The best Mother’s Day gift I have received was from my stepdaughters. A couple of years ago, they surprised me with an afternoon tea at home sophisticated enough to rival that of Ritz Carlton in San Francisco.

Tori, my youngest stepchild, planned my Mother’s Day tea for two weeks. She carefully selected the menu, shopped for all the necessary items, then enlisted her older sister, Kayla, to help with the preparations. They set a beautiful table with our antique wedding china that was my great grandparent’s, adorned the table and the house with fresh flowers, and used cloth table linens.

We had two different French teas, champagne to accompany two types of homemade scones, an arugula salad, cucumber and smoked salmon finger sandwiches, and crostinis with goat cheese. While we enjoyed our meal, we listened to French songstress, Edith Piaf.

For dessert, we indulged in Tori’s homemade banana, Nutella, Grand Marnier crêpes and Kayla’s chocolate covered strawberries.

With the beautiful table setting, carefully prepared food, and the added element of surprise, it was a Mother’s Day I will always remember and treasure.

If you’re wondering how you can make your mother, grandmother, stepmother or wife feel special, appreciated and honored this Mother’s Day, serve her an Afternoon Tea she will never forget!

12 Ideas for Cinco de Mayo Party

Are you ready to celebrate Cinco de Mayo and Mexican culture on May 5th? If you are planning a Mexican soiree or a fun Cinco de Mayo party with your friends, here are my 12 ideas to make your night a success. I created my Cinco de Mayo menu with fresh ingredients and infused the party and even the dessert with Sauza tequila, who sponsored this Cinco de Mayo post.

Cinco de Mayo Menu Ideas

1. Mango Salsa
Give your salsa a new twist and give mango salsa a try this mango salsa recipe, perfect for your Cinco de Mayo party.

2. Guacamole
You can’t go wrong with guacamole. The best tip: never buy ready made stuff, nor those spice packages, but always make your guacamole from scratch.
Guacamole recipe really is easy: 2-3 avocados, chopped onion and a tomato, minced garlic and half of jalapeno, fresh lime juice and cilantro, salt to the taste.

3. Southwestern Chicken Soup
I know what you are thinking… soup doesn’t sound like a springtime food, but this chicken soup is perfect party food that you can make the previous day and it just tastes the better the next day. Try my Southwestern Tortilla soup recipe and stay tuned for my chicken soup recipe.

4. Margarita Lime No-Bake Cheese Cake
My easy Margarita lime cheese cake is no-bake cheese cake, which you can also make already the day before. Fresh limes and tequila give this easy cheese cake a new twist.

Cinco de Mayo Drink Ideas

5. Tequila Shot Bar
As simple as it can be – add a self-serve tequila shot bar with shot glasses, lemons and salt. Even if you are not expecting a wild drinking party adding a tequila shot bar is a simple way to decorate. I turned an old soda bottle crate sideways and used it as the shelves.

6. Sauza-Ritas
Instead of being a bartender and making individual margaritas, mix a pitcher of Sauza-Ritas, a mixture of light beer and tequila is perfect for any kind of party crowd.

7. Lime Sangria
Make a pitcher of Lime Sangria for refreshing dinner drink.

Get the Lime Sangria and Sauza-Rita recipes here.

Cinco de Mayo Party Decorating Ideas

8. Cactus as party flowers
Instead of buying cut flowers that only last a week or two, buy cactus plants and use them in your party table center pieces and party decor. If you are lucky – you will use these same decorations next year too and enjoy them the entire year around.

9. Lime & lemons as centerpiece
Bowl of limes and lemons is an easy and fast centerpiece idea. The best? You can eat them after the party.

10. DIY Piñata
Give your party piñata a little more personality than just buying one from the party supply store, and make one yourself. Use a medium-sized cardboard box and decoupage it with colorful napkins or silk paper. Make your piñata to match your party decor by decoupaging it with the same napkins as you will use in your party table if you are using paper napkins.

We used a glass carrying crate from IKEA in our homemade piñata and added Cinco de Mayo text with felt letters on the side. The carrying case needed a top, but already had a handle for easy hanging.

