smorgasbord.

Have you ever thought about certain words which belong to certain people? Perhaps I should say use by certain people. Today I'm thinking about the word smorgasbord. It is an ELLA word. And when she said it she managed to get the trill in it.


For those of you who don't know what is smorgasbord is, kindly let me tell you. At a retreat last month located in a cross country skiing area a smorgasbord breakfast was served on Sunday. One might see the term advertised by a church, a hotel, or a restaurant on a certain meal of the week. Or a few wanting to entertain a large number of guests one could invite them to a smorgasbord. By now, you already know that it's just a fancy name for a buffet supper, or is it? What must a buffet supper offer to make it a smorgasbord?


It's a Swedish word that literally means sandwich table. In the good old days when friends and relatives from far distant places came together at funerals, weddings, and christenings it was customary for the women to bring food. So many guests would otherwise have been a severe drain on the provisions of the house where they were visiting. Therefore, the women brought food's distinctive of their particular part of the country or what they excel in making. This custom of bringing something to eat has now all but disappeared, yet the smorgasbord with its colorful and interesting array of food remains.


In Sweden it has become an appetizer course. Each guest is given a plate and allowed to help himself from the bewilderment of savory campaign looking food. There really is enough set forth to make a meal, rather than a mere prelude to a dinner.


In this country, however a smorgasbord is generally considered a complete meal for an informal gathering. Needless to say, many of the foods offered are the kind that are offered as appetizers; such as stuffed eggs, anchovies, pickled beets and onions, and cottage cheese with chives. The guest pass around the table with their plates and help themselves. And there are usually small tables or they can sit down to eat and where the cups of coffee are brought to them. They are supposed to replenish their plates as often as they like. Let's take a look at a characteristic list of smorgasbord foods.


Whole foods: stuffed eggs, cheese, pickles, herring, anchovies, and smoked salmon. Cold meats: Sweet and sour tongue, headcheese, sausage, and ham.


Pickles and vegetables: cucumber pickles, pickled beets, pickled onions, radishes, sliced cucumbers in vinegar, sliced tomatoes, and stuffed celery.


Salads: Herring salad, cabbage salad, country coleslaw, crab meat salad, stuffed cantaloupe salad, fruit gelatin salad, cranberries or lingonberries into gelatin mold, and tomato aspic.


Hot dishes: meatballs, Brown beans and beans with bacon, creamed or scallop potatoes, rice cooked in milk.


Breads: crisp crackers, Rye krisp, Swedish rye bread, Danish pastry.


Sweets: Apple cake
here's the recipe for Apple cake
ingredients
4 cups tart apple sauce to cups dry breadcrumbs one fourth cup melted butter
a little cinnamon whipped cream
a little jelly

method
make 4 cups of tart apple sauce. Fried to cups of dry breadcrumbs in one fourth cup melted butter very gently until evenly brown. Line 8 deep pie pan with some of these buttered crumbs. Sprinkle with a little cinnamon, then spread one third of the apple sauce over them. Add two more layers of crumbs and applesauce and cinnamon, and being with a layer of crumbs on top. Bake 30 minutes at 325°. Serve cold with whip cream and garnish with bits of jelly.


I was all for this Eple Kake, (apple cake) until I saw that one is supposed to make the tart apple sauce. Well that's what the Betty Crocker kitchen clinic states in a newspaper from the late 1930s!

And yesterday, after Ella's funeral, we all went to the basement for buns with ham or turkey, pickles, and bars. My sweet Thomas liked it because it was all finger foods. It was a mini Smorgasbord!

And all the good people sat at tables and is typical, and worthwhile, everyone was talking. Enid sat with us, Tom suggested the two of them change places so we could talk. And talk we did, because Enid is a dear, dear person and in a special twist, part of maze of friends and relationships.

Thorinus and Pauline Mellem had a number of children:

Enid is the daughter of Emil and Hilda (Hanson) Mellem.

Nina Mellem was Emil sister

Nina Mellem Anderson was Lloyd Anderson's mother

Lloyd Anderson married Ella Elvina Rye

Lloyd and Ella had Judy

Judy had Lisa

Lisa asked how Enid was related. The common person is Thorinus and Pauline.

Thornius (1), Emil (2), Enid (3), Judy (4), Lisa (5). On a chart which shows the relationship calculater, we see we need to go to the fifth generation, Lisa and the third generation Enid where we learn the two of them are first cousins, twicc removed. A Smorgasbord in itself!

Do you know of the thrill of the trill?