Tuesdays with Dorie - Finnish Pulla

Today´s recipe for the Tuesdays with Julia group is Finnish Pulla.

This recipe for a Finnish sweet dessert bread  is by contributing baker Beatrice Ojakangas. Most sweet breads are made with a yeast-based dough that gives rise to a lighter and fluffier texture than that of traditional breads. This recipe like any other basic recipe, calls for the flour and yeast to be combined with an amount of liquid (warm milk) to form a soft dough mixture, which is then left to rise. The soft, pliable, aerated dough is then separated into three strands of dough that get braided first and then formed into a ring, or wreath and then left to rise again before baking. This Pulla dough is flavored with one teaspoon of freshly crushed cardamom seeds, brushed with an egg wash and topped with slivered almonds and pearl sugar just before baking.

The Pulla smelled heavenly when baking and looked pretty – I used a large vintage pie baking pan from my collection of old bake ware and it was the exact right size for this large Finnish sweet bread wreath. And since I had some dough left over, I used a mini springform pan to bake a small version.

The Pulla is wonderful served fresh with some really good butter and jam or local honey and a nice cup of tea or coffee for dunking. This recipe is just fabulous! And will certainly make numerous reappearances at our house. We really liked the addition of the almonds and pearl sugar on top of the wreath, not only did it make for a nice presentation, it also tasted just wonderful since the bread itself is not overly sweet.

Breads like this Pulla can quickly go stale if exposed to air. So, ideally, you should allow the bread to cool properly and then wrap any left overs in saran wrap or aluminium foil and keep them stored in airtight containers for up to three days.

On the occasion of the approaching Christmas, I would like to take the opportunity to wish you all
A Christmas full of love, joy and health and many happy moments in the coming 2013 year! – Ich wünsche allen frohe und besinnliche Festtage und alles Gute für das kommende Jahr 2013!

To see all the other Finish Pulla by the talented members of the Tuesday with Dorie group, please do click here.

The recipe can be found at Erin´s delightful blog Thedailymorsel.com - "Thank you" so much for being such a gracious host, Erin!

Celebrating Advent at the Outdoor Museum - Advent im Freilichtmuseum

Every year on the third Sunday of Advent, we take the children for a visit to our favorite Outdoor Museum which was designed to help visitors understand the present time while experiencing a journey into the past and thereby enabling us to compare the present time with bygone times. The Museum focuses on documenting country life as it used to be. 

There are a number of buildings such as residential buildings, farmyards, a blacksmith`s workshop and a bakery - they all have been re-erected in the Museum and most of them were re-constructed in their original condition after being moved.

While walking around the Museum grounds, you will also encounter the animals which formerly characterized the images of the village.

Throughout the year, you can witness traditional work which changes on a daily basis, such as preparation of country meals on an antique stove, baking bread in the bakery, forging nails at the blacksmith`s shop - or you will encounter the country postman wearing an imperial uniform and, in summer, farmers with a yoke of oxen.

But once a year, on the third Sunday of Advent, there is a seasonal "Advent Market" (Adventsmarkt) which is absolutely delightful.

Among the gifts with a rather unique and "rustic appeal", you can buy some wonderful wooden mushrooms (cut with a chainsaw) - I bought a big one and placed it in front of our house today.

 All the half-timbered houses were decorated with fir-branches...

...and the paths leading up to some of the houses were lined with wonderful decorations.

 They were cute little wooden bird houses...

...and hand-crafted jewelry (which the girls adored).

My favorite window of a gift shop...

 ...and, of course, I could not pass up the opportunity to bake some colorful and delicious Cassis-Vanilla-Butter Cookies and bring them along for snacking (and some photo taking).

This is the outside of the beautiful light blue old ropeyard...

...with an old wooden sign bearing the name of the rope maker.

 You could buy wooden Christmas decorations inside the old workshop...

 ...and look at the raw material that the ropemaker works with...

...just take a look at the amazing ropes that he made...

...more ropes and knots. You could buy all kinds of different ropes by the meter. 

More seasonal decorations...

...and a cute angel peeking out of the window of the ropery.

 In an adjacent building, I found these three fantastic Wise Men (crafted out of metal).

Then we went to take a look at the blacksmith´s admirable works of art...

...you could watch him forge many different thigs such as candle holders and nails...

...just take a look at the antique equipment that he still uses.

A woodcarver/woodworker sold angels and Christmas trees.

The last building we visited was an old farmhouse (my personal favorite). I adored the vintage photograph of the former inhabitants that was on display in the entrance...

...more lovely red candles that looked wonderful in the collectable plates that were placed on top of the old iron kitchen stove.

There was a display of an old doll´s house (as an example of the kinds of gifts that children used to received)...

...and a vintage wooden puzzle...

 ...and hand-crafted Christmas decorations (making good use of those walnut shells)...

...and an intriguing display of the natural products that people used for brewing "substitute coffee", such as "coffee" made from peas, acorns or chicory.

There were vintage books...

 ...and a lovely water carafe for the morning.

What a sparingly yet wonderful simple bedroom with a wooden bed, linen bed clothes and nightgowns...

...and yet another bedroom decorated in the same delightful way...

 ...with white walls and some more hints of the former inhabitants faith.

Some wonderful vintage glass containers were on display in one of the bedrooms.

Even Saint Nicholas made an appearance (wearing a miter and a crozier) and he brought some fruits, nuts and apples for the children.

What a wonderful way to spend the third Sunday of Advent with the children at this fantastic Outdoor Folk Museum. We will certainly visit again soon.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

French Fridays with Dorie - Chicken, Apples, and Cream à la Normande

Today the recipe for the French Fridays with Dorie group is Chicken, Apples, and Cream à la Normande, a truly French dish, meant as an homage to the Normandy region of France. La Normandie is known for its apple orchards, cider production, apple brandy, and a wide range of delightful dairy products, such as the most deliciously thick crème fraîche that we ever tasted.

The ingredients in Dorie`s recipe for Normandy Chicken really represent all the best products available in that wonderful region of  France. You will need chicken breasts, of course, and get brown them in the pan, together with crisp apples, best to choose those that will keep their shape during cooking, then onions (I decided to thinly slice French shallots instead), mushrooms (I used baby portabellas because we much prefer their taste to the white button mushrooms), then there is chicken broth, calvados and cream. While I stuck with the cream part, I used natural apple juice instead of the chicken stock and Calvados.

As a side and to mop up that delicious cream sauce, I prepared some mashed potatoes…

…and some French green beans with bits of bacon…

…and some more slightly caramelized apple slices.

This recipe was a resounding success at our house, the whole family adored everything about their late lunch. And I loved how quickly this wonderful recipe came together and how much it reminded me of the time that we spent in Normandy about three years ago and the absolute incredible food we enjoyed there. What is not to love about Norman food, it is simply and undeniably fabulous.

To see what fabulous dishes of Chicken, Apples, and Cream à la Normande the other members of the French Fridays with Dorie group prepared, please click here.