Smorgastarta : Sweden #153

 Smorgastarta: Sweden #153

A savory cake that is similar to a sandwich, but with large amounts of filling and garnish.  It consist of several layers of white rye bread with fillings in between.  The fillings and toppings vary, but egg and mayonnaise are often the base.  Additional fillings might be: ham salad, chicken salad, pimento cheese, liver pate, shrimp, cold cuts, tomato, cheese and smoked salmon.  It’s served cold and cut like a dessert cake.  The topping often reflects the ingredients used as a filling. This recipe has avocado chicken salad, Pimento cheese, and ham salad. Read “Results” at the bottom of this recipe to see my adaptations before you start to make this.

                       

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Ingredients:

Avocado Chicken Club:

• 1/4-1/2 c. Buttermilk
• Juice of 2 limes
• 2 avocados
• 1 rotisserie chicken, shredded.                      
  
• 4 slices cooked bacon, chopped
• 3 t. Chopped fresh chives.        
• 3 scallions (white and green parts), sliced
• Kosher salt

Pimento Cheese:

• 2 c. Grated cheddar
• 1/2 c. Mayonnaise
• 3 T.chopped pimento 

Ham Salad:

• 1 lb. deli ham, processed in food processor
  
  
  
• 2 T. Dijon mustard
• 6 bread and butter pickles, minced
• 2 stalks celery, minced
• 2 scallions (white and green parts), minced
  
  
  
• 1 small red onion, minced
• 1 pickled jalapeño, seeded and minced
• Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper

Ranch Frosting: 

• 3 lbs. cubed cream cheese
• 1/2-3/4 c. Buttermilk
• 1 T. White wine vinegar
• 1 clove garlic, grated on a rasp
• 1 T. Grated onion

1 pain de mié, crusts removed and sliced horizontally into 4 pieces.

Toppings:

• Sliced radishes, cucumber glowers, carrot flowers, sliced hard-boiled eggs, tomato flowers, parsley leaves, dill leaves, chives, etc.

Results:  Getting the correct bread is essential for this to work.  I did not. I couldn’t find uncut sandwich bread. I used a French Pullman.  It was way too tall. I also forgot to cut the crust off, which would have made it much easier to cut into. I bought ham and chicken salad because I didn’t want to do all that work. I made my own pimento cheese and I added a bit of Tabasco for heat, but not too much. The ranch frosting was very good. I had enough of the fillings to make 2 small loaves.

Bottom Line: I will definitely make this again, but I will make sure to use the correct bread. Tasters liked it, but had to deconstruct it to eat it.

Please share this blog with family and friends, especially those that think a big sandwich is a cake. LOL