strawberries — Wine & Dine

Who would've know that Olson's Scandinavian Delicatessen has been around since 1948? There are a lot of words to describe this place, but the only word I can think of is how LOVELY Olson's is. I've never had real Scandinavian food and the closest would be Ikea (love Ikea by the way). The deli is located close to the 10 freeway off Washington towards Fairfax. I'm just happy that I don't have to drive into Beverly Hills or West Hollywood.

5660 W Pico Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90019

Before ordering your food, take a moment to notice the decorations and the many items on sale. From candles, to books, to mugs, to bibs, sausages, and even Scandinavian candy! You can find the real Swedish fishies here.

Here are the dishes that we ordered:

There were many, but one of my favorites was their Grav Lax:

GRAV LAX is prepared with their own Dill Cured Salmon, Red Onions, Fresh Cucumbers and choice of Horseradish Lemon Sauce or Mustard Dill Sauce on Brioche Bun. This salmon was so different from your typical smoked salmon. Since this is cured, you get the subtle, beautiful sweetness of the salmon that is wrapped with the slight herbaceous flavors of the dill. The mustard dill sauce was also fabulous. There is also a poached egg added for an additional charge.

Also a fan of their Shrimp Spagen. This is the Lobster Roll of Scandinavia. Greenland Shrimp, mixed with Creme Fraiche, Dill, Shallots, Mayo, Golden Caviar stuffed in a Brioche Bun. The flavors are extremely luxurious especially because Creme Fraiche is used. All Sandwiches served with a side of pickled cucumber.

Make sure to check them out soon. It's not everyday we find a Scandinavian Delicatessen in Los Angeles.

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I must be crazy to bake in 99 degree weather. But we all need to satisfy our cravings somehow. I wanted to find a simple pound cake to use for this recipe. Unfortunately, the world currently loves pumpkin, banana, and zucchini pound cake at the moment, because I could not find any plain loafs. I decided to make my own, and if you have a local bakery near you that serves awesome pound cake, feel free to use that.

Recipe Pound Cake (2-3 servings):

4 tablespoons of butter. Softened / room temp.
2 egg yolks
1/2 cup of flour
1/4 teaspoon of vanilla extract
3 tablespoons of cream
snibble of salt
1/4 teaspoon of baking powder

I used my Kitchen Aid mixer for this. I creamed together the sugar and butter. The egg yolks are then added followed by the cream and vanilla. All the dry ingredients can be mixed in a separate bowl to be poured into your wet ingredients. Once your batter is finished, pour in a small baking dish that's been buttered.

Depending on your oven, this was baked for 30 minutes at 350 in my Breville Smart Oven (best oven ever).

Recipe Lemon Cream:

I used the pastry cream recipe from my Pear Tart. With that recipe, I added 1 tablespoon of lemon zest, and 1 whole juicy lemon. (The lemon flavors will be reinforced with the macerated strawberries). The pastry cream recipe will make more than you will need, but I like to keep some laying around to make quick tarts or vanilla wafer dishes.

Macerated lemon strawberries Recipe:

1/2 a lemon of juice
Zest 1 tablespoon of lemon
1 tablespoon of sugar
1 cup of strawberries (tops removed and halved).

Mix all the ingredients in a bowl and let it sit for at least 10 minutes before serving.

I'm not a professional baker and mostly create random things on the go. I'm sure there are plenty of delicious recipes out there, but these are quick, easy, and ingredients you can probably find in your kitchen.

Happy Baking! Just one more week of heat before it cools down!

Daiisies

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Wine & Dine

Olson's Scandinavian Delicatessen - Los Angeles

Mini pounder with macerated strawberries and lemon cream