10 Years of Outside Oslo
A bit of a milestone passed by unobserved here a few months ago: the 10-year anniversary of Outside Oslo. I still remember clicking "publish" on that first post on September 1, 2009, and how the blog became a powerful tool…
Norwegian Rømmegrøt (Sour Cream Porridge)
My bookshelves sag with stories—literature in the form of recipes, memories formed between batter-spattered handwritten lines. I’ve said for a long time that I care so much about Scandinavian food because of the people. My grandparents loved me with medisterkaker…
Syttende Mai: Seattle, 1980s
Old Ballard was about as Scandinavian as you could get. Though far from the Nordic countries, the little neighborhood north of downtown Seattle had drawn immigrants by the thousands over the years. It used to be as easy to find lefse as it was…
Gluten-Free Scandinavian Almond Cake with Rhubarb Compote
I sometimes wonder what it was like to be her. Two feet on Norwegian soil, then one. And with the second step onto the gangway, a release, a launch into a new life. My grandmother was about 40 years old when…
Mor Monsen Kake – A Classic Norwegian Cake for Christmastime
I’ve sat down twice to write this post—actually, I’ve sat down to write it more times than I can count, but twice I’ve drafted something and decided to start over. I’m in a dry spot creatively and I’ve struggled to…
Food Lovingly Prepared and Joyously Served
I miss them. It hit me one night as I sat at my desk in my office, suddenly thinking about my grandparents. In an instant it was like I was back there at their house overlooking Puget Sound, so many…
“Nordic in the Northwest”: My Article and Recipes in The Oregonian
So, here it is: the article I have been longing to tell you about! Published yesterday as the centerpiece food piece in The Oregonian (with a front-page teaser!), “Nordic in the Northwest” examines the similarities between the way of eating in…
A Cake from Gourmet, May 1956
The ship carrying my dad and his parents from Norway to their new home in the United States docked in New York 57 years ago this month. From that moment on, the family of three would strive to settle into…
Published: Creating the Family Cookbook in Costco Connection
When it comes to creating a family cookbook, there are so many things to consider: how many recipes to include and what format it should take are just two of them. My mom and I are in the process of…
