This is a traditional and very popular Danish dessert or cake. In Danish, we call these cocoa balls Romkugler, which translated means Rum balls. However, they are also sometimes known as Truffle balls. [Read more...]
Danish Rum Balls (Romkugler)
The BEST cake recipes
Who does not love cake? I for sure cannot get enough cake. I have literately spend hundreds or maybe thousands of hours in my kitchen cooking up some of the most delicious cakes. Here on this page I am sharing all my best and personal favorite cake recipes. I hope that you can find some great inspiration among all the cake recipes.
Danish Butter Cake (Dagmar Tart)
On this page, you can find the easy-to-make recipe for the traditional Danish Dagmar Tart (Dagmartaerte) or Danish Butter Cake (Smorkage) as it is also called. This old-fashioned and very traditional Danish cake is based on a delicious butter dough stuffed with smooth vanilla- and cinnamon cream. I have heard before that this cake looks like it is difficult to make. Luckily, that is not true. This cake is actually really easy to make. [Read more...]
Danish Brunsviger Cake
This recipe for traditional Danish Brunsviger Cake is easy to make and perfect if you are looking for an old-fashioned and classic Danish cake.
The Danish word Brunsviger cannot be translated into English but the meaning is well known by a Dane. The Brunsviger Cake is a delicious yeast dough cake topped with plenty of delicious butter and brown sugar mixture.
See also: Traditional recipe for Danish Dagmar tart
On this page I will show you how easy it is to make a Danish Brunsviger Cake and share a couple of tricks to avoid the common mistakes. Continue reading and learn how easy it is.
The history of Brunsviger Cake
The Brunsviger can be purchased from every pastry shop in Denmark but it is originally from Fyn which is the central part of Denmark. It is unknown when this cake was made and served the first time but it has for sure been around for generations. Today, it is well-known by almost all Danish people and is a very popular cake.
Traditional Brunsviger or Birthday Brunsviger
The traditional Danish Brunsviger is baked in a square pan and then later cut and served in smaller pieces. This is the classic way of making this cake. At some point in history somebody have developed this recipe and made this traditional cake into a birthday cake which is in Danish known as a Kagemand (Cake man). A Brunsviger birthday cake is easy made. You simply just make a traditional Brunsviger cake and then decorate it with all kinds of your favorite candy like wine-gum, M&M and so on.
See also: Recipe for traditional Danish Birthday Cake
The recipe is exactly the same as the traditional recipe shown further down on this page. However, the birthday version of this cake is not squared anymore instead it is shaped like a man or a woman depending on the gender of the person whose birthday it is.
Brunsviger made in square oven plate
The traditional Brunsviger is made in a square oven plate like I have done. However, it can also be made in a circular springform cake tin or whatever cake tins you have. The result will still be a delicious cake. The traditional cake is square but a circular cake is also fine - it is up to you.
Tips when making the Brunsviger cake
As already said, it is actually really easy to make a Brusviger cake. I just have a couple of tips that I would like to share with you. The first tip; in step seven in the recipe, we are going to make indentations in the dough. In these indentations we are going to add the butter-sugar mixture. It is important that these indentations deep but does not break through the bottom of the dough. We want deep indentation so that they can be filled with plenty of sugar mixture.
See also: Recipe for Danish Cinnamon Twist (Kanalstang)
The second tip is closely related to the first. It is a good idea to make a moat along the edge of the dough. The moat will help keep the butter-sugar mixture on the top of the cake. Otherwise, it will run away and sugar coat the inside of your oven. This can be a little tricky. I have personally sugar coated my oven several times.
Danish Brunsviger Cake
Traditional recipe for Danish Brunsviger cake. This cake is based on a soft and moist dough with a delicious brown sugar topping. So delicious and easy-to-make.
Servings: 8 people
Ingredients
Brunsviger Dough
- 3 dl milk (lukewarm)
- 50 g fresh yeast (or equivalent dry yeast)
- 50 g sugar
- 100 g butter (melted and cooled)
- 500 g all-purpose flour
- 1/2 tsp salt
Sugar topping
- 150 g butter
- 250 g brown sugar
- 4 tbsp heavy cream (alternativ milk)
- 3 tbsp vanilla cake creme powder (optional)
Instructions
- Dissolve the fresh yeast and sugar in the lukewarm milk.
- Melt the butter and let it cool off before adding it to the milk.
- Add all-purpose flour and salt. Knead the dough for about 10 minutes or until it assemblies into a nice and smooth dough. You can with advantage use a kitchen machine.
- Cover the bowl with a clean dish towel and let the dough rise into double size someplace warm. This takes about 30 minutes.
