Norwegian Shrovetide buns

I asked Tove if she would share her recipe for the buns that the family made with Thulani in this post and she has very kindly agreed to do so :-)  Here is the recipe:

Our Shrovetide buns. J (But you can eat them at Easter too…)

• 1 liter wheat flour
• 50 gram yeast
• 3,5 dl milk
• 100 gr. butter
• 1 and 1/4 dl sugar
• 1 ts cardamom
•  1 egg (to use if u want a shiny light brown surface on your buns) J

Mix flour, yeast, sugar and cardamom. Melt the butter and add the milk. Wait till it’s lukewarm, 37 degrees. Pour the milk with the yeast into the flour mix and stir it together, until it is pliable dough. Sprinkle with a little flour, and let the dough rest under a kitchen towel until it’s twice it’s size.

Make a “sausage” of the dough and part the dough into as small or big buns you want to. Let the buns rest one more time, for 30-60 minutes, before baking it in the middle of the oven on 200 degrees for about 10-15 minutes.

When you’re finished and the buns are outside again, part as many of them as you wish into halves. Fill them with jam (we use strawberry jam, but that’s up to you) and whipped cream. Put them together again and sprinkle with icing sugar.

Enjoy your Shrovetide buns!

*1 dl = 100ml

Some facts about Norway

Some facts from Norway:

As promised we’ll give you some facts about Norway, and off course, Norway is a country and not the pub around the corner as an american guy once said when he got the question: What is Norway? J

You will find all the facts on Wikipedia, where there also are some great links you could follow if you want to. I can recommend it! J

Norway ⁱ/ˈnɔrweɪ/ (Norwegian: Norge (Bokmål) or Noreg (Nynorsk)), officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island.^{[note 1]} Norway has a total area of 385,252 square kilometres (148,747 sq mi) and a population of about 4.99 million.^[8] It is the second least densely populated country in Europe. The majority of the country shares a border to the east with Sweden; its northernmost region is bordered by Finland to the south and Russia to the east; in its south Norway borders the Skagerrak Strait across from Denmark. The capital city of Norway is Oslo. Norway's extensive coastline, facing the North Atlantic Ocean and the Barents Sea, is home to its famous fjords.

Two centuries of Viking raids tapered off following the adoption of Christianity by King Olav Tryggvason in 994. A period of civil war ended in the 13th century when Norway expanded its control overseas to parts of the British Isles, Iceland, and Greenland. Norwegian territorial power peaked in 1265, but competition from the Hanseatic League and the spread of the Black Death weakened the country. In 1380, Norway was absorbed into a union with Denmark that lasted more than four centuries. In 1814, Norwegians resisted the cession of their country to Sweden and adopted a new constitution. Sweden then invaded Norway but agreed to let Norway keep its constitution in return for accepting the union under a Swedish king. Rising nationalism throughout the 19th century led to a 1905 referendum granting Norway independence. Although Norway remained neutral in World War I, it suffered heavy losses to its shipping. Norway proclaimed its neutrality at the outset of World War II, but was nonetheless occupied for five years by the Third Reich. In 1949, neutrality was abandoned and Norway became a founding member of NATO. Discovery of oil and gas in adjacent waters in the late 1960s boosted Norway's economic fortunes. In referenda held in 1972 and 1994, Norway rejected joining the EU. Key domestic issues include immigration and integration of ethnic minorities, maintaining the country's extensive social safety net with an aging population, and preserving economic competitiveness.^[2][9]

Norway is a unitary parliamentary democracy and constitutional monarchy, with King Harald V as its head of state and Jens Stoltenberg as its prime minister. It is a unitary state with administrative subdivisions on two levels known as counties (fylke) and municipalities (kommuner). The Sámi people have a certain amount of self-determination and influence over traditional territories through the Sámi Parliament and the Finnmark Act. Although having rejected European Union membership in two referenda, Norway maintains close ties with the union and its member countries, as well as with the United States. Norway remains one of the biggest financial contributors to the United Nations,^[10] and participates with UN forces in international missions, notably in Afghanistan, Kosovo, Sudan and Libya. Norway is a founding member of the United Nations, NATO, the Council of Europe, and the Nordic Council; a member of the European Economic Area, the WTO, and the OECD; and is also a part of Schengen Area.

