It’s happening, and there is nothing you can do to avoid it. Days are getting shorter, Summer is ending, and by now, most of us are back to school & work. There is one thing you can do though, as my Finnish teacher reminds us when we complain about the weather, “to each season its happiness”. How inspiring, instead of looking at is as an ordeal and counting the days to next summer holiday (Don’t do it, it hurts..) I have compiled a short list of why we should be excited about it. Breathe in an out, you may be going back to work but we have figured out a bunch of cool reasons why you should be excited!

Reason 1: Coffee and “other” breaks. If you are among those who don’t have mini humans to entertain, skip to reason 2. For all the others, you most likely feel like returning to your beloved coffee machine and have a least one uninterrupted bathroom break is a long lost luxury. What’s best? No more trolling the internet for rainy day entertainment ideas or (more embarrassing admission for a food blog) what to cook that won’t be the same as the past 15 meals. Trust me, summer holidays food duty takes its toll on even the most enthusiastic of cooks!

Reason 2: Gear! For many, return to school rimes with filling cupboards with cool great new stuff! Backpack, new clothes, pencils… for me it means I get to buy the most random kitchen gadgets, like this cool batter dispenser. I have been looking for it for a long time and finally found my happiness in Clas Ohlson of all places! I’m stupidly giddy about their Coline line, it is pretty and really affordable!

Reason 3: Team get together. Right before the summer started, our team had a get together in a fantastic venue, called Espa Cooking school , we cooked a 4 courses dinner and had a wonderful evening bonding as a team and learning incredibly cool trick, such as this delicious Mayonnaise. (scroll down for the recipe)

I can warmly recommend the experience, the place was conveniently located in the center of Helsinki, the staff was super professional, the whole thing was facilitated in English for us, all food requests were accommodated for with no compromise on chef’s Matti Lempinen’s menu:

Ice cellar salmon and marinated vegetables:

Jerusalem artichoke soup and smoked lamb tartar

Roast reindeer calf and parsnip pure
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Whipped black currant semolina porridge and vanilla ice cream

I was so impressed with the recipes I had to share one of my absolute favorite discovery, the 10 seconds Mayonnaise!

Easiest Mayonnaise Ever

Ingredients

3 dl rapeseed oil
1 dl Cold pressed rapeseed oil ( optional – Can be substituted to 1dl of regular rapeseed oil – I like how it turns a rich yellow)
1 whole egg (preferably organic)
1 tbls. white wine vinegar
1 tsp mustard (homemade preferably)
1 tsp salt

Steps:

Check the Video for the easy step by Step

Measure vinegar, mustard, and the egg into a one liter measuring cup.
Measure the 3 + 1 dl of rapeseed oil on top, and using a hand blender mix the mayonnaise into a thick and smooth consistency.
Transfer the Mayonnaise in a clean resealable glass jar ( as there is a lot, you can either split it with your neighbors or keep in in a air tight container for a up to a week in the fridge)

Who knew making mayonnaise was SO simple? I used to think it required a neurotic amount of patience to get all the ingredients at room temperature, and the idea of slow pouring was just so overwhelming I never thought I’d ever bother. This recipe is so perfect & simple, that the 2nd time around I actually played around with spices and home-made Mustard (recipe coming up soon).

So there you have it: our 3 reasons to enjoy the “Rentrée” as we call it in French. What are you favorite things to do when it’s time to hang the summer gear back in the closet?

Don’t go just yet, check out some of our favorite “back to school” recipes: