Smorgastarta or as Swedish call it, smörgåstårta, is a savory dish with different flavors packed in one. If it’s trouble for you to go out and buy the dish every time you crave it, then the best option is to head to your kitchen to make it for your whole family. You can refrigerate the dish and eat it for more than a day. What’s better than that? Here’s the recipe for smorgastarta that will leave you wanting for more.
Recipe of Smorgastarta
If you are inspired by smörgåstårta and want to try it at home, then you’re in the right place. Here you can find the complete recipe for smörgåstårta from Sweden to make it for your family and friends.
Ingredients of Smorgastarta
Here are the ingredients needed for smörgåstårta:
- zest of 1 lemon
- 300g light soft cheese (at room temp)
- ½ x 300ml pot half-fat crème fraîche
- 24 slices soft white or wholemeal bread (or a mixture of both), crusts removed
- 3 ripe avocados, flesh sliced lengthways
- 8 hard-boiled eggs: 5 sliced and 3 quartered
For Salmon Filling:
- zest and juice of 1 lemon
- ½ x 300ml pot half-fat crème fraîch
- ½ x 20g pack chives, finely chopped
- 3 tsp horseradish sauce
- 200g hot smoked salmon (or trout), flaked
For Prawn Filling:
- 1 tbsp rainbow trout ‘caviar’ (optional)
- zest and juice of ½ lemon
- 1 x 250g bag cooked and peeled cold water prawns, roughly chopped
- 100g natural thick Greek yogurt
- ½ x 20g pack dill, chopped
- 100g light mayonnaise
To Decorate:
- 10 radishes, thinly sliced
- 100g fine asparagus, halved lengthways
- 1-2 tbsp rainbow trout ‘caviar’ (optional)
- 2-3 rainbow carrots(or use regular), shaved into ribbons
- a few sprigs of dill and/or watercress
- 100g smoked salmon
- 1 cucumber, shaved into ribbons (discard the seedy core)
Directions to Make Smorgastarta
Making smörgåstårta at home is not too difficult. Follow these steps to become a pro at making smörgåstårta.
- Mix the salmon, créme fraîche, horseradish, lemon zest, and chives in a bowl, add the lemon juice, and add some salt for seasoning. Similarly, take all of the prawn-filling ingredients, mix them together in a different bowl, cover, and chill before preparing.
- Take a large cutting board and place a baking sheet on it. Take six pieces of crustless bread and lay them out on the baking sheet in two rows of three slices (rectangle shape).
- Now spread the salmon filling all over the bread and top them with six bread slices. Spread the sliced eggs and avocado on top of the slices, then top them up with the next layer of bread. After this, spread the prawn filling on top of the bread and finish with the last layer of six slices of bread. Slightly press down all the ingredients and chill it for one hour in the fridge.
- Take lemon zest, soft cheese, and créme fraîche and beat them all together to form a nice mixture. Spread this mixture on the top of the sandwich cake and around the sides with the help of a knife and let it chill in the fridge for another 2 hours or overnight.
- Once the dish is firm and settled, you can start decorating it with cucumber ribbons around the base of the cake, smoked salmon roses, a spoonful of caviar, raw asparagus, and radish slices around the sides. You can also put some quartered eggs, carrot ribbons, and cucumber ribbons with it. Keep it in a chill place until you’re ready to serve the dish.
The History of Smorgastarta
If you’re Swedish, then you probably would be aware of smorgastarta and must know the dish pretty well. The sandwich hysteria came to life in 1930, before that people used to bake or buy locally produced bread, but now they are more into buying commercial bread. People started experimenting with bread and it wouldn’t be wrong to say that smorgastarta probably came out of that obsession.
It was not until the 1940s that the word ‘sandwich with cake’ appeared in a cookbook for the very first time. Later on, the word ‘sandwich cake’ appeared in a Swedish newspaper, showing how popular sandwich cakes were becoming. Even though these cakes were loved by many, it was still not until the ‘50s that sandwich cakes really took off and became the talk of the town.
These cakes were not only practical but were also full of enough nutrition that one might only get from a three-course meal. Some say that the smorgastarta was invented by Gunnar Sjödahl, who made loads of mini sandwiches with different toppings for many special occasions. However, there’s a bit of a controversy around the birth of sandwich cake in Sweden, but regardless, it is a wonderful creation that is enjoyed by everyone. Today, Sweden celebrates the Day of the Sandwich Cake, also known as smörgåstårtans dag in Swedish, on November 13.
Ready to Try Smörgåstårta with Friends and Family?
Smörgåstårta is one of the best sandwich cakes that you can try from the comfort of your home. It’s fulfilling, highly nutritious, and can be saved for later use. In short, you can make it once and enjoy eating it for a long time. It’s one of the best dishes that you can serve on any special occasion, especially on the Day of the Sandwich Cake. So, if you’re into trying new types of dishes all the time, then this is exactly what you should cook to satisfy your taste buds.
