In Praise of the Humble Rutabaga...

I was in Norway over a year ago and have yet to write up my official report.  In my defense, I did have a baby in the meantime so I've been a bit busy.  I've mentioned a few things here and there, so I guess my Norway report will have to be in topical installments.  Why rutabagas, you ask?  My major food discovery this trip was the rutabaga and it all happened because of raspeballer.  Raspeballer, kumla and klubb are all different terms for the same potato and flour dumpling.  Rick Steves recommended this Kaffistova restaurant in his travel guide and after checking their online menu, I learned they have raspeballer night every Thursday.

We really don't eat out much when traveling because we do it on the cheap, but for this we'd make an exception!  The place was very busy and it smelled like the Lutheran church basement during a kumla supper.  It was intoxicating and comforting on a brisk October evening.  They served the dumplings with currant jelly, lamb or a kielbasa style sausage, and kålrotstappe.  I had no idea what this rough golden mash was but it was delicious.  My google translate called kålrot a swede.  Apparently the rest of the free world calls a rutabaga a swede.  The more you know!  That lamb was buttery melt-in-your-mouth and if I'd been blindfolded, I'd have sworn it was ham.  We boil our kumla dumplings in ham broth and serve it with ham.  My sister put these pictures on her facebook that night and inspired all our friends and family back home to make kumla for the first time that season!

I couldn't wait to make this when I got home!  I did some reading and rutabagas are high fiber and much lower in carbs than a potato so it makes an excellent mashed potato substitute for diabetics and dieters.  They are healthy and filling and a little goes a long way.  I usually buy 2 good sized rutabaga and cook them together with 2 medium potatoes to aide the texture as well as a couple carrots to replicate the style of the restaurant. 

I used to boil them all together in a pot but rutabagas are dense.  They are hard as a rock when you chop them and take longer to cook than the carrots and spuds.  Here are my implements of destruction including my Instant Pot!  I'm still getting to know it but I love it!  It is a life (and time!) saver when you're busy with a baby and household.  That gray heart thing is a silicone trivet in the shape of a Norwegian heart shaped waffle.  More on that in a minute.

This thing is MAGIC.  Six minutes in here and you have beautifully soft cooked root vegetables with just 2 cups of water.  This makes a huge bowl and I always freeze half to eat later and save some prep time.

They're a little too fibrous to run through the ricer so I use my food mill instead with the largest blade.  I like them a little rough and rustic like they served in the restaurant.

I bought that waffle trivet because the heart shaped waffle is such a symbol of Norway.  Waffles aren't just for breakfast there.  They are dressed up and eaten with sour cream, jam, Nutella, nuts, etc. and taken with formal coffee or at sporting events or what have you.  This is a billboard we saw and this waffle is topped with gjetost which is sweet brown goat cheese made from boiling whey.  That waffle couldn't get any more Norwegian!

We went to an early Saturday morning flea market and had a blast.  They had an awesome turnout for such a cool day.  There were all kinds of things for sale: dishes, antiques, silver, clothing, coins, furniture, etc.

I was not all surprised to find a stall selling waffles (vaffler) and coffee.  This young lady was gracious and charming and visited a little with my dad in Norwegian.  You can see all the toppings for the waffles including a block of brown cheese with the slicer resting on top.

Here is Dad loading up his waffle.  It cost 25 kroner which is about 4 dollars but was worth it.  He shared a little with my sister and me and I have to say it was the best waffle I'd ever tasted.  I registered for and received a heart shaped waffle iron for my wedding but I don't use it nearly as much as I should.  Maybe my trivet will encourage me to bake more with it!