The nightless summer nights

Dreaming about the nightless summer nights, when 

the sun rays caress the lake and the forest thoughout the night,

the bonfire sends tiny little sparks up in the air, 

the soft silence falls in the small hours of the morning as the birds go to sleep,

the serene peacefulness surrounds you ...

When you're just enjoying in this moment,

the precious nightless night.

teksture by Kim Klassen

-kristin-

Reflections and mirrors

As we came home from the swimming hall 

the rain had passed, and there were 

small pools of water everywhere. 

The pools were like small mirrors, 

reflecting the blue sky and the trees around. 

This lead me to think about how I am mirroring the ones around me - 

What does my eyes, words, behavior mirror to them? 

How do they perceive themselves throught the mirror I provide to them? 

 What kind of mirror am I?

"As the water reflects the face, 

so one's life reflects the heart."

 Proverbs 27:19

I have found a mirror 

that reflects unconditional love, hope and mercy ... 

It is to be found in our heavenly Father, 

who sees us as we are, 

loves as we are, and 

 mirrors always loving care and accept.

Reflections 

There is so much beauty in life, 

Beauty in the human soul, 

Beauty in the heart and in the mind 

Of the good man and woman. 

There is beauty in the nature,

Beauty in the sky and and in the clouds,

In the mountains and in the sea.

There is beauty in the creative work of man,

Beauy in the friendship.

And immeasurable beauty in love.

All God's blessings

 To delight us in the world.

Emmy Nielsen Reyes de Gaspar

The blog-problem seems to be solved

The issue with the strange links appearing in my blog to odd websites seems to be solved! I've also changed the security settings to a higher lever - hoping everything is ok now :-)

Banana Chocolate Bread with Orange Glace Icing

I really like "semi-sweet" cakes that have a rich but not too sweet taste. This banana-chocolate orange bread is just my kind of cake! It tastes of banana and orange, and has a mild dark chocolate flavor. The consistency is something in between cake and bread.

 I have altered Heidi Swansons original recipe: I've replaced the lemon with orange, the all-purpose flour with spelt flour, and I made the glace icing with fresh orange juice and powdered sugar.

You can freeze the banana chocolate bread, as well as the carrot pineapple muffins. If you slice the cake in before freezing, it is easy to take a couple of slices with you - I took a few slices in our lunchpacks last weekend for a little treat after swimming - Tasty!

Ingredients
1 cup (125 g) spelt flour
1 cup (140 g) whole wheat flour
3/4 cup (125 g) dark muscovado or dark brown sugar
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup (115 g) coarsely chopped dark chocolate
1/3 cip (80 ml) extra-virgin olive oil
2 large eggs
1½ cups (340 g) smashed, ripe bananas
1/4 cup (60 ml) plain, whole milk yogurt
1 teaspoon freshly grated organic orange zest
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

The Glace Icing:
1 tablespoon grated organic orange zest
2 tablespoons squeezed orange juice
about 1 cup powdered sugar

Instructions:

1.  Mix together the flours, sugar, baking powder and salt in a large bowl. Add the chocolate pieces and mix well.
2.  In another bowl, mix the olive oil, eggs,  banana, yogurt, grated orange, and vanilla.
3.  Pour the banana mixture into the flour and mixtureand fold carefully with a spoon.
4. Pour the batter into a greased baking dish and bake about 50 minutes, or until golden brown, in 350 F degrees (180 C degrees).
5. Leave the cake to cool for about ten minutes before you undo it.

While the cake is cooling, you can prepare the glace icing. Mix the powdered sugar and the grated orange zest together, add the squeezed orange juice and stir. Spread the frosting on the cake with a spoon. You may want to put the glace icing into a frosting extruder or into a small kitchen plastic bag and cut a small hole in the corner - in this way you can decorate the cake making stripes, polka dotts etc.

Wishing you a happy and tasty weekend!

Matisse at the National Gallery

The other weekend I visited the exhibition of Matisse at the National Gallery of Denmark together with my husband. The focus of the exhibition was on the process of the famous french artist. Henri Matisse remained innovative and curious through his carrier. He tried different approaches and styles, and I found it interesting to see the development in his art -  he painted often same motives, cutting details, experimenting with light, colors, shadows ... focusing on what he saw being the essential.

