IKEA Food Addict Day 2: Hard Of Herring

So we’ve reached day 2 of my mildly insane challenge to eat nothing but food from IKEA for a week, and the first order of the day is a breakfast I have to cook myself. Unfortunately, one thing that isn’t sold in the Swedish Food Market is cereal, so I’m going to need a different approach for my daily starter.

There are several ways I could have tackled this. IKEA actually offers frozen bread in various forms, but it struck me as overpriced. So instead I decided to opt for a pastry combo: one Kanelbullar cinnamon bun and one Paj Ost cheese pie. (Incidentally, in a belated response to the commenter who pointed out that the product names are generally direct translations of the relevant Swedish words: I get that, but in practical terms those names function as brand names in Australia, especially since they’re presented identically to every other product name you see in an IKEA store.)

Both those products require baking, I usually eat breakfast in the office, and we don’t have an oven. No drama; I baked the entire lot after lunch on Sunday at home. A quick blast in the microwave each morning and I can enjoy a savoury and a sweet pastry, along with a plunger of coffee.

Speaking of coffee: I was somewhat annoyed that my store was entirely out of stock of the regular ground coffee and I had to pay an extra $2 for the premium version. However, since it turns out the cashier forgot to charge me for the meatballs, I should really get over it. Regardless, breakfast is filling enough to keep me pumping along until lunch.

Today’s midday meal draws on two Swedish traditions I haven’t touched on so far: crispbread and herring. Several of my colleagues were horrified at the thought of eating herring at lunch, but I’m a fan, even if it does resemble a 1970s-Doctor Who special effect. To ensure a filling meal, I had two Knäckebröd Råg rye crispbread with marinated herring with dill, plus another two spread with lingonberry jam (plenty of that left from the meatballs) and a little grated cheese (plenty of that left from the pasta). Very filling, and I’m looking forward to it again later in the week. I’m also keeping plenty of crispbread in reserve if I feel the need for a mid-morning or afternoon snack.

For dinner, I indulged in a frankly non-Swedish option — vegetarian pizza. I’m presuming this is on the menu because it’s served in the bistro. I’m happy to take it because (a) it’s an easy meal to heat up after a long day and (b) it has a lot of vegetables on top, and those have been in short supply so far. All in all, I’m feeling good after the second day — and ready to face a future where meatballs are once again on the menu.

[related title=”IKEA FOOD ADDICT” tag=”ikea-food-addict” items=”7″]


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