OK, fail is maybe too strong. We had a nice hike, and discovered that our gear worked pretty well. 3 1/2 miles isn’t too far to hike in Viking shoes, and the bed roll wasn’t too heavy. Only then there were the mosquitoes. Mid August should have been too late for that many, but it’s [...]
Browsing Posts in Viking
Trekking fail!
September 20, 2011
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Quinoa
June 16, 2011
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One of the very common finds from Iron- and Viking age Scandinavia sites are seeds of chenopodium album (fat-hen, lambs quarters, etc.). The seeds have been found mixed into bread and grain paste, in addition to just being in the ground. The inclusion may have been accidental, since fat hen grows as a weed in [...]
Tried some new dishes
June 8, 2011
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At June Faire last weekend I tried a couple of new Viking-possible dishes that worked out really well. Both were cooked over the fire, one in pottery (cabbage) and the other in cast iron (mostly because it was bigger than any of my pottery). In a clay pot, heated up some chopped bacon ends until [...]
The wonders of porridge
May 3, 2011
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I just recently got ahold of a copy (thanks to the wonders of ILL) of an article called The Porridge Debate: Grain, Nutrition, and Forgotten Food Preparation Techniques1. I had seen references to it in Sandor Katz’s Wild Fermentation, but hadn’t actually read the article. In it, the author discusses how changes in grain processing [...]
Projects
April 26, 2011
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Right now I’m planning on trying some new bread and dairy projects. Last year I tried making some Ålandskt svartbröd, and just recently I found a reference to it having been described as sour “in the old days” as opposed to the sweet bread that is made today. The modern version uses molasses and treacle, [...]
Culinary Symposium and new classes
April 18, 2011
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This weekend was An Tir‘s Culinary Symposium, which was a smashing success. We had a great time geeking out with the other food nerds on subjects ranging far and wide. I’m all fired up to work on more sausages and cheese for this year. I’ve been a little concerned about curing/fermenting meat, and I think [...]
Happy New Year!
January 1, 2011
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Happy 2011! May the new year be filed with joy, light, and Viking food!
Trekking
December 29, 2010
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Another new project for the coming year is a plan for “Viking trekking”. Eulalia and I are talking earnestly about trying a trek (aka hiking/camping) using only Viking (or in her case Celtic) appropriate gear and methods. We’re shooting for some time in August, since the fishing may be OK, the huckleberries should be ripe, [...]
New project for the new year
December 29, 2010
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This year I spent a lot of time experimenting with fermentation in the hopes of learning more about what the Vikings had to eat. The new project for the upcoming year is going to be wild foods and foraging. There are several species that appear commonly in the Viking age archeological record (including stinging nettles [...]