11. Horizontal stripes
When we think of Mexican fabrics, we immediately think of the striped Serapes in the colors of the rainbow. If you have a Serape blanket, now is the time to hang it up on your wall for your party. If not, no worries. Use almost any multi-colored striped fabric horizontally. The horizontal stripes immediately give the Serape vibe.

12. Soup cans as vases
Washed out soup cans work perfectly as party flower vases or for utensils. You can also paint the soup cans or decoupage them with paper. This time I wrapped the cans with matching striped fabric to complete the party table look.

This post is sponsored by Sauza Tequila.

Have you met the Sauza lifeguard…? He’s equally talented in the saving of lives and the ways of love. And best of all? He’s ready to pour you a Sauza-rita, and listen as you pour out your feelings. This perfect man is perfectly prepared to help make your ladies night unforgettably fun – with Sauza Blue, of course. Check us out at http://facebook.com/SauzaMargaritas.

Disclosure: Compensation was provided by Sauza® via Glam Media. The opinions expressed herein are those of the author and are not indicative of the opinions or positions of Sauza®.

Mango Salsa for Cinco de Mayo

I’ve been making different kind of salsas for a while to test different flavor mixes and to give the same old salsa a new spin. I like this mango salsa, it’s perfect with chips, but even better with fish tacos or even with grilled chicken. It would make a perfect addition to your Cinco de Mayo party table.

Mango Salsa Recipe

INGREDIENTS
2 mangos
1 red pepper
1 onion
1 lime’s juice
1/2 jalapeño
chopped cilantro
dash of salt

INSTRUCTIONS
1. If you don’t like your salsa super hot, roast the jalapeño first. Roast jalapeño in the oven on broil it for 10-15 minutes until the jalapeño looks all black. Cut the pepper open under cold running water, the cold water will make it easier to peel of the skin of the jalapeño. Peel the skin off and remove the seeds, cut in half. Mince into small.

2. Cute the mango in small pieces. It’s the easiest if you first peel the mango, then cut around the fruit and then cut through to the seed like creating a grid in the fruit as pictured. You can then carve the cubes off the flat mango seed.

3. Mince the onion and red pepper. Mix with mango and jalapeño.

4. Squeeze the lime juice and add to the salsa and add cilantro and salt to the taste.

5. Put to fridge covered for 30 minutes or so.

6. Enjoy with tortilla chips. Also great with grilled white fish.

Stay tuned for more Cinco de Mayo party recipes and ideas.

2 Easy Party Drinks

It’s perfect time to start thinking of spring and summer parties, and for example hosting a party on Cinco de Mayo. I’m featuring several easy party recipes and ideas to make your Mexican themed soiree a success. Today I’m featuring two super easy cocktail recipes, both you can serve from a pitcher or a bowl and have your guests to take their own drinks making it easy for you. I don’t drink beer, but the Sauza-Rita is a perfect drink for those who are equally fan of Margaritas and ice cold Coronas with lime, and my favorite is the very refreshing and not too sweet Lime Sangria in its simplicity. Typically I mix mint with rum for mojitos, but it is perfect also with tequila.

Lime Sangria

1/2 cup Sauza® Blue Silver 100% Agave Tequila*
mint leaves
2 limes
2 cups of white wine
1-2 tablespoons of sugar melted in 1/2 cup of water depending how sweet you like
splash of sparkling water
ice

Add the lime leaves and a few lime slices into the tequila and let the them infuse the tequila by soaking them for over night or at least for 2-3 hours. Remove the mint leaves and add fresh ones when you are ready to serve. Squeeze the lime juice of the reminding lime and mix the lime juice with the tequila. Melt the sugar in about 1/2 cup of water until dissolved. Pour the sugar water, tequila and lime juice mix over ice in a pitcher and add wine and sparkling water. Garnish with additional lime wedges and mint leaves.

*If Sauza® Blue Silver isn’t available, try Sauza® Silver

Sauza-Rita in a Pitcher

1 can Sauza® Blue Silver 100% Agave Tequila*
1 bottle light beer
1 can frozen limeade
1 can water

INSTRUCTIONS:

Pour limeade and beer into a pitcher with ice. Fill limeade can with Sauza® Blue Silver and pour into pitcher. Finally, add a can of water, stir and enjoy.

