Atlantica - 01.10.2006, Síða 33

D
EL
IC
IO
U
S
IC
EL
A
N
D
71
FORMATION AND LANDSCAPE
The Mývatn area as a whole is an immense lava formation created by
numerous large and small eruptions, one of the largest occurring about
two thousand and seven hundred years ago, which puts it at a time
some seven hundred years before the birth of Christ. From this gigantic
eruption fl owed a huge amount of lava which covered all of the present
Mývatn area and also vast regions of the lowlands to the north reaching
all the way out into the sea. This colossal volcanic activity put the fi nal 12
D
EL
IC
IO
U
S
IC
EL
A
N
D
Those of us who live in the regions of the globe where it snows are undoubtedly familiar with
snowmen. Most of us, very probably, have made a number of them; perhaps many in any given
winter, rolling the virgin snow into balls large or small, stacking them one on top of the other to
make the lower and upper part of the body and fi nally the head.
It was a fun game; and not only was, but in truth is, since we still fi nd the snowmen fun. Although
we have grown to become adults, we intensely enjoy the old feelings of our younger years as we
strain in giving the snowman its form, adding the scarf around his or her neck, placing the carrot
nose in the center of the face and positioning the eyes and the mouth.
D
EL
IC
IO
U
S
IC
EL
A
N
D
DELICIOUS ICELAND
Tales of unique northern delicacies
14
DELICIOUS ICEL AND
Ic
el
an
de
rs
’ d
id
n
ot
e
at
e
el
m
uc
h
in
th
e
ol
d
da
ys
, b
ut
v
ie
w
s
ha
ve
c
ha
ng
ed

qu
ite
a
lo
t a
s
fa
r a
s
fo
od
a
nd
th
in
gs
e
di
bl
e
ar
e
co
nc
er
ne
d
sin
ce
th
en
, a
nd

no
w
e
el
is
c
on
sid
er
ed
a
d
el
ic
ac
y
in
m
y
ho
m
e
co
un
tr
y.
It
is
ev
en
fi
sh
ed
a

bi
t,
fo
r t
he
m
os
t p
ar
t i
n
th
e
w
et
la
nd
s i
n
th
e
so
ut
h,
b
ut
a
lso
a
b
it
el
se
w
he
re

in
th
e
co
un
tr
y.
As
a
m
at
te
r o
f f
ac
t,
in
th
e
su
m
m
er
o
f 1
99
8,
I w
as
fo
rt
un
at
e
en
ou
gh
to
e
xp
er
-
ie
nc
e
th
e
th
ril
l a
nd
e
xc
ite
m
en
t o
f e
el
fi
sh
in
g.
T
hi
s w
as
in
m
y
ho
m
e
co
un
ty

in
Ic
el
an
d,
in
A
ða
ld
al
ur
(M
ai
n
Va
lle
y)
in
th
e
no
rt
h.

It
w
as
s
um
m
er
, w
ith
fi
ne
w
ea
th
er
a
nd
th
e
m
id
ni
gh
t s
un
h
ov
er
in
g
on
th
e
ho
riz
on
, s
o
th
e
sh
or
t t
rip
to
th
e
w
et
la
nd
s,
w
he
re
w
e
in
te
nd
ed
to
tr
ap
th
e
ee
l w
as
p
le
as
an
t i
nd
ee
d.
M
y
co
m
pa
ni
on
s
w
er
e
kn
ow
le
dg
ea
bl
e
ab
ou
t t
he

m
os
t l
ik
el
y
pl
ac
es
fo
r e
el
, s
o
I h
ad
li
tt
le
to
d
o,
b
ut
to
e
nj
oy
th
e
tr
ip
a
nd
ta
ke

as
li
ve
ly
a
p
ar
t i
n
th
e
pr
oc
ee
di
ng
s a
s I
p
os
sib
ly
c
ou
ld
.
Th
e
tr
ap
s
ar
e
ra
th
er
lo
ng
c
yl
in
de
rs
, m
ad
e
of
n
et
, w
ith
a
c
irc
ul
ar
o
pe
ni
ng

in
o
ne
e
nd
, h
el
d
op
en
b
y
a
m
et
al
ri
ng
a
bo
ut
a
fo
ot
a
nd
a
h
al
f i
n
di
am
et
er
,
an
d
cl
os
ed
in
th
e
ot
he
r.
W
e
pu
t t
he
m
in
th
e
pl
ac
es
m
y
co
m
pa
ni
on
s
kn
ew

fro
m
e
xp
er
ie
nc
e
w
er
e
go
od
fo
r e
el
fi
sh
in
g.
T
he
la
yi
ng
e
nt
ai
le
d
qu
ite
a
lo
t
of
h
or
se
pl
ay
a
nd
h
ap
py
sp
la
sh
in
g
in
th
e
br
isk
ly
c
oo
l w
at
er
s o
f t
he
w
et
la
nd
,
an
d
I,
fo
r o
ne
, m
an
ag
ed
to
g
et
th
or
ou
gh
ly
w
et
, w
hi
ch
w
as
v
er
y
m
uc
h
al
l
rig
ht
, s
in
ce
th
e
ni
gh
t w
as
w
ar
m
a
nd
I
fe
lt
go
od
in
th
e
co
m
pa
ni
on
sh
ip
o
f
m
y
fri
en
ds
a
nd
g
ui
de
s.
W
e
le
ft
th
e
tr
ap
s
in
th
e
w
et
la
nd
s
fo
r a
w
ee
k
to
g
iv
e
th
e
ee
l a
m
pl
e
tim
e
to

