Make Ahead

A Scandinavian-inspired Lassi of Sheer Whimsy

Name: A Scandinavian-inspired Lassi of Sheer Whimsy
Yield: Serves 1-2
Cuisine: Scandinavian
Ingredients: 1 cup Greek yogurt, fage; 3/4 cup fresh blueberries, wild Maine if you can find them; 1 tablespoon lingonberry fruit preserve; 1 teaspoon honey to taste, optional ( I used none); 1 ounce Akvavit, optional; 1/4 teaspoon ground caraway seeds or spice of your liking (fennel, cardamom, saffron, for some suggestions); 3-4 ice cubes made of this recipe (or plain ice cubes); 1 teaspoon fresh lime zest; sprinkle of ground caraway (or fennel) optional, for garnish; of fresh spearmint, wintergreen leaf (gaulthria procumbens), or lavender for garnish

by: Sagegreen

August 19, 2010

0 Ratings

A Scandinavian-inspired Lassi of Sheer Whimsy

Serves 1-2

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Author Notes

After making key lime frozen yogurt I next made a lassi with fresh blueberries and lingonberry jam to freeze. For that I also used my ground caraway seeds. After freezing one batch of the lassi recipe in ice cube form, you can next use a few cubes in making a wonderful lassi drink for a second and third batch. Optionally, you can add Akvavit if you want a spiked lassi in the late afternoon. I usually have a lassi for breakfast, so I do not include it. The fresh blueberries and the preserved lingonberries partner very well with caraway to create a creamy savory drink. For me the preserve is the only sweetener that is needed, but feel free to add honey. —Sagegreen

What You'll Need

Ingredients

1 cup Greek yogurt, fage
³/₄ cup fresh blueberries, wild Maine if you can find them
1 tablespoon lingonberry fruit preserve
1 teaspoon honey to taste, optional ( I used none)
1 ounce Akvavit, optional
¹/₄ teaspoon ground caraway seeds or spice of your liking (fennel, cardamom, saffron, for some suggestions)
3-4 ice cubes made of this recipe (or plain ice cubes)
1 teaspoon fresh lime zest
sprinkle of ground caraway (or fennel) optional, for garnish
Sprig of fresh spearmint, wintergreen leaf (gaulthria procumbens), or lavender for garnish

Directions

Ahead make one batch of these, pour into a small ice cube tray and freeze.
Add the yogurt, blueberries, lingonberry preserves, ground caraway, lime zest, and optionally Akvavit with 3-4 ice cubes of this mixture frozen or plain ice cubes and process in a blender. Do make sure the blender is securely tightened, as mine was not this morning. A little purple puddle to avoid.
Pour into 2 small glasses; garnish with a sprinkle of ground caraway and an herbal sprig. In the fall the reddish leaves of wintergreen would make a beautiful garnish for this drink.

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11 Reviews

fiveandspice August 27, 2010

This looks awesome! As a mega-Scandophile, I'm putting this in the line up of must-try drinks.

Sagegreen August 27, 2010

Thanks! You may also want to check out the the Scandopolitan by deensiebat on this site!

parisienne August 22, 2010

What language is "lassi"?
I do very much admire the creativity of Sagegreen. The recipes are an adventure.
The Swedishness of this recipe is really Sagegreen´s very own dream. The lingonberry preserve, yes that is utterly Swedish. But caraway for instance is sparingly used. You will find it in some bread recipes. Neighbouring Finland makes the most exquisite hard very very thin bread with caraway. The same spice is also used for aquavit.
I would suggest the much more appreciated cardamom or saffron in this lassi drink.

Sagegreen August 22, 2010

Thanks, you are so right! By the way the origin of the word lassi, although not certain, may have originated from Indian Punjabi and Hindi words Rassila(?????) - meaning juicy, which may have evolved to lasseela (?????) and then to lassee (?????).

drbabs August 20, 2010

I really like lassi also-- I made one for the first time while testing Food52 recipes. This sounds great except I'm not a fan of caraway. (I do love blueberry and lime together.)

Sagegreen August 20, 2010

Since caraway is the Akvavit spirit, that is what prompted me to try it here for the Swedish theme. You could try rosemary or fennel with this instead. I enjoy trying out different herbs and spices with the lassi. Glad Food52 appreciates them!

drbabs August 20, 2010

Oh--fennel--what a great idea! Thanks for the suggestion!

Sagegreen August 19, 2010

Most every day I make a lassi drink for breakfast. It is how I start my day. I should document them all!

SallyCan August 19, 2010

Another great looking recipe, and another great looking photo... So do you grow all of this stuff?