*If Sauza® Blue Silver isn’t available, try Sauza® Silver

Disclosure: compensation was not provided for this post, but I do have a working relationship with Sauza tequila and they have sponsored other posts. My opinions are my own.

Margarita Lime Cheese Cake

This easy to make lime cheese cake is one of my favorite spring and summertime desserts. This time I added a little tequila to the cake to make it a perfect cake for Cinco de Mayo celebrations next month. One of the best parts of this lime cheese cake is that it is a no-bake cake, no oven needed and you can make it a day prior your party. Just put it in a refrigerator for overnight and you will have the perfect dessert for the next day.

Margarita Lime Cheese Cake Recipe

1 1/3 cup digestive biscuits/ graham crackers (approximately 20 cookies)
75 g butter
2 cups whipped cream
3 egg whites
grated zest and juice of 3-4 limes (or 1/2 cup of store bought lime juice)
400 gr cream cheese
1 cup sugar
4 teaspoons vanilla sugar
3 teaspoons Sauza tequila
7 sheets of gelatin or 3 teaspoons powdered gelatin prepared as instructed by manufacturer
(optional: green food coloring if you want a greener look)

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Crush the digestive or graham cookies into crumbs.
2. Prepare the gelatin by soaking it in the cold water.
3. Melt the butter and mix together the biscuit crumbs and melted butter.
4. Press the biscuit crumb mixture into a springform pan.
5. Whip the heavy whipping cream until soft peaks form.
6. Separate the egg whites carefully and whip the egg whites. Carefully mix with whipped cream.
7. In a separate bowl mix the cream cheese, sugar, lime zest and juice and tequila.
8. Fold the whipped cream & egg white mix into the cream cheese & lime juice mixture.
9. Boil the gelatin-water mix or if using powdered gelatin prepare it now. Mix the gelatin-mix with the combined cheese cake mixture.
10. Quickly add the combined cheese cake mixture on the top of the digestive/graham crumb mix in the springform tin.
11. Chill overnight or at least 4 hours in the refrigerator until set. Garnish with cut lime slices.

Stay tuned for more ideas for perfect Mexican fiesta party – for Cinco de Mayo or anytime of the year!

Disclosure: compensation was not provided for this post, but I do have a working relationship with Sauza tequila and they have sponsored other posts. My opinions are my own.

Iced Tea & Limoncello in harmony

Sometimes you don’t have to go all the way to Rome to do like the Romans do.

Sometimes you can spend a weekend in a nearby hotel decorated in the Italian flair like Leigh just did and spent a weekend at the Siena Hotel in Chapel Hill, North-Carolina, and feel like you are in Italy.

Sometimes you can bring souvenirs home from your travels and enjoy them in your everyday life, like I do with our souvenirs from our trip to Tuscany.

Sometimes only what you have to do is to shop at your local grocery store and discover imported foods or try a new recipe that give you a culinary trip.

Today I am presenting you two cocktails I created with Lipton Iced Tea products. I know what you are thinking: iced tea in a bottle isn’t really what you’d call an exotic culinary trip, but that’s my entire point here! Just like Leigh was able to experience the mix of Southern Hospitality and Italian Romance at Siena Hill, you can experience a mixture of Lipton Iced Tea and Italian Limoncello and feel like you are taking an exciting trip to Italy while staying in the comforts of your home and enjoying the moment. It’s like the Ying and Yang, homey and exotic, expensive and cheap mixed together in a perfect harmony. Mixing things up to form a new blend is the way to bring best of two world together!

Limoncello is a liqueur from Southern Italy, and it is typically served as an digestivo, an after dinner drink from small glasses. It’s pretty potent with around 32% of alcohol, and it’s quite strong in taste with the mixed bitterness and sweetness of the lemons. I recommend keeping your Limoncello bottle in the freezer to keep it nice and cold, ready for serving. The two Lipton Iced Tea drinks used for these cocktails are Lipton 100 Calorie Half & Half (Tea & Lemonade) and Lipton Diet Green Tea Honey Ginseng. I admit, I typically brew my iced tea myself if I make iced tea drinks at home, but Lipton sent me these two to try and these ready made iced teas make these cocktails super easy to make even on a vacation or in a vacation home, or take to a potluck type of gathering like a girls’ night in. The bottom lime: this is all about getting the everyday luxury with a very small effort!