- Flatten the dough into a square with a size of about 40 x 40 cm (16 x 16 inch). Transfer the dough onto a parchment paper covered oven plate. Let the dough rise for another 20 minutes. While the dough is rising prepare the sugar topping.
- In a small sauce pan; melt the butter and brown sugar. When the butter-sugar mixture is hot add the heavy cream and mix it together. Remove the mixture from the heat and let it cool off.
- Use your fingers to make indents into the dough. The indents should be deep and almost reach the bottom but without breaking through the dough. Also, make a small moat along the edge of the dough to keep the sugar topping on the top.
- Distribute the prepared sugar topping across the dough and bake the cake for 12 minutes in a 225 C (440 F) well-preheated oven.
- Let the cake cook off a little bit before serving it.
Danish Blackberry Cakes (Brombærsnitter)
This time I would like to share probably one of the most traditional and popular Danish pastry. This recipe is in Danish called Brombærsnitter or sometimes better known as Hindbærsnitter depending on what kind of stuffing which are used. Directly translated this Danish pastry could be called Danish Blackberry Slices or Danish Raspberry Slices. [Read more...]
Nordic Carrot Cake with cream cheese topping
This recipe for Nordic carrot cake with cream cheese topping and a twist of cinnamon is another old-fashioned, very traditional and super delicious Danish recipe. [Read more...]
Recipe for Healthy Brownie without sugar and flour
On this page, I will share one of my personal favorite recipes - a super delicious and healthy Brownie made without any use of refined sugar and flour. If you continue to read on this page, I will show you how it is possible to make a super delicious Brownie cake, which is a healthy alternative to regular Brownie.
The secret how to make Brownie without sugar and flour
As mentioned just above, this brownie cake is made completely without any use of refined sugar and flour.
See also: Recipe for Healthy chocolate cake without sugar and flour
But how is it possible to make this brownie, which is perfectly comparable to a normal brownie packed with sugar and flour?
In just two words the secret is: dates and chickpeas. Trust me it is perfect.
Before you get scared away I will promise you that will not be able to taste either the dates or the chickpeas. You will only be able to taste the delicious chocolate brownie.
In this healthy brownie, the sweetness from the sugar is replaced by the sweet dates and the consistency from the flour is replaced by the chickpeas. It is that simple.
Brownie with dates as replacement for sugar
Before we continue, I will of course clarify that this cake is not sugar free. However, it is completely free from traditional refined table sugar. A cake need sweetness, which we in this case gets from the natural occurring sugar in the dates.
So no refined white sugar only natural occurring sugar from the dates.
See also: Recipe for Nordic healthy spinach buns
Dates are known for its sweetness and is therefore a perfect substitute for traditional refined sugar. I love dates and I have several recipes here on my Nordic Food blog where the refined sugar is substituted with dates.
If you are interested in other recipes with dates you can browse my section with healthy recipes and get inspired.
Healthy brownie with chickpeas and dates
Recipe for healthier brownie with chickpeas and dates. Do not be scared. This brownie has a great taste and delicious moist texture, just like an old-fashioned brownie just without sugar and flour.
Ingredients
- 100 g almonds
- 50 g butter melted
- 20 dates (without stones)
- 3 eggs
- 1 can chickpeas (or kidney beans)
- 3 tbsp cocoa powder
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 dl strong coffee
- 100 g dark chocolate
Topping
- 75 g dark chocolate
- 50 g walnuts
Instructions
- Use a blender or food processor to chop the almonds into a coarse flour. There may be some half-rough pieces left.
- Add eggs, melted butter, dates without stones, drained chickpeas, cocoa powder, salt and coffee. Blend to an even consistency.
- Chop the chocolate and add it to the batter.
- Pour the batter into an approximately 10x20 cm (4x8 incbaking tin lined with baking paper.
- Bake the cake in a 200 C (400 F) preheated oven for 20-25 minutes.
- After baking, remove the hot brownie from the oven. Spread finely chopped chocolate on top so it can melt. Decorate with walnuts.
- Allow the cake to cool in the refrigerator and serve.
Danish Chocolate Biscuit Cake (Kiksekage)
This is a recipe for a very famous and traditional Danish chocolate cake with vanilla biscuits. This version is actually an improved recipe compared to the old recipe where the cake was based on cocoa powder and coconut oil (palmin). This version is based on dark chocolate and butter which we think makes the cake [Read more...]
Salted Dulce De Leche Brownie
In this commercial post I have had the opportunity to work with the Can For Life project on developing a recipe with the well-known metal can in focus. When thinking about food form cans, of course my first thoughts fell upon homemade Dulce De Leche which is cooked directly in a can in hot water. Read more and learn how easy it is to make the most delicious brownie topped with homemade Dulce De Leche. [Read more...]
