Breakfast in Sweden is a serious business. Since I’ve been here I’ve gone through several favourite breakfasts…

1. Gröt med Lingonsylt (Porridge with Lingonberry jam)
I arrived last November to the coldest and longest winter I had ever experienced. Thankfully, unlike us Brits, Swedes keep the heating on all night. Anyway, for probably 4-5 months I thought there was nothing better than waking up to a warm, sweet bowl of porridge. However a few months ago I was mocked by a pastor for this porridge-preference, “Man, that is sooo Småland! You should try it with Äpplemos, that’s WAY better…” I actually disagree, and I feel no need to apologise, as I was taught by a real life horse-riding, forest-dwelling Smålander…

2. Filmjölk och Müsli (Sour milk and Museli)
As soon as I tasted Fil, a product that is not available back home, and is like a cross between natural yoghurt and milk, I loved it. It gives a refreshingly sour flavour to the morning.

3. Frisk Bröd med Apelsinmarmelad och Ost (Fresh Bread with Orange Marmelade and Cheese)
It’s not very British to eat untoasted bread for breakfast, or cheese for that matter (especially not with something sweet), but this ROCKS.

Now for my current favourite…

4. Mild Vaniljyoghurt och Müsli (Mild Vanilla yoghurt and Museli)
Where Fil is sour, Vaniljyoghurt is light and slightly sweet (though not too sweet for breakfast time). mmm mmm dee-licious.

For me, Christmas, and the winter season, always brings with it a hankering for the mellower edge of my musical tastes. I was delighted to receive Johnny Cash’s final contribution to the musical world, ‘American V: A Hundred Highways‘ and also Sufjan Steven’s ‘Illinois‘ this year.

I love the rawness of Mr Cash’s final recordings, which he made in collaboration with Rick Rubin, the guy who founded seminal hip-hop label Def Jam. There’s a beauty and wisdom in his tired, old voice. I was also moved to read that, in the days leading up to Cash’s death, Reuben and He were daily celebrating the Lord’s Supper together…

As for Sufjan Stevens, I was delighted to hear that Mark Churchill’s ravings were not in vain. Stevens really is a gifted songwriter and musician who seems to grapple with some of the intricate tensions of life with inspiring grace. My favourite track from this album is Casimir Pulaski Day, the lyrics of which you can read here.

Finally, while I’ve been aware of his existence for some time now, I’ve really only just began to appreciate Ray LaMontagne. He played at Jools’ Holland’s annual Hootenanny, and his voice was as rich as any recording I had heard. He also has an amazing beard.

As I sat in Dublin Airport on Thursday morning, awaiting my flight to Malmö, I listened to the Ricky Gervais Podcast. The show turned out to be so funny that I couldn’t just sit there looking serious (as you’re supposed to in an airport), but instead began to shake uncontrollably like a child in a classroom who can’t laugh out loud because he doesn’t want to get into trouble with his teacher. Eventually I paused the podcast, so as to compose myself, and hoped that when I turned it back on it wouldn’t seem quite as funny. It didn’t work, the show was just as funny and I was forced to continue with my muffled laughter.

Mmm mmm I just made the nicest Lentil Soup. It’s the first time I’ve made a soup, and it marks me getting over a strange fear of lentils that I’ve had for a while. Fear is probably an over exaggeration, but I think they would be harder to use…

Here’s the recipe:

Ingredients
1 Onion (finely chopped)
2 cloves Garlic (crushed)
1 litre Vegetable Stock
300g Lentils
3 potatoes (sliced small)
1 tablespoon Olive Oil
2 pinches Curry Powder
1 pinch Salt
2 pinches Black Pepper

Instructions:
1. Saute the Onion in the olive oil until it goes transparent, then add the the garlic.
2. Place the Vegetable Stock in a large saucepan and heat until simmering.
3. Add the Onion and Garlic.
4. Add the rest of the ingredients and simmer for 45min-1hour, stirring occasionally.
5. Serve with fresh bread.

There are two adverts running on Swedish television at the moment that use the same background track – ‘Hoppipolla’ by Sigur Ros. One ad is for a nature channel (at least that’s what I think) and the other is for movies on TV3 (Swedish channel). The strange thing is that they often appear in the same sequence…