{ blue and white for independence }

We celebrated Finnish Independence Day this weekend. The Independence Day dinner on the 6th was decorated with blue and white, the colors of Finland's flag. We used traditional Scandinavian ingredients to create a simple and festive menu.

Our menu:

- Baked salmon
- Onion-cheese mashed potatoes
- Remoulade sauce

- Cheese platter
- Crackers
- Star pastries
- Pumpkin pie & whipped cream

- Red and white wine

The salmon fillets were salted and sprinkled with a touch of white pepper. Large fillets like these take a little more than an hour to cook in 200 c degrees (around 375 f). Salmon is quite a fatty fish, and will not get dry as easy as some other fish, but still make sure not to cook it too long since it's not as tender and tasty when overcooked. I add a bit more salt and a squeeze of lemon juice on the fish right after cooking when it's absorbing flavors.

To make original mashed potatoes all you need is milk and butter to add in with mashed potatoes. I loaded the mashed potatoes of this menu with lots of finely chopped onions and shredded gouda cheese. I seasoned the potatoes with aroma salt and added butter. If the mixture is too thick, add more milk.

One way to make a simple meal more festive is to add more things in the dessert selection. I like to continue the meal to dessert by salty flavors of cheeses. Blue cheese is one of my favorites which goes together amazingly with semi-sweet white wine. After the cheese, everybody is ready for something sweet. Star pastries are a traditional Finnish holiday baked good. It's flaky basic pastry dough cut in star shape and filled with jam.

We take advantage of our bi-cultural household, and often have something Finnish and something American in our menus. Pumpkin pie was the American component this time. It is really a great pie that is different from all the other pie flavors, fitting the season great, spiced with nutmeg, cinnamon and ginger. I'll tell you more about the star pastries and the pumpkin pie soon.

The highlight of the tableware was the only possible one for Independence Day: Finnish design, of course.