Norway has extensive reserves of petroleum, natural gas, minerals, lumber, seafood, fresh water, and hydropower. The country has the fourth-highest GDP per capita in the world. On a per-capita basis, it is the world's largest producer of oil and natural gas outside the Middle East,^[11][12] and the petroleum industry accounts for around a quarter of the country's gross domestic product.^[13] The country maintains a Nordic welfare model with universal health care, subsidized higher education, and a comprehensive social security system. From 2001 to 2006,^[14] and then again from 2009 through 2011, Norway has had the highest human development index ranking in the world.^[15][16]

Our County in Norway:

Nord-Trøndelag (help·info) ("North Trøndelag") is a county constituting the northern part of Trøndelag in Norway. As of 2010, the county had 131,555 inhabitants, making it the country's fourth-least populated county. The largest municipalities are Stjørdal, Steinkjer—the county seat, Levanger, Namsos and Verdal, all with between 21,000 and 12,000 inhabitants. The economy is primarily centered around services, although there are significant industries in agriculture, fisheries, hydroelectricity and forestry. It has the lowest gross domestic product per capita of any county in the country.

Nord-Trøndelag covers 22,412 square kilometres (8,653 sq mi), making it the sixth-largest county, and consists of 24 municipalities. The district of Innherred runs along the east side of the Trondheimsfjord, and is the most populated area, with much farming. To the south lays the district of Stjørdalen, while in the north, the larger district of Namdalen stretches from the Norwegian Sea to the mountains bordering Sweden. West of the Trondheimsfjord lays Fosen. Nord-Trøndelag borders Sør-Trøndelag to the south and Nordland to the north. The western part of the county has several large valleys and consists largely of unpopulated wilderness, including four national parks. Snåsavatnet is the largest lake, while major rivers include Namsen, Verdalselva and Stjørdalselva.

Innherred was a important area during the Viking Age and featured the Battle of Stiklestad. The county was created in 1804 and was known as Nordre Trondhjems amt until 1919. Since the 1950s, the county has experienced a population growth below national levels. The axis north–south through the country past Grong and along the west side of Trondheimsfjorden is a main transport artery, including the European Route E6 and the Nordland Line.

And this is the area where we live:

Nærøy was established as a municipality on 1 January 1838 (see formannskapsdistrikt). On 1 July 1869, the western district was separated from Nærøy to become the new municipality of Vikten. This left Nærøy with 1,477 residents. On 1 January 1902, an unpopulated area of Kolvereid was transferred to Nærøy. On 1 January 1964, the municipalities of Gravvik, Kolvereid, and most of Foldereid were merged together with Nærøy to form a new, larger municipality of Nærøy. Prior to the merger, Nærøy had 2,182 residents and after the merger there were 6,241 residents.^[2]

 Name

The Old Norse form of the name was Njarðøy. The first element is maybe the stem form of the name of the Norse god Njord (but it is suspicious that it is not in the genitive case). The last element is øy which means "island". Historically, the name has had varying spellings such as Nærø or Nærøen.^[3][4]

 Coat-of-arm

The coat-of-arms is from modern times; they were granted on 22 May 1987. The arms are based on the seal of King Håkon Magnusson from 1344, on a document in which the King granted several rights to the local farmers. The seal shows the St. Mary in a portal decorated with fleur-de-lis, the symbol of the St. Mary. The arms show a combination of three fleur-de-lis on a gold background. The fleur-de-lis design is red, since the local water lilies generally have a red color.^[5]

Churches

The Church of Norway has four parishes (sokn) within the municipality of Nærøy. It is part of the Nærøy deanery in the Diocese of Nidaros.

Geography

The municipality is located in the northwestern part of Nord-Trøndelag county, along the Foldafjord. It includes the islands of Austra and Gjerdinga and the Kvingra peninsula. Several large lakes are located in the municipality including Mjosundvatnet, Salsvatn, and Storvatnet.

Transportation

Norwegian County Road 17 crosses the northeastern part of the municipality. There is a large network of bridges in the municipality that connect islands and cross fjords. Most notably is the Marøysund Bridge and Nærøysund Bridge which connect Nærøy to Vikna to the west. Also Hestøy Bridge and Smines Bridge connect the village of Lund to Fosnes municipality to the south.

