Lunch on Hautua

We set our kitchen up on the mountainside today offering our take on local flavors to our guests, and Christoffer from 62º Nord was their guide. He led them from the hotel up to the top of "Hautua" to overlook the area before they walked back down for lunch. The weather could not have been better and the lunch was just as good.  

62º Nord offers so many great experiences for their guests in this region, they are so unique and they are great! Being on this team and cooking lunch like this is fantastic.

This is Christoffer he got the fire going and set up our grill, it worked incredibly...so hot!!! He also prepared the space with reindeer skins for all to sit on. This is such a fun way to cook: we put together a nice spread of cured meats and cheeses from the Westland and a sandwich highlighting local Lammefilet. We prepared Piggvar (turbot) and Laks (salmon) escabeche with grilled asparagus served on a potato gratin, and finished with a grilled cake with warm smokey berry compote and whipped cream.

Preparing The Grill

The View From The Kitchen

Spekemat: Chorizo og Spekeskinke fra Stranda, Fenalår fra Ringdål, Morrpølse; A Regional Dried Sausage, Norwegian Blue Cheese, and a local Brie, and our freshly baked "Cuban Bread" for the grilled lamb...sometimes cooking outside warrants a little taste from the tropics no matter how close one is to the Arctic Circle. I personally would have been quite content with this spread, fortunately though we didn't stop there.

Grilling the Piggvar was a highpoint of my day; it is so simple, Sea Salt and White Pepper, it cooked so quickly and evenly and the fat that lines the filets tasted great with the smokiness of the wood. I am really excited about our next menu.

The textures and flavors that are only accessible over an open fire lend themselves to dessert. 

With some smoke and fresh herbs 

the possibilities are endless. 

Heres a quick tip: When grilling outside I recommend doing it like us; 

start by cooking your dessert first!

Food Photography

For those that have been following this blog over the years I am sure you can imagine my excitement when I had the opportunity to follow Barry Brown on a photo shoot of some food shots at work. Barry is a cinematographer, and one of the owners of the Storfjord Hotel who continues to work on some amazing projects, and he is a genius when it comes to lighting and photography.  He is able to bring a real sense of place into his photography and it was a thrill to work beside or... really... behind... and sometimes... directly in front of him... and his camera. He was incredibly patient with having me with and he captured some great shots of the food that we plated. I equate his experience with me like... if I was to go into a kitchen with someone who was cooking good food in the microwave and saying "Hey...let me show you what you could do with the stove!"

                         The View From The Kitchen

This day was so much fun; Alex (one of our chefs who is with us until his Michelin 3 Star Tokyo Adventure begins) and I were inspired by the day and we found ourselves developing a style of cuisine that fits in almost effortlessly to the hotel surroundings and we look forward to playing off of this and bringing the outside in, so to speak. All of us in the kitchen are really happy with the way the cuisine is progressing and we are excited to explore it, and highlight the things that are really working for us.

(This is Alex)

Working with Barry is great, he is so naturally able to focus on the food while adjusting so many things within the space he creates to best suit 

each course. 

All of Barry's shots are done in camera and his knowledge 

and passion are immense. 

When trying to get the shot he wanted he did what made sense to him; with one course he did not hesitate to get a fire started to get just a little more ambience into the shot. 

On another, he held a candle just to the left of his lens that added warmth and a soft glow into the frame and this captures a feeling of refined comfort and the genuineness of this unique property. 

I think I was most struck with how he can bring so many different things ie: food, plates, tables, glasses, ambience, light, and the dining room together for one brief moment and simply snap a picture of it...truly inspiring.

Barry is so kind to share his thoughts on photography with me on a level that I understand. Looking at his photographs of the area, and hearing his humorous stories of his amazing career are some of the things that I look forward to, and this another aspect of my job that is fantastic.

The photos on this post were taken with my camera, and I am extremely happy with them. Hopefully soon you can see Barry's work on the hotel's website: Storfjord Hotel. For some more good news...Barry and I are already planning on doing this again.