Lipton Palmer

One of the most famous Limoncello cocktails in the US is The Leland Palmer. It’s a cocktail hack of a drink called Arnold Palmer, which consists of iced tea and lemonade, named after American golfer Arnold Palmer. The Leland Palmer on the other hand is named after a character in the Twin Peaks TV show (remember?) and it was invented by Damon Boelte, bar manager at Prime Meats in Brooklyn. In addition to lemonade and iced tea it has Italian Limoncello in it to give it an additional kick. The Leland Palmer calls for freshly brewed jasmine tea and hand squeezed lemon juice, so my Lipton Palmer is quite the easier version!

INGREDIENTS:
1 parts Limoncello
6 parts Lipton 100 Calorie Half & Half (Tea & Lemonade)
ice
3 parts sparkling water
lemon wedges as garnish

Mix Limoncello and Lipton 100 Calorie Half & Half (Tea & Lemonade) on ice and add sparkling water. Garnish with lemon wedges.

Green Tea Ginseng Limoncello

Out of these two drinks this one is my personal favorite! It’s a little less sweet and the fresh mint and the Green Tea Honey Ginseng go perfectly together.

1 parts Limoncello
6 parts Lipton Diet Green Tea Honey Ginseng
fresh mint leaves
ice
lemon wedges as garnish

Muddle mint leaves with crushed ice, mix Limoncello and Lipton Diet Green Tea Honey Ginseng. Serve on ice, garnish with lemon and mint leaves.

Mix it up!

Together with Lipton Iced Tea we would like to encourage you to mix it up a little, and perhaps to host a fun girls’ night in and give these recipes a try.

Lipton Iced Tea is mixing it up with Dance Central 3, and together they are hosting the ‘Game On’ sweepstakes. You can enter to win one of four ultimate entertainment room makeovers which include a new Samsung TV, sound system, Xbox 360 Kinect bundle and console, Dance Central 3 and more. Find out how here.

How are you mixing it up? Do you ever combine two opposites to combine a perfect blend?

This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Lipton Iced Tea. The opinions and text are all mine.

Happy Fat Tuesday!

Happy Fat Tuesday! You might be celebrating Mardi Gras today, but in Sweden we have fettisdag, Fat Tuesday and we are eating semlor, a cardamon bun with marzipan and whipped cream inside! The Swedish semla (plural is semlor) is traditional Shrove Tuesday treat in Scandinavia, in Finland we call them laskiaispulla.

Originally this sweet creamy bun was only eaten on Shrove Tuesdays as the last festive food before Lent, but Swedes don’t observe a strict fasting for Lent anymore and semla in a bowl of warm milk became a traditional dessert every Tuesday between Shrove Tuesday and Easter. Nowadays the traditions have stretched a little, and semlor are eaten more than ever. They are available in almost every grocery store and bakery in Sweden from late January until Easter. It is said that each Swede consumes on average five bakery-produced semlor each year, in addition to all those that are homemade.

I think I will for now on always associate semlor to the time when we first moved to Sweden last February, and celebrated our move here with the sweet creamy puffs. While I ate semlor when I was growing up in Finland, I am more of a cinnamon bun girl myself, and never baked semlor at home when we lived in the US. Now semlor will always be part of my memories of the time we lived in Sweden and I think I will continue the tradition even after we move out.

We just celebrated our one year anniversary here and I am already now thinking about moving out. We are not leaving anytime soon, but I know that eventually we will have to leave Sweden. Until we leave… I will live life to the fullest and enjoy my Swedish sunrises every morning in my backyard, and enjoy afternoon fika, Swedish coffee break, enjoying my view from my back porch. Today, why don’t you join me.

