My father used to order lutefisk for Christmas (he was the only one who
would eat this) - although we all loved (and still do) lefse.  I now order
lefse from this place in Wisconsin.  Fond memories here too!

Lisa Moellering
Archives and Research Services
Holocaust Museum Houston
5401 Caroline Street
Houston, Texas 77004
713.942.8000 ext. 110
713.942.7953 (fax)
[log in to unmask]
www.hmh.org

-----Original Message-----
From: Archives & Archivists [mailto:[log in to unmask]]On
Behalf Of Gloria Bartowski
Sent: Monday, December 10, 2001 10:16 AM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: Lutefisk


Hi, all!
Just a FYI:

Lut-e-fisk is Norwegian; lute-fisk is the Swedish pronunciation.
American Norwegians generally boil it and eat it with drawn butter.
American Swedes often make a mustard sauce to pour over it.

 It's an acquired taste brought by immigrants, usually a class of less
well-to-do people. The cod is cured in lye as a preservative.  It used to
arrive at the markets in the Upper Midwest in large frozen sheets.  One
rinses the cured cod several times to get the lye out.  My mother used to
wrap it in a clean cotton dish towel and boil it in a large kettle.  Ah,
Memories of Minnesota/North Dakota Christmases.  White Christmases--white
outside, white table cloth, white dishes, white food--boiled potatoes and
butter with lefse (another story) and lutefisk.  EMMMMM YUMMM.  Makes my
tummy churn just thinking about it, but it brings with it fond memories of
hearth and home nonetheless!!

Lutefisk is not eaten back in the European homelands!  As an American
Norwegian (married to an American Pole), I can attest to its ethnic
Christmastime appeal--but I gave up eating it around 1970! Warm, translucent
fishy jell-o is not one of my favorite things...


Gloria A. Bartowski
State Education Department
New York State Archives
Room 9C73 CEC
Albany, NY  12230
(518) 474-6926
[log in to unmask]
www.archives.nysed.gov

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