Nightview of Tallinn in Winter

During this time of year Tallinn is very cold yet beautiful. This is a view of St. Olaf's church. My family were members of St. Olaf's congregation until World War Two. Many happy and sad occasions took place inside this church.

Estonia's largest ever snowman built in Nõo

I was very happy to read about this story today. Estonia's largest  ever snowman was built in my family's home town of Nõo in Tartu. The snowman has a height of 11 metres. Further reading about the snowman can be found here.

 

Estonia scores well in the Quality of Life Index

The Estonian dream was once "to live like Sweden". Now quality of life in Estonia is ranked 7th in the EU, 10th in Europe and 11th in the World. It is very interesting to see that Germany and Sweden now score lower than Estonia.

 More information can be found here Quality of Life Index by Country 2023 Mid-Year

How to make vastlakuklid / Estonian Shrove Buns Recipe

The first vastlakuklid have been spotted in bakeries across Estonia. These delicious fluffy buns filled with whipped cream are served in the weeks leading up to Shrove Tuesday, the last day before the Lenten season.

Here is a recipe for you to make vastlakuklid yourself at home.

Ingredients:

200 ml milk
25g yeast
3 tablespoon sugar
1 egg
100g butter
1/2 teaspoon salt, 1 teaspoon cardamom
600g flour
1 egg for coating buns

Method:

1. All materials must be in room temperature
2. Dissolve yeast with lukewarm milk and sugar
3. Add about half of the quantity of flour, mixed with  salt
4. Beat the mixture for a short time. Sprinkle with a little flour, cover the bowl with a towel and place in a warm place to rise  for a one hour
5. Add additional flour, cardamom
6. Add melted butter and the beaten egg
7. Knead the dough properly, until it separates from the bowl.
8. Sprinkle with a little flour, cover the bowl with a towel and place in a warm place to rise for one hour until dough is doubled in size.  During rising beat the dough two times.
9. Form the dough into rounds buns and place on a tray with baking paper, cover again for 15 minutes for an additional rise.
10. Coat buns with beaten egg before putting into the oven. Bake at 200C 15 minutes.
11. Let the buns cool completely. Cut off a thin slice from top of buns. Whip the cream, sugar and vanilla until firm. Pipe the cream onto the buns and cover with a cut-off part.
12. Decorate with icing sugar, strawberries or chocolate drizzle.

If you would like to learn more about the history of vastlakuklid, you can read it here.

Estonian Peenleib Recipe (Sweet and Sour Rye Bread)

Estonians love their rye bread and no meal is complete without it. Peenleib is an old Estonian favourite with a unique and delicious taste. It takes a few days to make peenleib from scratch but once you have created the inital starter, you keep a little bit aside to use in future loaves.

Ingredients;

4 cups bread flour
2 cups dark rye flour
1 cup cake flour
1 1/2 Tbsp active dry yeast
2 1/2 cups warm water
1 1/2 Tbsp caraway seeds
2 Tbsp melted butter
1/2 cup honey
1 1/2 tsp sugar
1 1/2 tsp salt

Method:

1. Three days prior to baking the bread, prepare the starter (preferably in the morning). In a large bowl, combine 1/2 tbsp (8g) dry yeast, 1 cup warm water, 1/2 tsp sugar and 1 cup bread flour. Mix until thoroughly incorporated and cover with plastic wrap. Let starter stand at room temperature for two and a half days. 

2. After roughly 60 hours have passed, add to the starter the rye flour and 1 cup (240 ml) warm water. Mix thoroughly, cover, and let rest overnight at room temperature. 

3.In the morning, dissolve the remainder of the yeast in 1/2 cup (120 ml) warm water.  Stir down the dough and add the yeast mixture, plus the salt, caraway seeds, melted sweet butter, honey, cake flour, and the remainder of the sugar. Mix well. 

4. Add 3 cups of the bread flour, one cup at a time, to make a stiff but workable dough. When the dough stops sticking to the bowl, knead for 10 minutes. Once finished kneading, shape dough into a ball. 

5. Put in a bowl and cover the bowl with a towel. Let rest until it has doubled in size, 60–70 minutes. 

6. Punch down dough and divide dough into 3 pieces. Shape into a rough ball and place on a baking sheet or shape to fit bread pans. Cover and let rise again until doubled in size, for one hour.

7.  Prepare an egg wash by beating together one egg and water and preheat oven to 190 degrees C. Brush the egg wash over the loaves. 

8. Bake the loaves for 30 minutes, or until they turn a light brown colour. Remove from the oven and let cool, covering with towels to prevent the crust from hardening

Estonian athlete Aleksandar Selevko wins silver at the ISU European Figure Skating Championships

Aleksandr Selevko won a historic silver medal for Estonia in Kaunas yesterday. The medal is Estonia's first ever in figure skating at an adult championship. This was also the first time Selevko made the top ten in a major competition. In 2014 he won gold at the Estonian Novice Championships.

Aleksandr Selevkowas born in Jõgeva in 2001, his parents are originally from Ukraine and his younger brother, Mihhail, also represents Estonia internationally in figure skating.

New Estonian forest documentary 'Vara Küps' in cinemas from January 26