And this is our village J :

Foldereid is a village and a former municipality in the northern part of Nord-Trøndelag county, Norway. The municipality encompassed the area surrounding the inner part of the Folda fjord, the Innerfolda. The village of Foldereid is located along the fjord in the present-day municipality of Nærøy, just a short distance from the border with Nordland county.^[2]

History

The municipality of Foldereid was established on 1 October 1886 when it was separated from Kolvereid. Initially, the new municipality had 948 residents. On 1 January 1964, the municipality was dissolved. The eastern Kongsmoen area (population: 221) was merged into Høylandet and the remainder of the municipality (population: 817) was merged into Nærøy.^[3]

If we pass the border to Sør-Trøndelag We’ll find one of Norway’s biggest and most beautiful cities, the city is named Trondheim (we often visit during the summer) and here are some facts:

History

The Old Town Bridge of Trondheim

For the ecclesiastical history, see Archiepiscopate of Nidaros

Trondheim was named Kaupangen (English: market place or trading place) by Viking King Olav Tryggvason in 997. Fairly soon, it came to be called Nidaros. In the beginning it was frequently used as a military retainer (Old Norse: "hird"-man) of King Olav. It was frequently used as the seat of the king, and was capital of Norway until 1217.

People have been living in the region for thousands of years as evidenced by the rock carvings in central Norway, the Nøstvet and Lihult cultures and the Corded Ware culture. In ancient times, the Kings of Norway were hailed at Øretinget in Trondheim, the place for the assembly of all free men by the mouth of the river Nidelva. Harald Fairhair (865–933) was hailed as the king here, as was his son, Haakon I – called 'the Good'. The battle of Kalvskinnet took place in Trondheim in 1179: King Sverre Sigurdsson and his Birkebeiner warriors were victorious against Erling Skakke (a rival to the throne). Some scholars believe that the famous Lewis chessmen, 12th century chess pieces carved from walrus ivory found in the Hebrides and now at the British Museum, may have been made in Trondheim.

Trondheim was the seat of the (Catholic) Archdiocese of Nidaros for Norway from 1152. Due to the introduction of Lutheran Protestantism in 1537, the last Archbishop, Olav Engelbrektsson, had to flee from the city to the Netherlands, where he died in present-day Lier, Belgium.

The city has experienced several major fires. Since it was a city of log buildings, out of wood, most fires caused severe damage. Great fires ravaged the city in 1598, 1651, 1681, 1708, twice in 1717, 1742, 1788, 1841 and 1842; these were only the worst cases. The 1651 fire destroyed 90% of all buildings within the city limits. The fire in 1681 (the "Horneman Fire") led to an almost total reconstruction of the city, overseen by General Johan Caspar von Cicignon, originally from Luxembourg. Broad avenues like Munkegaten were created, with no regard for property rights, in order to stop the next fire. At the time, the city had a population of roughly 8000 inhabitants. After the Treaty of Roskilde on 26 February 1658, Trondheim and the rest of Trøndelag, became Swedish territory for a brief period, but the area was reconquered after 10 months. The conflict was finally settled by the Treaty of Copenhagen on 27 May 1660.

During World War II, Trondheim was occupied by Nazi Germany from 9 April 1940, the first day of the invasion of Norway, until the end of the war in Europe, 8 May 1945. The home of the most notorious Norwegian Gestapo agent, Henry Rinnan, it was also subject to harsh treatment by the occupying powers, including imposition of martial law in October 1942. During this time the Germans turned the city and its environs into a major base for submarines (DORA 1), and also contemplated a scheme to build a new city for 300,000 inhabitants, Nordstern ("Northern Star"), centred 15 km (10 mi) southwest of Trondheim, near the wetlands of Øysand in the outskirts of Melhus municipality. This new metropolis was to be accompanied by a massively expanded version of the already existing naval base, which was intended to become the primary future stronghold of the German Kriegsmarine. Today there are few physical remains of this enormous construction project.^[5]

Geography

Trondheim is situated where the river Nidelva meets Trondheimsfjorden with an excellent harbour and sheltered condition. The river used to be deep enough for most boats in the Middle Ages. An avalanche of mud and stones made it less navigable and partly ruined the harbour in the mid-17th century.

Autumn foliage along Nidelva; October 2009

The municipality's top elevation is the Storheia hill, 565 metres (1,854 ft) above sea level. At summer solstice, the sun rises at 03:00 and sets at 23:40, but stays just below the horizon–there is no darkness from 20 May to 20 July.^[9] At winter solstice, the sun rises at 10:00, stays very low above the horizon, and sets at 14:30.

