Danish tasties

From sneaking marzipan cakes to hanging out at farmers’ markets, chef Trine Hahnemann shares her favourite food memories of growing up in Copenhagen. Photographs by Columbus Leth

WHEN YOU HAVE LIVED IN the centre of a city on and off for nearly 50 years, as I have, the space and the buildings change and the people move around; some move in, others move out. But the city remains, with its soul and identity intact.

As a child, my dream was to escape to New York as soon as I had grown up, and so I did. I felt at home immediately, in a new and different way from how I did in Copenhagen. Maybe it’s because I never chose Copenhagen.

When I grew up here, it was like a provincial town, even boring in many ways, with not a lot going on. The other people around were mostly native Danes. Back then, I longed for something bigger. These days all such thoughts are banished: in just a few years, Copenhagen has become an exciting, dynamic and cosmopolitan city with a new jewel to discover around nearly every corner. Now the world flocks here.

When I was about 10 years old, we moved to the Gammelholm neighbourhood, encircled by canals and harbours,

Begin with the pastry. Mix both flours with a teaspoon of sea salt in a large bowl. Cut the butter into small cubes and rub it into the flour with your fingertips, then mix in the curd cheese or cream cheese. Knead the dough lightly with your hands, just until the ingredients are combined. (Alternatively, pulse all the ingredients together in a food processor, adding a little water if the dough does not come together.)

Roll out the dough on a floured surface and butter a 28cm-diameter tart tin or pie dish. Use the pastry to line the tin or dish, then refrigerate for one hour, or overnight.

Preheat the oven to 180C/ gas mark 4. Line the pastry case with baking parchment and pour in ceramic baking beans, dried beans or uncooked rice. Bake it for 15 minutes, then remove the beans or rice and parchment and bake for a further five minutes. Remove from the oven and increase the temperature to 200C/ gas mark 6.

Meanwhile, for the filling, slice the leeks and rinse carefully. Drain well and sauté them and the garlic in the olive oil for five minutes. Pour out any excess moisture that has come from the leeks. Season with a little sea salt – remembering that feta can be rather salty – and freshly ground pepper.

Beat the eggs together in a mixing bowl, then stir in the feta, cream cheese and cloves. Season the mixture, fold in the leeks and pour the mixture into the pastry case. Bake for 30-35 minutes, or until the filling has set but retains a slight wobble.

Serve with charcuterie.

where I stayed until I left home as a young adult. Holbergsgade is the main thoroughfare in the Gammelholm area and it used to have a range of small independent food shops. There was the ismageriet, the ‘dairy’, which sold milk, butter and the Danish morning cheese called Danbo. Then there were the greengrocer, the sweet shop, the pharmacy and the chocolate shop. On the corner was a shop selling wine, canned food, coffee, tea and dried goods. Like most people, our family had an account here with the købmanden, the ‘merchant’, that would be settled every month. I was not allowed to buy anything except when I was expressly sent down to the shop by my father. Naturally, I did not obey this rule, and indeed broke it more often than I am willing to admit, even today. I would buy myself a mazarin, a marzipan cake, with chocolate glaze. It was factory-made and came in a plastic bag. I still love it, but now I prefer the home-made variety.

While I have been getting on with my life, Copenhagen has become famous for its restaurants, coffee, bicycling culture, friendliness and hygge. Whole neighbourhoods have gone through major transformations, for both good and bad. The restaurant scene has evolved tremendously; we now have great wine bars and cocktail bars, food from around the world, street-food markets. Now, too, there are a slew of independent bakeries, all doing their own thing, but together renewing the tradition of baking in Copenhagen and working with local grains and flour. They open early in the morning, in good time for the citizens to buy their fresh bread and pastries.

On the outskirts of the centre – just outside the site of the old city wall – you will find Torvehallerne, Copenhagen’s food halls. The location is fitting, as it was home to the city’s greengrocers’

The market had a special atmosphere, simultaneously tempting and a touch alarming