Skagen på smörstekt surdeg and our favorite Lund Bistro…

We left you in last week’s post “A visit to the Lund Cathedral with and a fine bistro…“, with a peak at our favorite Lund lunch spot.  Today’s post will take you inside Klostergatans Vin och Delikatess a quaint Swedish bistro and introduce you to a classic smörgås.

We’ll end the post with a step-by-step recipe for making Toast Skagen på surdegsbröd (Skagen on buttered sourdough), a Swedish classic.  So, come on into the bistro and let’s make a smörgås.

 Need a Skagen på smörstekt surdeg fast, Jump to Recipe.

Klostergatans Vin och Delikatess – Lund

This quaint French-styled bistro, with a Swedish twist, is only steps away from the Lund Cathedral and is our favorite Lund lunch stop.

Image courtesy of Klostergatan Vin’s website.

The sidewalk dining in the warmer months is very quaint.  It’s also one of the premier “people watching” spots in Lund.  The storefront has hosted many venues through the years, but in my mind Klostergatans Vin och Delikatess is the best.

However, before my time in Lund, my resident historian (Eva) tells me this was once a grocery market.  It was at that time, it’s said, that the classic black and white checked floor came to be.  The bistro is not large, which is a good thing, and is next to its sister establishment Patisseriet konditori & stenugnsbageri.  The confectionery and bakery provide the incredible breads served at Klostergatans Vin och Delikatess.

 

Oh, and yes, we have a favorite table.  But for lunch, one must arrive at opening or shortly after to be assured of catching this fine seat.  A nice start with a glass of white for Eva and my current favorite pale lager, Kronenbourg 1664.

The lunch menu is simple and very delicious.  On this day, I chose the Chèvre chaud (upper right) or warm goat cheese on toast.  But my favorite dish, when available, is pan-fried veal liver with caper sauce and potatoes (upper left).

Eva went for her favorite smörgås, Skagen på smörstekt surdeg and we’re about to show you how to make it.  But first, if you find yourself in Lund, please do try Klostergatans Vin och Delikatess.

The Smörgås

Let’s talk a bit about the Swedish word smörgås.

 Is basically an open sandwich, like the “Sandwich with Cold Smoked Salmon and Shrimp” (above) we posted in February of 2017.

In Denmark, the open faced beauties are referred to as smørrebrød and come in many different varieties.  My favorite is the smørrebrød built on Danish dense dark rye bread, buttered with lettuce, Nova smoked salmon and such, YUM!

How about a little food history?  Scandinavian open sandwiches have been around for for hundreds of years. They also likely came from a European coarse bread, “trenches”, which dates back to the late 15th century.  A trench was said to be a flat piece of bread used as a plate.  After you finish the meal on top, you ate the plate.  Scandinavia history tells us that the farmer would take a piece of bread and load on leftovers from dinner.  He would then carry it into the fields the next day for lunch.  Because the juices of the leftovers soaked into the bread, the plate (bread) would be eaten. Hence, the open sandwich was born or at least that’s what my friend Wikipedia tells me.

The Classic Skagen på smörstekt surdeg

Name after Skagen, Denmark, the creation of Toast Skagen is credited to Tore Wretman. Tore was a famous restaurateur from Stockholm and also seen as one of the fathers of modern Swedish cuisine.  More importantly he is credited for reintroducing the smörgåsbordet into the Swedish food culture.

So, let’s make some Skagen on buttered sourdough toast…

You will need some smallish cooked and peeled shrimp, good quality mayo (homemade works perfectly), crème fraîche, Dijon mustard, red onion, chives, dill, lettuce, butter (not pictured) and some nice sourdough bread.

The Skagen Mix

There’s likely a variety of methods used for making Skagen and this is mine.  Begin by placing the mayo and crème fraîche in a bowl.  Next, add the minced red onion and snipped chives along with the Dijon mustard and hand mix thoroughly.  At this point, I taste for seasoning and add white pepper and salt as needed.  However, go lightly with the salt as the shrimp will add some saltiness.  Now, fold in the snipped dill to combine, but not breaking down the dill.  The final step of mixing the Skagen is to add your shrimp and fold until combined.  Your Skagen mix is now ready for the smörgås.

Ingredients notes: Please refrain from using American “Miracle Whip” spread as it’s way too sweet for this.  Homemade mayo is the best, but who has time for that?  So, find a really good brand of your choice.  Should you be unable to source crème fraîche, in a pinch you could use sour cream or yogurt, but it will be a bit tangy.   Fresh herbs please and add to your liking.  As for the minced red onion, taste and don’t use too much.  Lastly, for shrimp, use the highest quality you can find and afford.  Here, we use cooked “Greenlandic” wild caught prawns.  For North America, I’d recommend Oregon Bay or salad shrimp.  Down under, a small bay prawn should work great.  As a matter of fact, any cooked and peeled shrimp/prawn your conscious lets you buy should be fine.  But, if they are on the larger side, cut them into smaller pieces.

 Toast Skagen Assembly

Putting this lovely Skagen smörgås together is quite simple, like most open sandwiches.  Begin by toasting your sourdough to your liking.  Butter is optional, but very Swedish.  I omitted the butter as I find I like it better without it, but it’s your choice.  Once the toast is cooled and buttered (or not), place a nice-sized piece of curly leaf, bib, romaine, or other lettuce of choice on the bread.  Now place a quarter of the Skagen Mix (for four) on top of the lettuce and bread.  Garnish with dill tips, and top with your fish roe of choice. We also, choose to put some beet pickled onions on top for a nice tang and crunch.

FYI: Here in Sweden we would garnish with regnbågsrom or Rainbow trout caviar as shown in the image.  If you just won the lottery, one would use Kalix löjrom (Caviar of Kalix), a very expensive and prized Swedish Caviar (cost of about US$7.00/ounce).  In areas where Asian stores are found, one can find and substitute Ikura (Salmon Eggs) or Tobiko (flying fish roe).  Don’t like roe, leave it off.

OK, you’re all done and ready to tuck in.  Now the original Toast Skagen was intended to be served as a starting course.  But it’s so good, folks started making bigger main meal versions.

Here’s a couple of ideas for serving as a starter.  Cut a circle in a nice bread of choice and build a mini model of the Toast Skagen made above.  For a more elegant approach, make a stacked and baked puff pastry (hole in the center) shell and build a Toast Skagen from it.

Or, do as we did at our recent Easter Dinner party and make Skagen canapé.

Chloe says, “Nice appy, but, “Where’s the beef!”

This recipe has been tasted and approved for human consumption and has earned Chloe’s 4 Paws rating (no meat). 

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Happy Toast Skagen making and thanks for coming by for a read!