Climate

Trondheim city has a predominantly Oceanic climate,^[10] but borders on humid continental and subarctic climate. The part of the municipality further away from the fjord has colder winters (January mean at Klett 1961-90 is −5.5 °C (22 °F)). The part close to the fjord, such as the city center, has milder winters (January mean Trondheim city center 58 m amsl 1961-90 is −2.5 °C (27 °F).^[11] Trondheim is mostly sheltered from the strong winds which can occur along the outer seaboard. The warmest temperature ever recorded is 35 °C (95 °F) on 22 July 1901, and the coldest is −26.1 °C (−15.0 °F) in February 1899. Trondheim experiences moderate snowfall from November to March,^[12] but mixed with mild weather and rainfall. There are on average 14 days each winter with at least 25 cm snow cover on the ground and 22 days with daily minimum temperature −10 °C (14 °F) or colder. There is often more snow and later snowmelt in suburban areas at somewhat higher elevation, such as Byåsen and Heimdal, with good skiing conditions in Bymarka. Spring often sees much sunshine, but nights can be chilly or cold. The daily high temperature can exceed 20 °C (68 °F) from late April to late September, but not reliably so; on average are 34 days each summer warmer than 20 °C (68 °F). October is the most typical autumn month with cool temperatures and fall foliage, while November is considerably darker and colder. Average annual precipitation is 892 millimetres (35.1 in) fairly evenly spread out over the year, although September and October typically sees twice as much precipitation as March, April and May. Temperatures have tended to be warmer in recent years. The Trøndelag area has seen average temperatures increase by almost 2 °C (3.60 °F) in the last 25 years.^[13]

[hide]Climate data for Trondheim (1961–90)
Month	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Year
Average high °C (°F)	0.1 (32.2)	1.0 (33.8)	4.1 (39.4)	7.8 (46.0)	14.1 (57.4)	17.3 (63.1)	18.4 (65.1)	17.8 (64.0)	13.6 (56.5)	9.1 (48.4)	3.7 (38.7)	1.5 (34.7)	9.0 (48.2)
Average low °C (°F)	−6.5 (20.3)	−5.7 (21.7)	−3 (26.6)	0.3 (32.5)	5.0 (41.0)	8.8 (47.8)	10.3 (50.5)	9.8 (49.6)	6.6 (43.9)	3.3 (37.9)	−2 (28.4)	−4.8 (23.4)	1.8 (35.2)
Precipitation mm (inches)	63 (2.48)	52 (2.05)	54 (2.13)	49 (1.93)	53 (2.09)	68 (2.68)	94 (3.7)	87 (3.43)	113 (4.45)	104 (4.09)	71 (2.8)	84 (3.31)	892 (35.12)
Sunshine hours	23.4	65.2	118.8	158.5	215.1	197.4	178	176	111.5	61.6	31.7	9.3	1,346.5
Source: World Weather Information Service All data is for Trondheim – Værnes (12 m amsl), base period is 1961–1990. Sunhours data provided by met.no for Tyholt/Voll, Trondheim.

[hide]Climate data for Trondheim (2009)
Month	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Year
Average high °C (°F)	1.9 (35.4)	−0.6 (30.9)	4.6 (40.3)	11.0 (51.8)	14.7 (58.5)	16.7 (62.1)	20.0 (68.0)	19.8 (67.6)	14.4 (57.9)	7.0 (44.6)	6.1 (43.0)	0.6 (33.1)	9.7 (49.5)
Average low °C (°F)	−3.5 (25.7)	−5.4 (22.3)	−0.8 (30.6)	3.6 (38.5)	6.2 (43.2)	8.5 (47.3)	11.8 (53.2)	11.9 (53.4)	8.4 (47.1)	1.3 (34.3)	0.2 (32.4)	−5 (23.0)	3.1 (37.6)
Precipitation mm (inches)	92 (3.62)	93 (3.66)	52 (2.05)	17 (0.67)	52 (2.05)	65 (2.56)	134 (5.28)	54 (2.13)	204 (8.03)	78 (3.07)	22 (0.87)	53 (2.09)	824 (32.44)
Source: Meteorologisk institutt All data is for Trondheim – Voll (127 m amsl), 2009.

A panorama of Trondheim, the Trondheimsfjord and surrounding areas

 Fauna

Several wetland habitats can be found within the city limits. The Gaulosen is one of these. Here you will find a newly built observation tower and information on the birdlife that can be found.