The Best Brownie
Whether it is new year’s eve or just a Saturday evening relaxing on the couch this recipe for homemade Brownie cake is the perfect choice for a great dessert. [Read more...]
Marzipan without refined Sugar
This is a recipe for a homemade marzipan where there has not been added any refined sugar. A traditional marzipan is made from two very simple ingredients; skinned almonds and sugar - super simple but also a bit unhealthy due to the amount of refined sugar. However, this is not an issue because marzipan is normally only used to make candy and cakes where sugar typically is not considered an issue. [Read more...]
Squash Cake with Nuts and Cheese Topping
Today, I would like to share a recipe which is, and has been, really popular for many years in Denmark, Sweden and Norway. Especially, in the 90ies this cake was super popular and I remember have had it many times in my childhood. [Read more...]
Homemade Vanilla Sugar
After I have started this international food blog I have realized that ingredients which is a common thing, for instance, in the USA is almost impossible to get a hold of in Denmark or any of the other Nordic countries. However, this also applies the over way around. In many of my recipes, especially the desserts, I uses what we in Denmark calls vanilla sugar. After having been asked that question several times 'what vanilla sugar is?' I have made the conclusion that it must be an European ingredient. [Read more...]
Danish Birthday Cake (Kagemand)
This recipe I would like to share here is a great and very traditional Danish birthday cake. The cake is in Danish called a Kagemand which can be translated into something like a Cake Man.
Traditional Danish Birthday Party
I am actually not sure if the origin of this type of cake is Denmark. However, it has differently been made and served here for many years. The cake is a big traditional for kids birthday parties but it can also served for grown-ups birthdays. I guess that one time a year you are allowed to have exactly the type of cake you want and for many it is a great way to get reminded of their child hood. [Read more...]
Mini Pavlova with Strawberry and Blueberry
Pavlova is a wonderful summer recipe. This recipe is really easy to make and it only contains few ingredients - the preparation time is normally under 30 minutes. A Pavlova can be made in many different sizes and variations. In this recipe we have been a bit nontraditional and made several cakes with a diameter of about 8 cm (3 inch) - this size fits perfectly as a single serving. Typically this cake is made as one larger cake. These Pavlovas are decorated with whipped cream, straw- and blueberries. We think this combination makes the cakes very [Read more...]
Mini Danish Chocolate Biscuit Cake (Mini Kiksekage)
Some time ago we made this very traditional Danish non-bake dessert, kiksekage. When we made the cake it was actually the first time in many years so we had both forgotten how delicious it was. Back in the 70’s and 80’s this cake was very popular. Then it had some 'slow' years in the 90's and 00's. However, in the recent years it have had a growth in the popularity and now this great and very classic Danish cake has started to some back - and we love it! [Read more...]
Lemon Curd & Blueberry Mini Tart
Healthy Banana, Oatmeal and Chocolate Cookies
Danish Mazarin Cake
The last time we were having a birthday party we wanted to make something delicious. We have tried a lot of delicious recipes and some of them will you be able to find on this blog. However, as food bloggers we don't like to make the same dessert too many times, even though how delicious it is. It is just funnier to make something new and be able to make some new and great recipes for the blog. [Read more...]
Danish Dream Cake (Drømmekage)
The recipe for Drømmekage is one of the most traditional and famous Danish cakes. Translated, Drømmekage simply means Dream cake probably because some people think it taste like a dream :-) [Read more...]
Healthy Banana Cake with Chocolate and Dates
This recipe is another healthy cake without sugar, flour and milk. The first healthy cake we made was this healthy chocolate cake, which made us realize that you actually can make a very delicious cake without using any white sugar or flour and at the same time without compromise on the taste.
As said, this recipe for a banana cake with chocolate and dates doesn't contain any flour and milk which makes it gluten- and lactose-free. Another important factor is that it doesn't contain any refined sugar - we did use chocolate with sugar, however, if you want a completely sugar-free cake it's possible to buy sugar-free chocolate. The sweetness in this cake comes from dates and bananas which are natural sweet and are therefore a great substitute for white refined sugar. Of course dates contain a certain amount of fructose (fruit sugar). However, it's supposed to be better compared to white sugar. If you have some frozen bananas you can use them in this recipe. Instead of using regular all-purpose flour, this cake has ground almonds.
The cake is very easy and quick to make and we've tested it on friends and colleges with great success :-)
Healthy Banana Cake with Chocolate and Dates
Recipe for a healthy Banana Cake with Chocolate and Dates. This cake does not have any refined sugar or flour added. A healthy alternative to regular cakes which are packed with white sugar and wheat flour.
