The North Wild Kitchen: Inspiration for Mindful Living
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Norwegian Food Culture
A perfect holiday blog to help energize your senses, North Wild Kitchen aims to inspire and help us live mindfully. To appreciate not only food, but each other. And of course, to bring part of Norwegian food culture and awe-inspiring Norway to readers globally. We can discover what is in our own backyards and help translate it across the table, given the right knowledge.
Life can take us to some pretty unexpected places. Pretty spectacular places. Nevada Berg was raised in Utah, with family roots across Colorado and a heritage which resembles "something of an over mixed-breed". She is now an author and entrepreneur - with a passion for Norwegian food culture. She mentions in her blog that she has an affinity for being restless – so exploration and adventure is apparent. Maybe that's what has led her to the place she considers home today, Norway. She talks about the journey that has led her to this place - and how looking back makes her understand how all the pieces fit over time.
What Recipes You'll Find
Nevada Berg likes to help you envision where ingredients were sourced while you are cooking with them. With recipes like Turkey & Kale Pot Pies, Soft Potato Flatbread, Loaded Nut & Seed Bread, and Root Vegetable & Barely Stew - you are able to bring Norwegian traditions into your own meals. You will begin to notice how many recipes that are popular in the U.S. - come from traditions like those of Norway. Recipes like Waldorf salad, Christmas bread (resembling fruit cake) and mulled apple cider can all be found on the website.
Farm to Table With a Cultured Twist
Traditional cooking practices and food sourcing have led some countries' food culture to hold a better nutritional value than others. Nevada talks about being a Norwegian Seter and living a mountain farm life. I love how she even pictures plums that have fallen from a tree in her recipe for Plum & Sour Cream Cake (plommekake). Another blog named Scandinavia Standard applauds Nevada Berg on her work. It talks about when Nevada posted her first story – about two generations of Norwegian women making traditional lefse (flatbread) over a wood-burning stove – in December 2015. Two months later the accompanying video went viral. “There’s a lovely balance, presenting recipes and sharing the history behind them. It shows how important it is to look beyond what we’re eating.” That same year, the gourmet magazine Saveur named North Wild Kitchen their 2016 Blog of the Year.
Traditional Cooking Worldwide
Some traditional cooking requires the use of staple items, that are native to that area. Nevada uses Norwegian Brown Cheese (Brunost) in many of her recipes. The cheese is considered iconic and traces back to 1863. Its sweet, yet salty and nutty, with a hint of caramel flavors. Brown cheese or ‘Brunost’ is a by-product of cheese-making. The leftover whey cooks down until it caramelizes and turns a lovely deep brown color. It's important to reuse waste where we can and ancient cooking techniques show this has always been the way it's supposed to be! In Texas, we love cheese and it pairs well with many recipes. You can learn to make your own farmer's cheese here.
Where can you find local produce and seafood markets in Texas? You can search our blog for sourcing seafood and produce ingredients locally.
Looking for some takeout options instead that resemble the best home cooked meals for the holidays? Check out the TexasRealFood guide here.