Despite Trondheim being Norway's third largest city, wild animals can be seen. Otters and beavers thrive in Nidelva and Bymarka.^[14] Badgers and foxes are not uncommon sights. Moose and deer are common in the hills surrounding the city, and might wander into the city, especially in May when the one year olds are chased away by their mothers, or in late winter when food grows scarce in the snow-covered higher regions. Since 2002, a wolverine has stayed in Bymarka.^[15]

Cityscape

The Nidelva flows through Trondheim with old storehouses flanking both sides of this river. The Nidaros Cathedral and Old Town Bridge can be seen on the left side of this panorama.

Most of the downtown area is scattered with small specialty stores and shops, however a considerable part of the downtown shopping area is concentrated around the pedestrianized streets Nordre gate (English: Northern street), Olav Tryggvasons gate and Thomas Angells gate even though the rest of the city center also is riddled with everything from old, well established companies to new, hip and trendy shops.

In the mid- to late 1990s, the area surrounding the old drydock and ship construction buildings of the defunct Trondhjems mekaniske Værksted shipbuilding company at the Nedre Elvehavn were renovated and old industrial buildings were torn down to make way for condominiums. A shopping mall was also built, known as Solsiden (The Sunny Side). This is a popular residential and shopping area, especially for young people.

DORA 1 is a German submarine base that housed the 13th U-boat Flotilla during the World War II occupation of Norway. Today the bunker houses various archives, among them the city archives, the university and state archives. More recently, DORA has been used as a concert venue.

Central Trondheim as seen from the tower of the Nidaros Cathedral looking towards the Trondheimsfjord and Munkholmen Island.

Kristiansten Fortress, built 1681–1684, is located on a hill east in Trondheim. It repelled the invading Swedes in 1718, but was decommissioned in 1816 by Crown Prince Regent Charles John.

A statue of Olav Tryggvason, the founder of Trondheim, is located in the city's central plaza, mounted on top of an obelisk. The statue base is also a sun dial, but it is calibrated to UTC+1 so that the reading is inaccurate by one hour in the summer.

The islet Munkholmen is a popular tourist attraction and recreation site. The islet has served as a place of execution, a monastery, a fortress, prison, and a World War II anti-aircraft gun station.

Stiftsgården is the royal residence in Trondheim, originally constructed in 1774 by Cecilie Christine Schøller. At 140 rooms constituting 4,000 square metres (43,056 sq ft), it is possibly the largest wooden building in Northern Europe, and has been used by royals and their guests since 1800.

A statue of Leif Ericson is located at the seaside, close to the old Customs Building, the cruise ship facilities and the new swimming Hall. The statue is a replica, the original being located at a Seattle marina.

Nidaros Cathedral

The Nidaros Cathedral as seen from the southern bank of the Nidelva.

The Nidaros Cathedral and the Archbishop's Palace are located side by side in the middle of the city centre. The cathedral, built from 1070 on, is the most important Gothic monument in Norway and was Northern Europe's most important Christian pilgrimage site during the Middle Ages,^[16] with pilgrimage routes from Oslo in southern Norway and from the Jämtland and Värmland regions of Sweden. Today, it is the northernmost medieval cathedral in the world, and the second largest in Scandinavia.

During the Middle Ages, and again after independence was restored in 1814, the Nidaros Cathedral was the coronation church of the Norwegian kings. King Haakon VII was the last monarch to be crowned there, in 1906. Starting with King Olav V in 1957, coronation was replaced by consecration. In 1991, the present King Harald V and Queen Sonja were consecrated in the cathedral.^[17] On 24 May 2002, their daughter Princess Märtha Louise married the writer Ari Behn in the cathedral.^[18]

The Pilgrim's Route (Pilegrimsleden) to the site of Saint Olufs's tomb at Nidaros Cathedral, has recently been re-instated. Also known as St. Olav's Way, (Sankt Olavs vei), the main route, which is approximately 640 kilometres (400 mi) long, starts in Oslo and heads North, along the Lake Mjøsa, up the valley Gudbrandsdalen, over the mountain range Dovrefjell and down the Oppdal valley to end at Nidaros Cathedral in Trondheim. There is a Pilgrim's Office in Oslo which gives advice to pilgrims, and a Pilgrim Centre in Trondheim, under the aegis of the cathedral, which awards certificates to successful pilgrims upon the completion of their journey.^[19][20]