Letter - Throwing foxes into the hen house?

Kerry H.
Prior Lake, MN     11/11/2009 6:40 PM

Mike's pickled herring in wine sauce! mmmmm....

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CJ S.
Nelson, MN     11/11/2009 9:37 AM

This Lutefisk talk has had my stomach churning. Let me share my Swedish fathers line on Lutefisk "Norwegian's cover theirs with butter, Swede's cover theirs with with white gravy and Cats cover it with pee" I know many a person who love it but even coming from a household that had it more than on the holidays, I never did develop a taste for it. I gave it my best shot 20 years after leaving home, thinking maybe it was me, but no it was how I remembered it. Now the Oyster Stew bring it on.

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dylan .
Alexandria, MN     11/11/2009 8:47 AM

Regarding the great lefse debate --- I checked it out and there are different types of lefse for different needs. "Lefse is a traditional soft Norwegian flatbread. Tjukklefse or tykklefse (thick lefse) is thicker, and often served with coffee as a cake. Lefse is made out of potato, milk or cream (or sometimes lard) and flour, and cooked on a griddle. Special tools are available for lefse baking, including long wooden turning sticks and special rolling pins with deep grooves. There are significant regional variations in Norway in the way lefse is made and eaten, but it generally resembles a flatbread, although in many parts of Norway, especially Valdres, it is far thinner. In central Norway, a variation called tynnlefse (thin lefse) is made, which is rolled up with butter, sugar and cinnamon (or with butter and brown sugar), and eaten as a cake. Potetlefse (potato lefse) is often used in place of a hot-dog bun and can be used to roll up sausages. This delight is also known as pølse med lompe in Norway, lompe being the "smaller-cousin" of the potato lefse. In some parts of the United States, including Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota, northern and central Iowa, Wisconsin, Oregon and Washington, lefse is available in grocery stores. One Minnesota tortilla factory makes a run of lefse once a month on its tortilla equipment.[citation needed] There are many ways of flavoring lefse. The most common is adding butter to the lefse and rolling it up. In Norwegian, this is known as "lefse-klining". Other options include adding cinnamon, or spreading jelly or lingonberries upon it. Scandinavian-American variations include rolling it with a thin layer of peanut butter and sugar, with butter and sugar, with butter and corn syrup, or with ham and eggs. Also quite good with beef, and other savory items, it is comparable to a thin tortilla. Lefse is a traditional accompanyment to lutefisk, and the fish is often rolled up in the lefse." http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lefse

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dylan .
Alexandria, MN     11/11/2009 8:40 AM

Gosh, and my mother decided one year to have a Norwegian "all white" Christmas Eve dinner --- lutefisk, oyster soup with oyster crackers, white potatoes and lefse (sorry, rolled up with a little butter on it --- like a dinner roll) and then, of course, all the delicate Scandinavians cookies for dessert. We all told her after that meal -- never again. She was the only one who liked lutefisk. She made rosettes, krumkaka, etc.

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Jerry H.
Alexandria, MN     11/10/2009 9:10 PM

CAP - Would you believe I had some at a friend's place before going out to dinner this evening? They made lefse this afternoon. Interesting coincidence, eh?

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Patty W.
Alexandria, MN     11/10/2009 8:03 PM

My dad made fresh oyster stew every Christmas Eve. Great memory. Traditions are a good thing.

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Amos A.
Garfield, MN     11/10/2009 7:57 PM

I agree with the anti-steak sauce sentiment too. Ditto to almost everything Kerry said at 6:58. The "almost" being I use seasonded salt instead of salt & pepper. BUT It's getting pretty hard to find many local eating establishments who are willing to serve anything with the "r" word in it. (The "r" word is "rare" if anyone is confused.)

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C A P.
Alexandria, MN     11/10/2009 7:09 PM

Jerry....have you tried the "sugar in the raw?" That is my favorite .....not the white stuff. It is like a cross between the white and brown. Now don't turn this into a race argument either........lol

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Kerry H.
Prior Lake, MN     11/10/2009 6:58 PM

Patty, I agree with you about the steak sauce. I don't even like to put ketchup on a good burger ... it masks the taste. Give me a med-rare steak or burger, seasoned well with only salt and pepper, and no sauce. But, with my rare prime rib, horseradish will do.

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Kerry H.
Prior Lake, MN     11/10/2009 6:54 PM

I remember the day in elementary school when a good friend had a strange thing in his lunch. There in a plastic bag was a rolled-up thingy with butter and sugar on it. He introduced me to this delicacy called "lefsa". He would bring it every day and share it with me. It was heaven on Earth! (Of course, I recall my dad telling me about eating lard and sugar sandwiches for lunch every day ... so maybe fat and sugar is the magic). I talked my mom into buying some and I even experimented with putting it under the broiler in the oven to melt the butter and sugar and give it a warm-crispiness. Then, to my surprise, a long-time babysitter actually came over and made it fresh right in our kitchen! My in-laws fortunately are also lefsa-afficianados so it is definitely a staple at Thanksgiving and Christmas. With sugar ... white or brown.

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