Thousand Leaves Torte (Tusenbladst?rta - Sweden)

This is a very dramatic and unusual dessert.

Cinnamon Pastry
6 tablespoons granulated sugar
Custard-Cream Filling
1 cup thick applesauce
1 teaspoon lemon juice
Sliced almonds

Prepare Cinnamon Pastry. Divide pastry into 6 equal parts. Roll each part into 7-inch circle on lightly floured cloth-covered board; place on ungreased cookie sheets. Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Prick circles with fork; sprinkle each with 1 tablespoon sugar. Bake until light golden brown, 12 to 15 minutes. Cool on wire racks.

Prepare Custard-Cream Filling. Mix applesauce and lemon juice. Stack circles, spreading alternately with 1/3 cup applesauce mixture and 1/2 cup Custard-Cream Filling. Spread top layer with remaining filling. Garnish with almonds. Refrigerate at least 2 hours before serving. Yields 12 to 14 servings.

Cinnamon Pastry
3/4 cup butter or margarine
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
3 to 4 tablespoons cold water

Cut butter into flour, salt and cinnamon until particles are size of small peas. Sprinkle in water, 1 tablespoon at a time, tossing with fork until al flour is moistened and pastry almost cleans side of bowl, adding 1 to 2 teaspoon water if necessary. Gather pastry into a ball.

Custard-Cream Filling
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup milk
1 egg, slightly beaten
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup chilled whipping cream

Mix sugar, cornstarch and salt in saucepan. Stir in milk gradually. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until mixture thickens and boils. Boil and stir 1 minute.

Stir at least half of the hot mixture gradually into egg. Stir back into hot mixture in saucepan. Boil and stir 1 minute. Remove from heat; stir in vanilla extract. Cover and cool slightly; refrigerate until completely cooled. Beat whipping cream in chilled bowl until stiff; fold into cooled mixture.

Korean Spinach Salad

1 pound fresh spinach
3 hard-cooked eggs, diced
6 to 8 slices crisp-cooked bacon, crumbled
2 cups fresh bean sprouts
1 (8 ounce) can water chestnuts, sliced

Dressing
1 cup oil
2/3 cup granulated sugar
Salt, to taste
1 medium onion, grated
1/4 cup vinegar
1/3 cup catsup
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce

Trim and discard tough spinach stems. Rinse leaves well; pat dry and break into bite-size pieces in a salad bowl. Add remaining salad ingredients. Mix dressing ingredients together. Toss salad with dressing.

Coconut Curry Chicken

Source: Food & Wine magazine - December 2000

You can make the dish ahead, and refrigerate for up to two days.

1/4 cup whole unsalted cashews
1 pound skinless, boneless chicken
    breasts, cut into 1-inch pieces
Salt
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1/4 teaspoon black mustard seeds
1/4 teaspoon cumin seeds
1/4 teaspoon ground coriander
1 tablespoon curry powder
1 medium onion, thinly sliced
1 teaspoon finely grated fresh ginger
1 garlic clove, minced
1 (14 ounce) can unsweetened coconut milk
1/4 cup frozen peas
2 tablespoons chopped cilantro

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Spread the cashews in a pie plate and bake for 5 minutes, or until fragrant and lightly toasted. Transfer to a plate to cool.

Lightly season the chicken with salt. In a large, deep skillet, heat 3 tablespoons of the oil until smoking. Add the chicken and cook over moderately high heat until golden brown, about 1 1/2 minutes per side. Transfer the chicken to a plate and reduce the heat to moderate.

Add the remaining 1 tablespoon of oil to the skillet and heat until smoking. Add the mustard seeds and cook for about 1 minute, or until they stop popping. Add the cumin seeds, coriander and curry powder, and cook, stirring occasionally, until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add the onion, ginger and garlic, and cook until the onion softens, about 10 minutes; if the mixture seems dry, add up to 1/4 cup of water to prevent sticking.

Stir in the coconut milk and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low. Return the chicken to the skillet and simmer until cooked through, about 5 minutes. Stir in the peas and cook for 1 minute. Transfer the curry to a bowl, sprinkle with the cilantro and cashews and serve.

Makes 4 servings.

Valencia Orange Flan

Source: Country Living

Called the national dessert of Spain, flan provides a creamy, delicate conclusion to a meal. For a large crowd, you'll need to double the recipe and use two pans.

Serves 8

Caramel
1/2 cup granulated sugar
2 tablespoons orange juice

Flan
2 cups half-and-half
2 cups heavy cream
1 cup granulated sugar
4 strips orange zest, colored part only, about 2 inches long
12 extra-large egg yolks
1/4 cup orange liqueur
Mint sprigs (optional)

Prepare Caramel: In a heavy medium-sized skillet, combine sugar and orange juice. Cook over low heat, stirring constantly, until sugar dissolves and mixture begins to boil. When boiling process begins, stop stirring. Holding handle of pan, gently tilt the skillet off the heat to distribute color evenly as sugar caramelizes. When sugar reaches a uniform amber color, pour into a heat-proof 10-inch pie plate.

Prepare Flan: Place a shallow baking pan in the lower third of oven and add enough hot water to come halfway up the sides. Heat oven to 325 degrees F. In a large heavy saucepan, combine half-and-half, heavy cream, sugar, and orange zest; bring to a simmer over low heat, stirring occasionally. In large bowl, beat egg yolks. Blend 1 cup of cream mixture into the yolks. Stir egg-yolk mixture back into saucepan and heat, stirring constantly, 1 minute. Remove from heat, stir in liqueur. Pour into prepared pie plate and place in the baking pan partly filled with water in the oven.

Bake uncovered 1 1/2 hours or until knife blade inserted in center comes out clean. Remove flan and water bath from oven; cool on a rack, cover, and refrigerate 4 to 5 hours.

To serve, run a knife blade around the edge of the flan, then carefully invert it onto a rimmed serving plate. Allow a moment for the caramel to drip onto the flan. Carefully lift pie plate. Garnish with mint sprigs, if desired.

Nutrition information per serving: 548 calories, 7.4 g protein, 35.7 g fat, 45 g carbohydrate, 0 g fiber, 64 mg sodium, 430 mg cholesterol

Lemon Bread (Denmark)

1 cup granulated sugar
6 tablespoons butter
2 eggs
1/2 cup milk
1 1/2 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
Rind of 1 lemon
Pinch of salt

Mix all ingredients together. Put into loaf pan. Bake at 375 degrees F for 1 hour or until done. Drizzle glaze made of juice of 1 lemon and 1/3 cup sugar over hot bread.