From Grandmother Lina's kitchen

My grandmother Lina was born in 1883 and died in 1973.

She was born on the countryside, but came to Oslo

as a young girl to work as a domestic help.

She met my grandfather, a young man who had also come

from the countryside, and married him.

Together they had five children, and my grandmother

lived in the same rented apartment for , if I remember right,

seventy years!

For me, visiting Farmor (Father's Mother, directly translated)

was not so much about big family dinners (the apartment

wasn't very big, to say the least) but more about breakfasts

around the tiny table in the tiny kitchen, or coffeee time in her

living room. (My grandfather had died when I was four, so

he is not that much part of my memories).

Farmor would sit in her sofa.

Coffee, cakes of different kinds, brus (pop soda) for

the kids on the table.

All the photos of the grandchildren on the wall behind my

grandmother.

She was the matriarch of our family.

So what kind of cakes were we served?

I remember Vørtekake.

Vørtekake my grandmother bought in a bakery.

Then there were "småkaker", cookies of different kinds

she had baked herself in that same tiny kitchen:

Peppernøtter.

Ingefærnøtter.

Serinakaker.

Sirupssnipper.

Kokosmakroner.

Havrekjeks.

Mors smørskiver.

There were waffles she made in her waffle iron.

She made doughnuts. In Norwegian doughnuts are

called smultringer, but in Hedmark where my

grandmother grew up, I once read they call them

"donaser".

Sometimes she had make cakes:

Sirupskake.

Julekake.

Sukkerbrød.

Kokoskake.

Something called Goro. I only remember the name,

not the shape, nor the taste.

So slowly slowly I will add recipes to my blog from my

Grandmother Lina's kitchen - trying them out myself.