Swedish Semlor Recipe

INGREDIENTS FOR THE BUNS:
4oz butter
50 grams / 2 oz yeast (one fresh yeast package or 3 dry yeast packages)
2 cups of warm milk
1 egg, lightly beaten
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2-1 teaspoon grounded cardamon
4 1/2 cup wheat flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder

+ 1 egg for brushing the buns before baking.

INGREDIENTS FOR FILLING:
200 grams/ 7 oz almond paste/marzipan
1/3 cup milk

Pint heavy cream
3 tbsp powdered/icing sugar

+ powdered sugar on the top

1. I typically have a large bowl for the dough and use a small coffee cup for the items to be warmed and use microwave to warm them. First melt the milk in a microwave, and pour it into the bowl. Crumble the yeast into a bowl and let it dissolve into the milk.

2. Add the egg and mix well with the milk. Add the salt, cardamom, sugar, baking powder and start adding the flour by working the dough. When you have added around 4 cups of flour you can add the softened (or almost melted) butter and work it in the dough well, and you should be able to work the dough to the consistency it won’t stick to your fingers anymore. If needed, add around 1/2 cup more flour.

3. Let the dough rise under a towel in a warm place for about 30-45 minutes.

4. Once the dough has doubled, make around 20-25 buns and add them to a baking sheet with baking paper. Make sure they are not too close to each others, because they will rise more.

5. Heat the oven to 250C/480F and put a towel on the top of the buns and let them rise again for around 30 minutes or at least while the oven heats.

6. Beat the egg and use a brush to glaze the tops of the buns.

7. Allow the buns to cool before adding the filling.

8. Prepare the almond filling by warming the almond paste/marzipan in the microwave with the milk and mix them well. You don’t have to really warm them, but it will make the marzipan softer and easier to work with.

9. Whip the heavy whipping cream with powered sugar.

10. Once the buns have cooled off, cut a top off and add the almond paste first and then the whipped cream and add the bun top back on. Decorate with powdered sugar.

TIP: if you don’t like almonds or are allergic, you can also do what they do in Finland: instead of marzipan use jam, for example raspberry jam.

Valentine’s Day Cocktail Recipes

We asked a few of our friends what kind of cocktails are hot this Valentine’s Day and got tips from Hollywood and Las Vegas hotspots, and even from our friends at Nespresso.

Hollywood hot spot cocktails

The two first Valentine’s Day cocktails are courtesy of Hollywood hotspot, Lexington Social House. Celebrity fans of Lexington Social House include Vanessa Hudgens, Ashley Benson, Paris Hilton, Lindsay Lohan, Christina Milian, Jonah Hill, Lake Bell, and many more. Lexington Social House shared two of their popular recipes. These two light and flavorful cocktails will be a hit for Valentine’s Day and also carry perfectly into the spring.

Honey Bee-Mine

Ingredients:
1 1/2oz Irish honey whiskey
1/2oz Lemon juice
1/2oz Simple syrup
1/4oz Grenadine

Instructions:
Shake over ice, strain into chilled champagne coup. Garnish with a strawberry.

The Tart Heart

Ingredients:
1 1/2oz Pink grapefruit vodka
3/4oz Maraschino liquor
1/2oz Lime juice
1/2oz Simple syrup
Dash of pomegranate bitters

Instructions:
Shake, strain over ice. Float black raspberry liqueur. Garnish with a sprig of Mint.

EFFEN® Chai Love’tini

This cocktail is nice and refreshing!

Ingredients:
1 1⁄2 parts EFFEN® Vodka
Peel of Lemon (use a knife or potato peeler to make a thick strip)
Peel of Orange
1 teaspoon Granulated Sugar
1 teaspoon Water
4 dashes Fee Brothers Orange Bitters

Instructions:
In a mixing glass place sugar, water, bitters, and citrus peels skin side down. Lightly muddle peels into sugar to release oils and to dissolve sugar into water. Add remaining ingredients over ice and shake. Strain into a cocktail glass and garnish with lemon peel.

Nespresso Cappuccino a la Rose – For Two

This coffee drink is a perfect non-alcoholic dessert drink, or for the afternoon.

