Nevada Berg – a real brown cheese fan
Successful author Nevada Berg, - a real brown cheese enthusiast
- Brunost has both salty and sweet tones. It melts quickly and is ideal for both cooking and baking, says Nevada Berg, who likes to use the icon cheese as a flavouring. The food writer from the USA is known for diving deep into traditional Norwegian food and giving the various dishes their own twist.
It is eight years since Nevada Berg moved with her Norwegian husband and son to the small town of Veggli in Numedal municipality. With a short distance to nature's pantry and the proud food traditions of the rural people, she started the website North Wild Kitchen.
- The aim was to convey the story behind the various ingredients and the craft and not just to publish recipes, she emphasises.
On unknown ground
- Beyond the so-called New Nordic Kitchen and the classic, traditional dishes and, I knew little about Norwegian cuisine. My parents-in-law are from Bergen, so skillingbolle was something I was served early on, she says and adds with a laugh: - The first time I tasted brown cheese, I ate so much that in the end I couldn't stand the taste. Fortunately, it passed quickly.
Extra touch of brown cheese
Today, the website contains more than twenty recipes with what she calls the Norwegian icon cheese.
- Brunost varies in taste from the mild varieties with a caramel flavor to the more salty types made with pure goat's milk. It has good melting properties and is suitable for both dinner dishes and pastries. I like to play with new combinations and like to add brown cheese to the meatloaf dough itself as well as to the sauce, she says.
The acid test
New recipes are tested on the husband. - If he is skeptical, I know it will be fine, she assures happily. - When I suggested combining the burger with brown cheese and lingonberries, it was as if he was stunned. Now the dish belongs to one of the summer barbecue favourites. Another popular summer dish with us are thin pancakes with strawberries and brown cheese caramel.
Food distribution a driving force
- It is so important to me that my books are more than recipes. Through pictures and stories, the aim is also to convey the story behind the various ingredients. The Norwegian pantry has so much to offer. In addition, you have preserved traditions and conservation methods through generations that I would like to help take care of, says the self-taught chef and brown cheese enthusiast.
Facts
- Nevada Berg grew up in Salt Lake City in Utah and has lived in Maputo in Mozambique, Rome and London.
- After moving to Numedal in 2015, she established the website North Wild Kitchen which nine months later was named the year's best blog and best new voice by the American gourmet magazine Save clock.
- She is currently working on her second book about Norwegian food and food traditions: Norwegian Baking through the Seasons , currently in German and English versions.
- Her first book, Nevada's cuisine (Nevada Home cooking from the Heart of Norway) was published in eight countries in 2018.
- Nevada has around 26,000 followers on Instagram and 22,000 FB followers.
Byline: Trude Henrichsen
English 
Norwegian