Vasterbottens cheese pie
I baked this pie for the crayfish party I hosted 2 weeks ago. It's a classic Swedish cheese pie that fits really well as a side dish to crayfish dinner. In fact the cheese is the most famous from Sweden and it comes from the North - Västerbotten region, hence the name.
Here in the US we are lucky to get our Västerbottensost cheese supply from Ikea. I have also seen it sold in 2 places in Berkeley. It tastes similar to parmesan with salty but with more bitter notes. Västerbottensost is usually aged for 14 months and due to its limited supply it costs twice as much as other types of aged cheese.
Here's the recipe to this Ikea's hidden treasure:
Pastry: 125 g butter 300 ml wheat flour or gluten-free flour 1 tbsp water Filling: 150 g grated Västerbottensost 3 eggs 200 ml whipped cream 1 pinch black pepper 1 pinch salt
Preheat the oven to 435F (~225°C). Mix the butter and flour in a food processor or by hand in a baking bowl to a crumbly texture. Add the water and mix into a smooth dough. When using gluten-free flour you might not need as much so don't pour everything to the bowl at once.
Press the pie dough into a pie dish (24 cm in diameter). Prick the bottom of the shell and place in the oven for about 10 minutes. Whisk the eggs and cream, add the cheese. Season with salt and pepper. Pour the cheese filling into the pie shell and bake for about 20 minutes until the pie has set. Allow to cool and serve cool.