Servings: 8 people
Ingredients
- 100 g dark chocolate (or sugar-free chocolate)
- 150 g dates
- 200 g nuts (almonds/hazelnuts or similar nuts)
- 2 bananas (or frozen bananas)
- 2 eggs
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1/4 tsp salt
Instructions
- Chop the chocolate and 50 g (2 oz) of the nuts.
- Use a blender or food processor to ground the last 150 g (5 oz) of the nuts into a nut flour. In a large bowl, mix the ground nuts with the chopped chocolate and nuts.
- Add baking powder and salt to the bowl and mix it all.
- Use a food processor or blender to blend dates, bananas and eggs into a smooth batter.
- Pour the banana batter into the bowl with the nut flour and mix it all well together.
- Pour the batter into a 20x25 cm (8x10 inch) oven pan lined with baking paper.
- Bake the cake at 180 C (360 F) for about 25 minutes.
Danish Banana Cake with Chocolate
This recipe for banana cake with chocolate is very delicious and easy to make. The cake is one of our most favorite and we have made it several times for both birthday parties and other special occasions. The mashed bananas, in the cake, makes the cake very moist and gives it a wonderful taste. If you have a couple of extra bananas, which are starting to get a bit overripe, you can easily use them to make this cake.
See also: Recipe for traditional Danish Butter Cake
Normally if we have some overripe bananas, we use them to make this banana cake, a banana-chocolate shake or some delicious healthy banana pancakes. However, if we can't figure out what to use the bananas for, we simply just bag them and save them in the freezer - we have made a very simple guide how to do this - this way we never have to throw out bad bananas.
Danish Banana Cake with Chocolate
Delicious and easy-to-make Danish banana cake with dark chocolate. This cake has a fantastic combination between the bananas and the dark chocolate which gives a wonderful taste. Banana cake just like it is done in Denmark!
Servings: 8 people
Ingredients
- 3 egg
- 150 g sugar
- 2 tsp vanilla sugar / essence
- 125 g all-purpose flour
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 100 g melted and cooled butter
- 2 bananas mashed (use frozen bananas if you have some)
- 50 g dark chocolate/ (or chocolate chips)
Topping
- 100 g melted dark chocolate
Instructions
- Whisk egg, sugar and vanilla sugar together into a light and fluffy mixture.
- In another bowl, mix flour and baking powder together.
- In 3-4 steps gently mix the flour and melted butter with the batter, mix them alternately.
- Mashed the bananas and mix them with the batter.
- Coarsely chop the chocolate and mix it with the batter.
- Grease a bread tin with butter or lined it with baking paper. Pour the batter into the bread tin. The volume of the bread tin should be around 1 liter (1/4 gal).
- Bake the cake at a low position in the oven. Bake it a 175 C (350 F) for about 40 minutes.
- When the cake is done, remove it from the bread tin and let it cool off.
- Melt the chocolate and pour it over the cooled cake. Use a knife to spread it around.
Notes
Keep the cake in a bag - this will keep it nice and moist.
Nordic Apple Cake with Cinnamon
Go pick your own apples and make an apple cake
In Denmark, and the Nordic countries for that matter, the nature is a real paradise in the fall if you are looking for ingredients. It's this time of the year where the apples, pears and all kinds of different berries are ripe and ready to be picked. Every year, in the fall, we go to the forest and spent hours enjoying the nature, the last sun and the nice weather before the cold winter takes over. And then we pick all kinds of fruit and berries which we later love turning into delicious food back home in our kitchen.
We normally pick elderflowers and elderberries which we use to make elderflower juice and elderberry juice both which are very delicious. If you want to be inspired with other delicious recipes, which are made based on ingredients found in the nature, then we suggest that you take a look at our recipe archive.
We absolutely recommend everybody to spend some time in the nature - if you have kids it's also a great way to spend time with them and maybe teach them about the nature.
The Recipe for Nordic Apple Cake with Cinnamon
We normally pick several buckets of apples which we use to make all kinds of different delicious food. With most of the apples we either make this apple pie with crumble dough or this great apple cake with cinnamon.
This recipe for apple cake with cinnamon is perfect for the fall where the weather sometimes makes you stay inside with a blanket, a hot cocoa and a warm pieces of this cake. The cake is just real delicious and super easy to make. We have serve it for friend and family and they all like it. If you have some extra apples we'll recommend you to find inspiration on our page with recipes with apples.
Nordic Apple Cake with Cinnamon
Delicious recipe for Nordic Apple cake with cinnamon. Very easy to make and the result is super tasteful. Apple cake done the Nordic way!
