This year we’ve asked our Icelandic friends, the Jule Lads, to join us at the table and help us choose our favorite ways to celebrate the season at CosituttiMarketPlace. Merry but mischievous the Icelandic Yule Lads welcome the holidays13 days before Christmas. Each have their own distinct personality and habits.
Naughty or nice. They can be found licking your bowl of cookie dough or the leftovers out of your pans, pilfering your sausages or sniffing around searching for a traditional Christmas bread.
This Christmas we're inspired to pair Skyr,a traditional Icelandic yogurt with a balsamic glaze made from IGP balsamic vinegar from Modena. The authentic crema di balsamico, this fig flavored balsamic reduction adds a rich, flavorful, thick, syrupy glaze with a sweet and savory flavor to a strawberry fruit salad with a creamy balsamic poppy seed dressing.
Strawberry Fig Salad with
Creamy Balsamic Poppy Seed Dressing
2 T extra virgin olive oil
2/3 c Siggi's drinkable yogurt ½ t sea salt 1 t poppy seeds
2 c arugula 4 strawberries, sliced 4 figs, sliced 1 T goat cheese 1 T sliced almonds, toasted
To make the dressing, combine first 5 ingredients in a bowl or jar and mix well. Top arugula with strawberries, figs and goat cheese. Sprinkle with toasted almonds. Drizzle with dressing.
Icelanders love cod and so do Italians. Here is a recipe that combines tagliatelle pasta with seared code fillets.
Tagliatelle with Seared Cod in a Lemon,Tomato and Basil Sauce
Boil 12 oz of Mongrano Felicetti tagliatelle according to package instructions. Season 4 cod fillets with salt and pepper and sear in olive oil in a a heavy-based skillet over medium-high heat for 3-4 minutes on each side. Once cooked remove the cod from the skillet and tent with foil. Add 2 cups of cherry tomatoes sliced in half to the same skillet and cook until slightly softened for about one minute. Add 1/4 cup vegetable or fish stock to skillet, 1 t brown sugar, 2 crushed garlic cloves, zest of 1 lemon and 1 T lemon juice. Bring sauce to a simmer and add drained pasta. If needed add reserved pasta water to make a creamy sauce. Add 1/4 cup chopped fresh basil leaves and cod fillets and serve immediately.
