North Wild Kitchen

Tag: farm to table

Cured Trout with Spruce Tips (gravet ørret med granskudd)

By late spring, my watchful eyes are on full alert as I wait for the slightest sign of small buds emerging from the silent company of spruce trees spread thickly across the terrain. Speckles of light green dotted across spanning arms.

The first buds can sneak by unnoticed if you aren’t paying attention and, before you know it, in a few short weeks their season is all but gone. There’s a slight urgency to gather what is necessary and begin making a myriad of savory and sweet things like delectable syrups, salads, ice cream, and pickled tips.
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June 12, 2019
Wild Nettle and Pea Soup (Brenneslesuppe med erter)

Bring on the wild nettles.

It’s the season again when these wonderfully nutritious, wild greens pop up all over. They pack a punch with their sting, but once tamed they make the most wonderful feature in any dish or dessert, such as this Nettle and Honey Cake.
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May 31, 2019
Sosekjøtt & Spring Mashed Potatoes

The sun is setting behind the mountain’s edge and as I look out the window, the trees sway in the gentle breeze. There’s an undeniable change happening as winter’s grasp seems to be giving way. Spring is officially here. And today, it’s Sunday.

In the pot – gently simmering away – is a dish so simple, so classic, so unbelievably comforting it’s a wonder we don’t eat it more often. It’s the ideal Sunday dish; when the whole family has more time to take things slow, which in turn is reflected in the meal. Pieces of fatty chuck steak slowly cook in a rich, beef sauce flanked with onion slices a bay leaf. After a few hours, it’s ready. This perfect and simple stew called sosekjøtt, also referred to as kjøtt i morke “meat in the dark”.
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March 24, 2019
Pannekaker (Norwegian Pancakes)

The smell of eggy batter cooking atop a skillet is almost unmistakable. It draws you in as it evokes loving memories to the forefront.

Pancakes (pannekaker) are deeply embedded into the Norwegian food culture. They’re typical “farm to table” food, with the ingredients sourced from a working farm – eggs from the hens, grain from the fields, and milk from the cows.
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February 22, 2019
Sour Cherry Crisp with Almonds and Seeds (Smuldrepai med Kirsebær)

The slender tree branches, laden with luscious, dark sour cherries, seemed in dire need of relieving their seasonal burden. As always, it’s on a first come first serve basis: us or the birds.

As I walked through my friend’s delightful garden teeming full of berry bushes and fruit trees (each with a long history and proclamation to the land which their roots sink deep into), I couldn’t help but begin to recount all of the times my friends and I would use the garden as our own playground when we were little. We would pluck fruits from the trees in such earnest that our hands would be stained, the lower parts of our shirts became makeshift baskets, our conversations became limited as we kept our mouths full of our succulent findings, and our greediness was shown outright as we left with full bellies and more fruit than we could carry. (more…)

August 16, 2018
Rhubarb Soup and Spruce Tip Ice Cream (Rabarbragrøt og Granskuddiskrem)

Rhubarb plants – with their ornate and statuesque figures – have long been sought after and used as garden staples for centuries. Rhubarb cultivation in Norway is mentioned to have first begun around the 1700s, with rhubarb prized for its medicinal benefits. The root was dried and taken for preventative measures as well as used as medicine for digestive problems.

Rhubarb eventually found its way into the Norwegian kitchen in the 19^th century. Its sour stalks appealing – and sugar being its greatest companion.

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June 12, 2018