Servings: 8 people
Ingredients
Apple Cake
- 4 eggs
- 400 g sugar
- 200 g butter
- 400 g all-purpose flour
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1 tbsp vanilla powder (or essence)
- 3 apples
Topping
- 1 tbsp cinnamon
- 1 tbsp sugar
- 3 apples
Instructions
- Whisk egg and sugar together, using a hand mixer, into a white and fluffy mixture.
- Melt the butter, let it cool off a bit, and slowly mix it with the egg mixture.
- In a separate bowl, mix the flour, vanilla sugar and baking powder. If you are using vanilla essence add this in the next step.
- Gently mix the flour and egg mixture together using a wooden spoon.
- Peel the apples and dice them. Pour the apples into the cake batter and mix.
- Grease a circular baking tray with butter or lined it with baking paper. Pour the cake batter into the tray.
- For topping, peel the apples and slice them. Spread them in a dense pattern on top of the cake.
- Mix the cinnamon and sugar together and sprinkle it on top of the apples in an even layer.
- Bake the cake at 180 C (360 F) for about 35-40 minutes. Check if the cake is done by sticking a thin wooden stick into the cake - if it's done no cake batter will stick to the stick.
Notes
Serve the apple cake warm with some sour cream or some homemade vanilla ice cream.
Healthy Chocolate Cake without Sugar and Flour
Recipe for Healthy Chocolate Cake without refined sugar and flour
Today many people are talking about cutting down on fat and carbs, and the fitness centers are packed with people working out and trying to get in shape.
See also: The best Nordic recipes
We have several times said that it's sad to take some good food and replace a few ingredients with healthy choices. Most of the times you risk to replace some ingredients that was there for an important purpose - and by that changes the specific dish to something bad.
We believe that food should taste good, and if it's unhealthy we just eat less of it. The first time we came across this recipe for a healthy chocolate cake without sugar and flour we had our strong doubts whether it was any good. We have always thought a chocolate cake should at least contain sugar and flour - we couldn't be more wrong! [Read more...]
American Chocolate Chip Cookies
Chocolate chip cookies are just the best kind of cookies you can get! Of cause we have cookies in Denmark, the rest of the Scandinavia and Europe as well, however we are not getting any close on the cookie-scale compared to the US. In the US cookies are a big thing, you can basically get them everywhere. It is even almost impossible to buy chocolate chips at the grocery stores in Denmark, you would have to buy them from special online stores - and they are really expensive. That is also why we have added an option between chocolate chips and chopped chocolate in this recipe.
As we have mentioned several times on this blog, we love to travel in the US and we always reserve an entire day just to browse the major supermarkets like Walmart. We can literally spent hours going thru all the groceries that we can find on the shelf in Denmark. And we always bring back a ton of stuff like chocolate chips. This recipe for real American chocolate chip cookies is our all-time favorite and we have made it so many times.
The cookies are crisp on the outside and has a nice soft inner core - they are absolutely super delicious! When we make the dough for these cookies we always make some extra and then save some it in the fridge or in the freezer. When you are hungry for some freshly baked cookies, then you can easily make a couple of them in almost no time.
American Chocolate Chip Cookies
American chocolate chip cookies is an all-time favorite and perfectly delicious. These cookies are very easy to make and the taste is just fantastic.
Servings: 6 people
Ingredients
- 200 g all-purpose flour
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp salt
- 150 g brown sugar
- 150 g sugar
- 200 g butter
- 2 eggs
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 340 g semi-sweet chocolate chips (one bag) (or chopped dark chocolate)
Instructions
- Mix the flour, salt and baking powder in a large bowl.
- Whip the sugar, butter and brown sugar using a hand mixer.
- Add the eggs one-by-one and whip until the cookie dough is smooth and fluffy.
- Add the vanilla extract and the flour mix and whip at low speed.
- Add the chocolate chips or the chopped chocolate and mix well.
- Use a spoon to make cookie dough balls. The cookie balls should be about 1/2 dl (1/4 cup) in size. Place them on a baking tray lined with parchment/baking paper.
- Preheat the oven to 200 C (400 F) and bake the cookies for about 6-8 minutes. They must have a brownish color and still be a little soft at the center of the cookie. Take them out of the oven and let them cool off on an oven grid.
Notes
You can easily store this dough in the fridge for a couple of days - just remember to cover the bowl with some plastic wrap or aluminum foil. If the dough has been in the fridge just let rest for 10 minutes before you shape the cookies. You can also bag the dough in plastic bags and freeze them. Then you easily make some fresh cookies in no time.