I enjoyed being in the beautiful National Gallery - I loved especially the light and the high ceilings.

Knowing the curious approach of Matisse,

 I assume he wouldn't mind me 

trying to find my own version of his famous work 

"Interior in Yellow and Blue. 

I have diminished the saturation, 

laid the following textures from Kim Klassen:

 Leslie, Laura, Stampedright 1 & 2,

and brushed the fruit, the white on

the round table and 

parts of the lilac table.

The sun was setting down over the Rosenborg Castle, 

as we stood outside at the top of the stairs of the National Gallery.

Textures by Kim Klassen:

Laura

Leslie

Stampedright 1

Stampedright 2

 

About Jack-O-Lanterns & Pumpkins

Tivoli was dressed in orange during the Fall Break. 

Pumpkins and Jack-O-Lanterns enlightened the small squares and alleys in the evening. 

Our youngest son read out loud from his English book, 

that the tradition of carving pumpkins goes back to Ireland. 

In the old days Irish children carved turnips and put candles in them 

to light the night on Halloween, calling them Jack-O-Lanterns. 

When the Irish came to America as immigrants, 

they found out that the American pumpkins were a lot easier to carve, 

so today the Jack-O-Lanterns are made from pumpkins. 

We saw many beautifully carved pumpkins, but no turnips ... 

 The traditions for All Hallows' Eve in Scandinavia is different from family to family - many visit the  graves of their beloved ones, lighting up a candle.

In the picture above you see The Flying Trunk-house, named after a fairytale of Hans Christian Andersen.  In the Flying Trunk-house you can wander from one fairytale to another, listening and watching the main plots of the popular fairytales of H.C. Andersen.

Soft light and the Jack-O-Lanterns created a warm and fairy-like atmosphere.

In the middle of the main square there was a huge, smoking pot. The boys had won dracula-teeth from the "archery", so they thought it was fun to wear the teeth while stirring the pot with a huge spoon.

A wooden windmill was spinning at the square.

In front of the windmill there was a little market with pumpkins, where you could 

choose a pumpkin, carve it and light a candle inside.

Having a go on a Harley Davidson was really exciting 

- especially in the final straight!

Since our traditions for the All Hallows' Eve differ from carving pumpkins and Trickle & Treat, it is enriching to be able to learn more about Jack-O-Lanters, and experience a bit what it might be like to go and find a pumpkin from the pumpkin field, carve it and decorate the house, bake pumpkin pies and other nice things!

Crispbread with rye, spelt and seeds

The crispbread is made of rye and spelt flour, sesame, flax, sunflower and pumpkin seeds. The seeds give the crispbread a bit of a nutty taste, making it a delicious and healthy snack.

This crispbread was served at a lunch buffet at my work - I fell in love with the taste of rye and seeds immediately. The friendly and skilled chefs in the kitchen shared the crispbread recipe with me. 

Making the crisp bread is very easy - it takes only about 25 minutes to make and bake the crispbread. All of the seeds contain healthy fatty acids, and sesame seeds especially are a good source of calcium.

Crispbread with rye, spelt and seeds (makes about 20)

Ingredients:

0,5 cup (1 dl) oatmeal
0,5 cup (1 dl) sesame seeds
0,5 cup (1 dl) flax seeds
0,5 cup (1 dl) sunflower seeds
0,5 cup (1 dl)pumpkin seeds
1 cup  (1,5 dl) spelt flour (or plain wheat flour)
1 cup (2 dl) rye flour
1 cup (2 dl) water
0,5 cup (125 ml) oil
1 tsp baking powder
2 tsp salt

Instructions:

1. Mix all ingredients together and divide the dough into two parts.
2. Line the baking tray with a baking sheet. Flatten the dough out into a thin layer using your fingers to start with - set first a baking sheet on the top of the dough (see the pictures above). Thereafter use a rolling pin.
3. Cut the dough with a knife or a pizza cutter to small squares.
4. Preheat the oven to 180 C / 350 F degrees. Bake the crispbread for 12-15 minutes or until golden brown.

The bread remains crispy if you keep it in an airtight container.

- Bon appetit!