Viking Magazine - February 2017 - 14

Waffles Are Koselig
Aasland was just 25 when she started
Telemarksrøra in 2007. Growing
up, she dreamed of owning her own
business, but she also dreamed of doing
it in the United States. When one of
her investors in Norway took over
a controlling share of her company,
Aasland decided the time was right to
move overseas.
She lives in Minneapolis now, where
her new business, Nordic Waffles LLC,
has an office. But the company is based
in Grand Forks, N.D. Those are the first
two places she got help as a brand new
start-up in 2015, she explains. Sons of
Norway Headquarters and Norway
House in Minneapolis, as well as the
Royal Norwegian Consulate helped
her connect with the right people in the
Midwest. The Center for Innovation
at the University of North Dakota
gave her advice, a spot in its business
incubator and through its network,
helped her find investors.
So far, a handful of coffee shops sell
Aasland's waffles. She supplies batter
and equipment to make waffles in the
traditional Norwegian heart shape. She
developed custom-designed waffle irons
with a manufacturer in Denmark after
learning that models made for home use
don't hold up to the wear and tear of
commercial cooking.
Aasland says the challenge of building
a waffle business in this country isn't
selling the product or even selling more
investors on her idea. It's importing the
feelings and the culture that surrounds
waffles in Norway.
" It's about enjoying the here and
now, " she says. Waffles are koselig,
" which symbolizes friendship, love,
trust, comfort and contentment. "
In other words, fresh-from-the-iron
14 VIKING FEBRUARY 2017
sonsofnorway.com
waffles are to Norwegians as a batch
of warm chocolate chip cookies are to
Americans - home and love embodied.
Waffles Are Improvisation
" I just made waffles with my kids
yesterday, " says Linn Mevold
Skogheim. She is the communications
chief at the Bergen headquarters of
Sjømannskirken, the Norwegian
Seamen's Church.
Typically waffles in Norway are for
dessert or a treat with coffee, she says,
but she and her family made them for
dinner. She used whole-grain flour to
add more nutrients. The kids used their
favorite toppings, brown goat cheese on
some hearts and strawberry jam
on others.
Sjømannskirken is famous for its
waffles and serves them every day at
its 29 locations around the world.
Part of the church's ministry to sailors,
students and other Norwegians abroad
is to share hjertevarmen, a warm
heart, Skogheim says. The meaning is
Norwegian Batter
3 eggs
½ cup sugar
½ tsp. salt
4 cups whole milk
4 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
¾ cup dairy sour cream
1 ½ sticks butter
2 tsp. cardamom
Beat eggs and sugar until light and fluffy. Add wet and dry ingredients
alternately. Beat for about 3 minutes to make a smooth batter. Melt butter
and beat slowly into the batter. Let the batter rest for at least 15 minutes
before cooking.
PHOTO BY BON APPETIT
http://www.sonsofnorway.com
Viking Magazine - February 2017

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