Ingredients:
2 capsules of Dulsão do Brasil
2 pieces of white chocolate
7 oz. of milk
1 oz. of rose-water
Crystallized rose petals

Instructions:
Heat your Cappuccino cups. Add a piece of white chocolate in each cup. Prepare the capsules of Dulsão do Brasil as an espresso and pour in each cup. Combine the milk and the rose-water. Prepare the flavored milk using the steam nozzle of your Nespresso machine or the Aeroccino milk frother. Pour the frothed milk into the cups and decorate with crystallized rose petals.

Toblerone Cocktail

Ingredients:
1/2 oz of hazelnut flavored liqueur for example Frangelico
1/2 oz of coffee flavored liqueur for example Kahlua
1/2 oz of Irish cream for example Baileys
1 tablespoon of honey
1 oz of cream
Chocolate syrup
Almond/pistachio/Toblerone chocolate shavings
Ice cubes

Instructions:
Add the Frangelico, Kahlua, Baileys, honey and cream into a cocktail shaker with the ice. Shake vigorously. Decorate the glass by pouring chocolate syrup into the side of the glass and rotate the glass to create a decorative pattern. Strain and pour the mix into the glass. Decorate with Toblerone or nut shavings.

This post is brought to you by Breville.

Secrets to super easy Holiday Entertaining

I like big parties and I can not lie: sometimes I tend to overdo it, and when I do, I am stressed, overwhelmed and hope that people would just leave!
There I said it. Isn’t it horrible?

The best parties are the ones where I call my husband at lunch time “hey, invite everyone over, let’s have a little party tonight.” Of course it’s not the most polite way to invite guests over, but with the live-in-the-moment invitations also come zero expectations of a party well-planned and the emphasis is always on having fun, like ANY party should be. Whether you are hosting a very well planned party, or an impromptu Holiday soiree, read these tips how to make it a success with a very little effort. For example I created this quick Holiday afternoon coffee pictured in an hour, including the baking time.

1. Know your party tip resources.
Also known as “join Pinterest”. I share everything I love on Pinterest, and find everything needed for hosting great parties. I have one board for party food and cocktails, another one where there are several of my friends too collecting the best cocktails, another one for party decorating, and one just for table settings. When I want to host a party – I typically immediately know which board to go to get the recipes or ideas needed. If you like it old school – have a binder with recipe and idea cutouts from your favorite magazines, or have a well-stocked cookbook library.

2. Learn to use what you have.
Hosting parties can be expensive, especially if you include the decorating as well. Learn to use what you have in hand, and learn to make easy centerpieces, like using edible things as part of the decorating (candy in bowls, fruit on a tray..). Choose a theme or color scheme and stick to it, and making it pretty in 15 minutes or less is easy.

For my afternoon coffee I used two large candle holders as my centerpiece but instead of candles I used Christmas ornaments inside them to give it a quick festive look. I chose blue, white and silver as my decorating colors and mixed old and new dishes that fit the color scheme. It’s OK to mix modern design and vintage finds!

3. Have a well-stocked kitchen.
While yes.. learn to use what you have, but also have a well-stocked kitchen and know how to use what you have. Let’s say you never use a specific kitchen gadget you have, but choose a recipe for your party that requires using the gadget, chances are you will need extra time just to learn to use the gadget. I recommend having simple white dinnerware and serving dishes that you can use in any themed party and easily mix with colors. I don’t believe in disposable plates or cups, but I do stock different colored paper napkins to easily set a colorful table. Entertaining is so much easier when you have the basics.

4. Have a well-stocked pantry
You probably have a few favorite party recipes, or have favorite Holiday time treats you like to offer for guests? Keep ingredients stocked for the entire Holiday season so you don’t have to worry about the basics when you plan your party. My basics during the Holidays are gingerbread cookies, chocolate pralines, assorted nuts and mulled wine, or what we call glögi in Finland, also ready to be warmed up and kept in a thermos for guests. I typically like keeping the spiced wine in the thermos when entertaining and brew the coffee nice and fresh. In addition you can never go wrong with crackers & cheese, and having a few puffy pastry sheets in the freezer for fast treats like the Toblerone Pastries.

