Thank you Amy Coffin for this great series of blogging prompts!!

Week 39: Least Favorite Foods. What was your least favorite food from your childhood? Did your parents make you eat it anyway? Do you still dislike the same food today? How have your tastes changed since your youth?

I didn’t consider myself picky, but maybe I was!

There is quite a long list of things that I wouldn’t eat when I was a kid. Here are a few of them:

Mushrooms: I was abused my mushrooms as a child.   That’s a bit of a stretch, but close to the truth.  I never liked mushrooms in the first place – they are a FUNGI for goodness sakes.  My dad used to take me out into the woods behind our home, looking for Pines and Chantrelles.  One time (for some very strange reason) he decided to dry some of them.  They were sitting in a plastic container and he opened it near my face one day.  I still shiver at the thought of that smell.  I’m not quite as anti-mushroom as I used to be.  I can eat them on pizza or in spaghetti.  I’d rather not though.
Mayonnaise (or anything that may have touched mayonnaise): I had a real, definite aversion to this condiment.  It couldn’t be on my sandwiches (I opted for mustard) and I wouldn’t even eat anything that had mayo in it.  That means I spent my entire childhood passing by the potato and pasta salads.  What on earth was wrong with me?While I still don’t like it gloppy, I definitely eat it.
Pies : How un-American of me!  I never ate pies, unless they were the chocolate-pudding variety.  My aunt would always make a counter full of mouth-watering pies at Thanksgiving and Christmas and I would never eat a single piece.  I am happy to report that my taste buds have definitely changed and pies are on the menu.
Fish and any other sort of seafood: This one is a little surprising, because I actually grew up on an island.  The nearest town has an annual Oysterfest, which I always avoided.  Celebrating oysters appalls me.  We had to sing “The Geoduck Song” in elementary school music class. I can eat fish now, if it’s not on the bone – but I still don’t eat oysters, clams, shrimp, lobster, crab or any other sea creature.
Liver Thankfully my parents never fixed this dish, but I did choke it down at other people’s houses a few times.  It will never enter my house.
Pickled Pigs Feet: Why would this even be on the list, you might ask?  It should not even be defined as a food, yet for some reason beyond my comprehension my grandmother enjoyed eating these.
Cottage Cheese: I remember being at a friend’s house once and her mom made us a snack – it was a plate of cottage cheese with a vegetable face.  I was horrified, because I hated cottage cheese.  My mom taught me good manners though and I ate it anyway.  I still don’t get near it.

They contacted our family and friends and collected up recipes into a binder and gave us a family cookbook to start our years of marital bliss with. What a wonderful idea, right?  If only they could have given me some cooking skills also….

Among those recipes is one that I would like to share today.  It is for Scandinavian Kringler.

My great-grandparents were from Sweden, so I like to think that maybe they made this before.  It was probably just something that my mom got from a cookbook somewhere though.  I suppose that I should ask her!  Anyway, she would make it sometimes for the holidays and it’s delicious.  I’ve made it a couple of times for Christmas and I have to say that it’s much easier than it looks.  The instructions make it seem difficult, but it’s really pretty simple .  Trust me, if I can make it, then anyone can!!

I hesitate to show this picture at all. It’s awful.  It was taken a couple of years ago in our Alaskan cave – well that’s what our home felt like in the middle of winter!  The lighting was bad and it doesn’t look all that appetizing, but it really tastes good – (if you like almond flavor).  You can tell, because half of it has already been devoured!

And here is the recipe:

Ok, this is embarrassing.  I can’t find the recipe – presumably since I pulled it out of the plastic cover to make the above batch of Kringler.

I am posting a version of it instead which I found on Food.com. I will have to dig through my cabinet to see if my copy of it fell out or else get the recipe from my mom again before Christmas rolls around, because I plan on making it this year!

So, here is the Food.com version of the recipe:
Ingredients:
1 c. flour
1/2 c. butter, chilled
2 tablespoons icewater

Puff Topping:
1 c. water
1/2 c. butter
1 c. flour
3 eggs
1/2 tsp almond extract

Frosting:
1 c. powdered sugar
1 Tbs butter, softened
1/2 tsp. almond extract
2-3 Tbs milk
sliced almonds, if desired

Directions:
1. Measure 1 cup of flour into mixing bowl
2. Using a pastry blender, cut 1/2 cup butter into flour until particles are size of small peas.
3. Sprinkle with water. 1 tablespoon at a time, mixing lightly with a fork until the flour mixture is moistened and soft dough forms.
4. Divide dough in half.
5. On ungreased cookie sheet, press each half into a 12X3 inch strip.
6. In medium saucepan, heat water and 1/2 cup water to boiling.
7. Remove from heat; immediately stir in 1 cup flour until smooth.
8. Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating until smooth after each addition.
9. Stir in 1/2 tsp. almond extract
10. Spoon over crust, spreading to 3/4 inch from edges.
11. Bake 50-60 minutes until golden brown and puffy. Cool.
12. Blend powdered sugar, butter, almond extract, and milk until smooth.
13. Frost, sprinkle with nuts.
14. Slice and serve.