Salat av Klippfisk

Fiskesuppe

Andebryst og Lår Tart
Selleri - Rosenkål
Fiken Glaze

Pannestekt Hjort
Beter - Rød Vin Saus

Slogen Brown Ale Cake

 

Brudevoll Kjøtt

6065 Ulsteinvik
70010015

This is from my first day at work, and what a day it was.

This is Nils-Henning, he is the Chef Owner of Nesje Mat Med Hjerte (Food with Heart). He is amongst other things; a local celebrity chef, my guide so to speak in introducing me to the area, a true ambassador to the Vestlandet, a very passionate chef, and quite a character to be with. I'll be writing more about Nils as our adventures continue. We had a great day together as we raced to catch the car ferry to meet his good friends; Butcher Roger Brudevoll and Kari-Janne at Brudevoll Kjøtt.

Nils picked me up at the Storfjord explained a bit about where we were going and where he will be taking me in the future. This is so incredibly kind of him to take me around and show off the incredible products that are raised and grown in this part of Norway. He knows everything about who has what and what is grown where. Nils loves his job, and he loves the local products. During the drive Nils would explain to me the area we were in and point to hilltops and houses where he could get local honey, cured meats, really good fishcakes, and cheese. He has worked relentlessly in trying to find and then promote and share the treasures he has found through cooking. I am so looking forward to our next day trip.

Crepuscular Rays Shining Down

On our way to Ulsteinvik we boarded the car ferry where Nils had a cup of coffee and I enjoyed Svele for the first time. Svele is a local pancake in this area made with cultured milk and folded up with butter and sugar or brown cheese and jam.

Obviously I find these fantastic and fortunately Nils was there to let me know not to use the fork I had gotten because
"No one eats those with a fork, you just pick it up and eat it." 

Here's a recipe:

MRF svele (den originale og beste)

5 egg 1,5 MRF-kopp sukker (dvs ganske nøyaktig 2 dl) ca 1 l hvetemel 1 l kulturmelk 1 toppet ts natron 1 toppet ts *hjortesalt* ca. 75g margarin (smeltet)

Egg og sukker røres, kulturmelk røres inn. Det tørre røres inn litt etter litt. Rør til en jevn røre. Settes litt (en halvtime, om du har tid) til svelling og stekes gyldenbrune. For aller best resultat bør takke brukes til steking, men det går også fint å steke i en moderne stekepanne (Teflon etc.) Serveres med brunost, syltetøy, eller kanskje aller best; en blanding av smør og sukker! På ekte MRF-vis skal svela serveres foldet på midten med "pålegget" inni. Kos deg med svela di! *Hjortesalt also known as hornsalt, or ammonium bicarbonate; is widely used in baking throughout Scandinavia, and is some potent stuff; if you ever find yourself passed out on the floor it would be good to have some of this nearby one whiff and you are sure to be back on your feet.*

We were soon back in the car to stop at some shops and then arrived to our destination; Brudevoll Kjøtt.

Inside this building is an immaculate butcher shop. The cases are full of local beef, lamb, sausages, laks, smoked bacon (which will have a post of it's own it is so good) and countless other fresh meats that I look forward to highlighting on upcoming menus. I haven't seen meat this great since we were in Copenhagen.

Here's Roger getting ready to show me the ropes. His shop has been in his family since 1916 and spans 3 generations, a lot of you already know of him, I know him as an incredible butcher, a master with his knife, a great teacher, and a great cook. Many of our guests speak quite highly of him and his products. Some are especially fond of his Christmas sausages and have lots of fun things to say about that. 

While touring his shop he showed me how to take out the tenderloin and as you can see he is quite impressed with my work.

He has an incredible shop and he and Kari-Janne invited us upstairs for lunch and they cooked this piece of meat perfectly. I had such a great time talking with them about their business and travels. I am amazed at the warm welcome I was given and am truly honored to be working with their products.

Today has been amazing: A Car Ferry, A Pancake, Crepuscular Rays, Butchering Meat, A Great Lunch, Amazing Views, Great Company...
An unbelievable first day.

If you want this recipe for Svele in English or to translate the proportions just ask or send me a mail.