Book of Days Tales

Today is Autonomy Day, Självstyrelsedagen, in Åland (or the Åland Islands), a demilitarised, monolingually Swedish-speaking, self-governing region of Finland consisting of an archipelago lying at the entrance to the Gulf of Bothnia in the Baltic Sea between Finland and Sweden. The location of Åland makes it of major strategic importance for military operations in the Baltic, and therefore its sovereignty has changed hands several times since the 18^th century.  Åland was granted autonomy by the League of Nations in 1921 and its governing council first met on this date in 1922.

Much of Åland cuisine has its roots in the cooking of Sweden and Finland, with influences from Russia and France.  But there are two items that are considered classics of Åland:  Ålandskt Svartbrod, a dense dark brown bread made of rye flour, malt, and molasses, and Åland pancakes. These pancakes are more of a pudding than what we usually think of as pancakes, made of a base of semolina (cream of wheat), and eggs, which is baked, then topped with fresh fruit or fruit “cream” (more traditional), and sometimes whipped cream.

Åland Pancakes

Ingredients:

4 cups  (9.5 dl) milk
⅓ cup (1.6 dl) semolina
1 tsp salt
4 eggs
½  (1.5 dl) cup sugar
7/8 cup (2 dl) flour
1 tbsp ground cardamom
1 tsp vanilla
3 tbsp (.5 dl) butter, melted

Åland prune cream (see below)
fresh whipped cream

Instructions:

Bring the milk with the salt to a slow boil and add the semolina in a steady stream whilst whisking until thoroughly combined.

Cook at a low heat for approximately 10 minutes while occasionally stirring.

Set aside to cool.

When cooled, pour the cream of wheat into a mixing bowl. Add the eggs, sugar, flour, cardamom, and vanilla, and stir to make a smooth batter.

Line a 9″ (23 cm) round baking dish with parchment or greaseproof paper. Brush the paper with melted butter.

Pour the batter into the baking dish and cook at 390°F (200°C) for 30 to 45 minutes until golden brown.

Serve warm in slices topped with prune cream and whipped cream.

Serves 4-6

Åland Prune Cream

Ingredients:

15 pitted prunes cut in quarters
4 cups (9.5 dl) water
1 cup (2.3 dl) prune juice
1 cinnamon stick
½ cup (1.5 dl) sugar
2 tbsp (.3 dl) cornstarch dissolved in 3 tbsp (.5 dl) water

Instructions:

Soak the prunes for 1 hour in the water in a saucepan.

Add the prune juice and cinnamon stick and bring to a slow boil.

Add the sugar slowly whilst stirring to dissolve, then remove from the heat.

Give the water and cornstarch mixture a quick whisk and add it to the prune mixture.

Return the pot to the stove and bring to a gentle boil.

As soon as the mixture thickens remove from the heat.

Discard the cinnamon stick and let cool.