Tonight we had open-faced sandwiches with cheese and mushroom salad. I needed something quick to make, I am almost finished with the sauna/bathroom/dressing room/closet tile floor. The "quick re-tile project" that we started six months ago is almost completed--and we have moved a wall, moved a doorway, and completely re-framed, re-plumbed and re-wired the bathroom. And we added a sauna! It has been a long six months! I've been in charge of drywall and tile these last few weeks, and have been neglecting my blogs. Tonight I grouted most of the floor--I promise to post a photo in the next few days.
I was feeling a little guilty for spending so much time on the construction and leaving the kids on their own, so I made them a special dessert, vispipuuro. This is basically Malt-o-meal cooked in fruit juice and then whipped. They have been really curious about what I'm making, but I haven't let them in on the surprise yet. I'm hoping it is a good one!
First, I took 3 1/2 cups of juice and brought it to a boil. Traditionally, this would be lingonberry juice, but you could substitute cranberry. Today, I used a really good pure juice that I found at Trader Joes, a blend of blueberry, cranberry and pomegranate. The juice you use should be a little tart, for an authentic taste. Raspberry would also be really good, I have made it with juice from wild raspberries when we visit Finland.
After the juice boils, stir in half a cup of Malt-o-meal (or cream of wheat, farina).
I cooked this for about ten minutes, stirring constantly with my whisk. I found this plastic whisk at Ikea--it is great for use in non-stick pans. You could cook it longer, but I think this is enough if you leave it to cool for about half an hour afterwards.
After the porridge cooled for about half an hour, I put it in my stand mixer bowl and whipped it for twenty minutes. A stand mixer is so nice to have for projects like this. I can just imagine women whipping it by hand with a whisk in the old days--I think this would have been a treat only for special occasions! It changed color after only a couple of minutes, but kept getting lighter in color:
This is a really delicious and easy dessert (if you have a stand mixer!). I served it in my Arabia Arctica dish that is part of the set we received at our wedding. I love the simplicity of these dishes. My husband's family gave them to us at our wedding, and my family carried the whole set back to the U.S. in their carry-on baggage!
When I tell the kids about their surprise, they will probably sprinkle sugar on the porridge in their bowls, but I'm not sure that it is necessary. My husband insists that you should NEVER eat it with milk, but a bit of cream or whole milk tastes good with it, in my opinion. We have to agree to disagree on that point.
Hope you enjoy this as much as we do!
This looks really good! I can't believe it is just malt-o-meal and juice!
ReplyDeleteI am an American living in Finland... My husband has asked me to make this (with Lingonberry, which is what it is usually made of) but I have had no idea how to go about it! I love finding 'American' written recipes because they are much easier for me to follow! I am not much of a fan of it myself, because of the bitter aftertaste, but perhaps it will grow on me ;) Also, I have been told that you must eat it with a bit of cream AND milk on top! :) Thanks for the recipe! Would you like me to send you an easy, traditional home recipe (from the Ostrobothnia area anyways) for bread that contains carrots, rye, oatmeal, and almost anything else you want? ;) It is delicious, and fairly easy. My husband made it for my family in the US and they rave over it! Also, just curious, which part of Finland is your husband from? Is he Swedish speaking? I notice that many of your recipes have Swedish names, and that you celebrated St. Lucia day. Not many Finnish speaking Finns do!
ReplyDeleteMy mother is an American living in Finland, and I was raised on Beatrice Ojakangas' "The Finnish Cookbook"! And now that I live in the US it is my go-to place for Finnish recipes with American measurements and ingredients. I highly recommend it.
DeleteI make this as well, with bought juice. We used to make it from fresh berries, but I liked making it a lot faster than my mom did. I however, whip mine in a glass bowl in the sink with snow, or ice water with a towel support, if done in the summer. The cold makes it whip up faster with a electric hand mixer. I have made it with blueberries, raspberries as well as cranberries. What I liked with the juice; it's already sweetened! it's such a light & healthy dessert.
ReplyDeleteGEM I had a great chuckle when I found this photo/recipe. I grew up in Minnesota and am 100% Finn. But our parents kept the language to themselves, unfortunately. My mom had her Finnish name for it, but we kids called it "purple boo doo" made with grape juice and a little sugar. I love it and have made it for my children. I am very glad to find this blog. Thank you.
ReplyDeleteSo glad to find your blog!
ReplyDeleteSuper excited to make this with a cranberry/raspberry mixed juice.