Monday, August 15, 2016

Breakfast in Iceland

 Happy T day everyone. Its Tuesday, so stop by  Bleubeard and Elizabeth's blog and see what the T gang has been drinking and maybe even eating. And you can even join in and post your own drink/food related post.

So last week I showed you lunch in Iceland and this week I am showing you breakfast. I must say, European continental breakfasts are usually interesting  depending on what country you are in, and the Icelandic breakfasts carried some foods which reminded me of my childhood. I grew up with a Swedish grandmother who always put on a big Sunday morning brunch spread for us. All my father's siblings would be there with all us grandkids, and out of the 8 of us, 5 of us were all about the same age so you can image what a crowd we were. 
Hot coco on a cold morning, as well as apple juice. Granola, a cheese sandwich on some slightly sweet light rye bread, pickled veggies and some pickled herring. I think I made at least 2 of my friends scowl with the fish, but I really like it. Whenever I manage to get to IKEA I always have to get a couple of jars to enjoy some at home. (Which, by the way, makes my family scowl at me too.)
Throw in a hard boiled egg too.
And then you need a little something sweet. That chocolate cake was to die for, and the little pastry was yummy too.
The next day I went for more chocolate cake, this time with some current jelly.  :)
And at one hotel we could make these Icelandic waffles, much thinner than the waffles we usually get here in the US. Some jelly and whipped cream- more of a dessert but oh so delicious.
My sweet tooth definitely gets me in trouble.  Good think I was walking close to 20,000 steps most days on this trip.
And I also have another journal page to link up to Art Journal Journey. The theme this month is Nature's Wonders, hosted by Gill. I always find it amazing that by putting either seeds or seedlings in some soil, watering and fertilizing this soil and before the season is over, you have some wonderful fresh veggies to eat.  Here's a summer journal page about my veggie garden. The pickings have been great this summer.
So this afternoon (Monday afternoon) I returned from a nice little weekend journey to the Hudson River Valley in New York State with my husband, his sister and her husband. What a beautiful area that is. We had a lot of fun visiting some historic homes, a presidential library and museum along with visiting a winery for a sangria fest. Other than the extremely hot weather (97/ almost 37 degrees Celsius), it was  a fantastic weekend  And it was great to spend some time with my hubby too of course.  I've photos to show you from there too.
Hope everyone else had a nice weekend and didn't have to deal with that brutal heat.  Happy T day and thanks for visiting.

14 comments:

Bleubeard and Elizabeth said...

97 F is about what we had, but our heat index was 105 to 108 each day. It has started to cool a bit, but for over a week we were bogged down with that extreme heat and humidity, too. I would LOVE to see the Hudson River Valley and visit the art museums that inspired the painting movement.

But of course, we are here to share your Icelandic breakfast experience. I think I have had pickled herring, and I liked it. You ate well, and the cocoa and apple juice together were a great combination. I'd have not eaten the rest of the day if I'd had that large breakfast. Oh, and the waffle looked impressive, too.

Thanks for sharing all these wonderful Icelandic breakfasts with us for T this Tuesday.

And your AJJ entry is gorgeous, too! You are lucky to have veggies in your garden. My bell pepper has dried up and shriveled before it could flower, much less produce even one pepper!

Valerie-Jael said...

Love the look of those varied breakfasts, you had yummy food. Thanks for making another gorgeous page for AJJ, too. Glad you had such a great holiday in Iceland. Happy T Day, hugs, Valerie

Rita said...

I'd have to pass on the fish, too--LOL!
Have a great week. :)

Let's Art Journal said...

What great memories of your childhood, those big Sunday morning brunches at your grandmothers sound a very grand and special time! Your Icelandic breakfasts look scrummy, it's making my mouth water just thinking about rye bread, chocolate cake and those waffles, which are all great choices! I love fish and I have never tried pickled herring, I would have it too (despite the scowls ... lol). Love the veggie page you have created, it really celebrates summer and all the lovely seasonal veg around. Glad you had a good weekend with your family, I'm looking forward to seeing your photos! Thanks and wishing you a Happy T Day! J :-)

Meggymay said...

Those breakfasts look quite delicious, but I think they would for me, be more of a lunch. It was good to see what folk in another countries eat in the morning. Your journal page looks great, nature does provide us with good foof.
Happy T day
Yvonne xx

froebelsternchen said...

Good that my breakfast was good and much . otherwise I couldn't look at all this delicous things without get water in my mouth...lol!
So yummie this all... and your wonderful veggie page! Great!
Happy Tuesday dear Erika! Thank you for this fresh fruit (Nature's Wonders)page to AJJ!
Big hug
Susi

Gibby Frogett said...

Gosh, have I read this correctly Erika, is all that food just for breakfast? It's making feel hungry and full up at the same time - but what a fabulous selection :)
I've never thought about eating pickle Herrings for breakfast, but over the years had left over Chinese takeaway, fish in batter and all sorts - so yes why not!

I love your AJJ page - I agree with what you said about the seeds too. And they have to survive not being found and eaten by birds or mice etc and then survive pests and I guess airborne viruses too as they continue to grow - yes amazing :)
Thanks for all the lovely comments on my AJJ stuff and especially the ones with the birds.

Glad to hear you had a wonderful weekend - Hope your weather cools down soon to something more pleasant - its 24c here inside at present and feels hot and humid so I can't imagine what your 37c like - phew!
Have a great week...Gill xx

Dianne said...

what scrumptious looking food! your trip sounds quite wonderful...20,000 steps is impressive! Terrific journal page too...happy T day!

Divers and Sundry said...

Wow! That food! Well, except for the fish ;) I've never considered having jam with chocolate cake, but I'm definitely considering it now :) Happy T Tuesday!

~*~Patty S said...

Your vegie page looks super Erika.
I really like the way you colored them.
So true about the miracle of seed to plant...it IS totally amazing.
Great fun to see an Icelandic breakfast.
Chocolate cake for breakfast sounds like a party!
My mother would have been really happy about the pickled herring.
I am due for a trip to IKEA.
It's a bit of a jaunt so I hardly ever go these days.
It's a fun treat to have a bite of lunch there.
Happy T Day oxo

pearshapedcrafting said...

Oooh! Fabulous breakfasts!! I love your Veggie page too - yes it always amazes me that an ugly little seed can produce such wonders! Hugs, Chrisx

Anonymous said...

They love their meats, fish and cheeses in those Scandinavian countries. We had the weirdest cheese in Norway, I have to say so gross it was almost like peanut butter cheese, brown and yucky. There is almost no cheese on the planet that I don't like but that was it. Sadly no cheese much these days.....no sweets either, but they look good.

Nice veggie page, it's that time of year. xox

Halle said...

When I saw the word on the butter pat wrapper I knew you had to be in Scandinavia. My dad always called butter,smør. Thanks for the trip down memory lane. :)
Happy T day...really late.

Jeanie said...

Your breakfast looks fabulous (although the cheese sandwich had me flummoxed!) I believe in a good start to the day and that would certainly hold you!