking the bowl.
Anna packed our picnic-pack, and we made our way down the hill to her neighbourhood park beside the water...
...To set up our midsummer-feast!
Including, new boiled potatoes, fish-roe, two types of herring (dill-pickled and don't remember the other one...), garlic bread, fresh red onions and chives, smoked prawns, 'filmjölk' and of course, the cheese pie!
The cheese pie is made from a special Västerbotten cheese, named after the region where it is produced in the far North of Sweden. I couldn't describe what the cheese looks like since I only saw the grated version that was mixed with cream, eggs, s&p before going into the pastry shell. But flavourwise, it is reminiscent of parmesan, just slightly tangier. It definitely packs a cheesy punch! But at the same time it is addictive.
So while we loaded up our plates with potatoes, herring, the 'filmjölk' (better know as 'fil', a kind of Swedish sour cream that is less sour) which gets mixed with the chives and onions one round, we always returned for a slice of pie the next.
...for some "splendid" story-telling on my behalf. My friends always tease me because I never leave out the details, which leads to my stories being close to feature-length. Jeanna was actually secretly recording me during this sermon, a recording that lasted a solid 22 minutes. I was more outraged at her sneakiness quite frankly!
Before we knew it, this was all that was left of our feast:
I'd deem that a success. Skål to that Anna!
Halfway through our feast a girl in rainbow pants had come up to us to ask whether we wanted to join her and her friends. A lovely gesture, which I was convinced could be attributed to my storytelling, since I'm sure they would've heard us and reckon they would've liked to listen to some of my stories...but we knew what was waiting for us at home. So while we planned to hang out with them for a bit, we just never made it.
Normally for midsummer dessert you have fresh strawberries with cream or on cake, but we opted for fresh raspberries to have with the homemade vanilla ice cream. I must admit, I don't ever choose vanilla ice cream when I'm out, since I find the most boring option, but this was something else! So creamy, and so perfectly "vanillary"! The use of real vanilla pods obviously makes all the difference. As well as the pinch of Anna-love that went into its production.
And it may also have had something to do with the fact that we were cozied up in our PJs on Anna's couch and I got to keep pretending I'm a Swedish princess.
I didn't sleep on my crown, or dream of a future husband (rather about how full I was!), but I definitely fell asleep with a smile on my lips.
Yours truly,
Fräulein SoulFood x
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