What’s summertime if not the time to throw theme parties? That’s my motto! With that in mind I recently subjected friends to a night of Danish food and activities. Yes, when torturing friends with vacation photos just isn’t enough, there’s “A Night of Danish Delights.”
Lots of Carlsberg lager, akvavit and other Danish delights at Danish night
Recalling the surprising number of ping pong and badminton clubs seen throughout Denmark, I included ping pong, badminton and a Lego building competition on the activity list. Why Legos? Well, Denmark is the birthplace of Legos. Besides, how often can I justify playing with 6 pounds of colorful toy bricks? Never!
Danish-inspired buffet table
Denmark is also home to such culinary specialties as pickled herring, smoked salmon, smørrebrød, hearty rugbrød or Danish brown bread, danishes and hindbærsnitte. They, along with Danish tilsit, blue and havarti cheeses, starred in the evening’s menu. So, too, did steamed, heads-on shrimp. As you might expect, these appealed to a select few. There is something about having your food stare back at you . . ..
Heads-on shrimp in Skagen, DK
Far more approachable were the refreshing summer salads of seasonal berries and sweet and sour cucumbers. Taken from Camilla Plum’s The Scandinavian Kitchen cookbook (Kyle Books, 2011), sweet and sour cucumber salad is a particular favorite of mine. Even if I hadn’t focused on Danish cuisine, I would have made this light, flavorful dish. It’s the ideal summertime salad and a snap to create.
Sweet and Sour Cucumber Salad
If you own or can borrow a mandoline, use that to cut the cucumbers. With a mandoline you’ll save time and create beautiful, uniform slices for the salad. Don’t despair if you can’t track down this tool. A sharp chef’s knife and attentive slicing will also do the trick.
Sliced cucumbers
SWEET AND SOUR CUCUMBER SALAD
From Camilla Plum’s The Scandinavian Kitchen
When refrigerated, this salad will keep for several weeks.
Serves 4
1/3 cup water
1/3 cup cider vinegar
4 tablespoons sugar
1 tablespoon coarse sea salt
1 teaspoon coarsely ground black pepper
2 small cucumbers
Place the water, vinegar, sugar, salt and pepper in a saucepan and bring to a boil over medium heat. As the marinade is heating, thinly slice the cucumbers and place them in a bowl. Pour the hot liquid over the cucumbers. Cool before serving.