5. Add music.
Holiday music has a mysterious way to put anyone into Holiday cheer, make sure you have some Holiday music that makes everyone in your party feel cheery whether it’s smooth Holiday jazz, or jingle bells, add some music to your party. To get you started… check out the Skimbaco Holiday Mix on Spotify.

Breville has released new, time saving products such as the YouBrew, just in time for the holidays! Create your perfect cup or pot of coffee instantly and easily with the Breville YouBrew. Check out their website for more information on this product and other great gift ideas.

And don’t forget to reply below for two chances to win your choice of amazing Breville products either for yourself or as a gift to a loved one: YouBrew, Tea Maker and Smart Oven products ($250 ARV)

This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Breville. The opinions and text are all mine. Official Sweepstakes Rules

The mixed cultural background of the Toblerone Danish

It would be so simple if I could tell you a story about skiing in the Alps in co-injunctions of the Toblerone pastry recipe, now wouldn’t it? But I admit, I’ve never skied in Switzerland, and there is no such story to accompany this Global Kitchen recipe post. I am hoping we can make it to the Alps to ski sometime in the next two years, but until that happens.. I just dream of it. For the lack of Switzerland skiing pictures, these mountain pictures are from Telluride, Colorado, one of my favorite places to ski.

When it comes to global cuisine you know, things are often complicated, just like this recipe story. You find the perfect recipe from your travels, but can’t find the ingredients back home and often it’s a case of a simple spice that makes all the difference. Or the story or the origin of the recipe is a mixture of several cultures and locations, making it difficult to pinpoint where the recipe is actually from.

This Toblerone Danish pastry story is a mess too, but believe me when I say: this recipe itself is simple, delicious, no mess at all, and you can make it in any ski lodge anywhere in the world where you just have an oven and Toblerone is sold. It tastes equally good at home.

I was in my local grocery store in Linköping, Sweden, when my eyes peeled into the bakery section and the Toblerone Pastry. After doing some testing and research, I discovered the Toblerone pastry isn’t a Swedish invention, nor comes from Switzerland like Toblerone chocolate itself, but the recipe and the pastry was by Cuisine de France, a French bakery in Dublin, Ireland. And to add to the mix… in America you’d call this type of pastry a “Danish”. This is like a trip around Europe, right?

The Perfect Ski Lodge Après-ski Pastry

These Toblerone pastries are perfect for winter for the warm melted chocolate inside and flaky buttery crust, and they are perfect for pairing with a latte or a hot chocolate after a day in the snow. I personally am always looking for super simple recipes I can make in a ski lodge on our vacations without buying a ton of ingredients that I might have to throw away for not using it all before leaving home. This is probably one of THE easiest one so far, and I am planning on making these in Norway on our next ski trip on our Christmas vacation. Bonus of course that these even look a little bit like mountains with the triangle form, just like the Toblerones.

Toblerone Danish Pastry Recipe

INGREDIENTS:
1 package of ready made Puff Pastry dough
2 medium sized Toblerones (some for eating too)
1 egg

for garnish (optional):
chopped almonds
powdered sugar

INSTRUCTIONS:
Heat the oven to 400F/200C.
Take the dough out of the freezer and let it thaw to room temperature. Cut it to squares.
Chop the Toblerone chocolate to individual chunks. It depends which size of Toblerone yo are using, but you might have to use two slices of small or one slice of large Toblerone, or 1 1/2 of medium. Basically you will have to be able to close the pastry diagonally, and form a triangle – that’s how much chocolate you scan fit inside. Put the pastries on a cookie sheet with or without cupcake paper cups (I used the large cupcake cups from IKEA, it makes it easy to take the pastries and eat on the go if wanted). Brush a little bit of egg onto the pastries, sprinkle with nuts, and put to the oven for about 20 minutes until golden brown. Shift a little powdered sugar on the top of the baked pastries to make the pastries look snow capped. Be ready to make a round to the grocery store to get more ingredients, that’s how good these are, especially after a day of skiing.

Do YOU have a favorite recipe from your travels?

We are looking for guest bloggers for our Global Kitchen feature. Please email us and apply to be a guest poster for Global Kitchen, we’d love to hear from you!