sw
im
in
to
th
em
a
nd
g
et
tr
ap
pe
d.
O
n
re
tu
rn
in
g
to
th
e
w
et
la
nd
s,
w
e
to
ok

ou
t
th
e
tr
ap
s,
an
d
fo
un
d
th
at
, i
nd
ee
d,
s
om
e
ee
ls
ha
d
sw
um
in
a
nd
n
ot

m
an
ag
ed
to
fi
nd
th
ei
r w
ay
o
ut
a
ga
in
. T
he
y
w
rit
he
d
fi e
rc
el
y
an
d
w
er
e
ra
th
er

ha
rd
to
g
et
h
ol
d
of
, s
in
ce
th
e
sk
in
is
e
xc
ee
di
ng
ly
sm
oo
th
a
nd
sl
ip
pe
ry
, b
ut

w
e
w
er
e
de
te
rm
in
ed
n
ot
to
le
t o
ur
c
at
ch
g
et
a
w
ay
o
nc
e
w
e
ha
d
m
an
ag
ed

to
tr
ap
it
. S
o
af
te
r s
om
e
fi g
ht
in
g
w
ith
th
e
w
ily
fi
sh
, w
e
m
an
ag
ed
to
tr
an
sf
er

th
em
in
to
o
ld
m
ilk
c
an
s h
ol
di
ng
so
m
e
w
at
er
, in
to
w
hi
ch
w
e
sc
at
te
re
d
a
lib
-
er
al
a
m
ou
nt
o
f s
al
t t
o
nu
m
b
th
e
ee
l a
nd
m
ak
e
it
le
ss
s
lip
pe
ry
. T
hi
s
w
or
ke
d
al
l r
ig
ht
, a
nd
s
oo
n
w
e
w
er
e
on
o
ur
w
ay
h
om
e
w
ith
o
ur
c
at
ch
re
ad
y
to
b
e
pr
oc
es
se
d
th
ro
ug
h
sa
lti
ng
a
nd
sm
ok
in
g.
At present I run the Ferry House Restaurant on Grand Bahama, which is one of the
islands in the Bahamas archipelago. There I have been very fortunate, not least in
my collaboration with my closest coworker, Ms. Isabel Allis n, a longtime inhabit-
It was during my stay at Charlie Trotter’s restaurant that the idea to write a cook-
book of my own started to take defi nite form in my mind. Chef Trotter quite fre-
quently sent me into the dining room to tell the guests about the native food
of my country. I realized that knowledge of Icelandic cuisine was virtually on-
existent outside my home country, and also that its fi ne and pure produce in fi sh
Trying to fi nd someone who could assist me in composing the text for my cook-
book did not turn out to be easy. I fi nally brought up the subject with my father,
whom I have found I can rely on for sound judgment in most matters. I wanted
someone with a thorough knowledge of Iceland, its cust ms and culture, and
also with a good command of English. During our discussion my father brought
up the name of Haukur Ágústsson, a former clergyman and one-time principal
of the college in our vicinity, but at the tim we spoke, retired and residing in
Akureyri. SEAFOOD SOUPwith Halibut, Mussel and Scallop[Serving four]
Soup is a frequent starter to a multi-course meal. In most cases it is preferable that this dish should
be light and not too fi lling, as more food is to follow. Seafood soup has a certain tingle,
which often is most appropriate for gently tickling the appetite.
Begin by blanching the fresh tomatoes, removing their skin and mixing them
in a blender along with the thyme and chervil. For stronger taste, simmer
the liquid until it has reduced to half its original volume. Then pass the
tomato reduction through a chinoise and add the basil and the fi sh
stock. Cut the cold butter into small pieces and stir it into the soup,
adding salt and pepper to taste. The result should be a decidedly
red broth.
Steam the mussels until they open. Then remove one of the
shells, leaving the fi sh inside the other one. Cut the halibut into
fair-sized pieces and sauté them lightly in butter along with the
scallop.
For serving, the soup is put in a soup plate, and a mussel, still in
the shell, and pieces of the sautéed halibut and scallop put in the
soup. The shell should resemble a boat fl oating in the red soup and
the pieces of halibut and scallop be reminiscent of islands.
This arrangement is fascinating to the eyes and the food most pleasing to
the taste buds.
8 roma tomatoes blanched (See appendix p.235)
7 oz halibut8 mussels
4 scallops
4 cups fi sh stock (See appendix p.236)
1 bunch basil1 bunch thyme1 teaspoon black pepper corns
Sprigs of chervil3 oz cold butterSalt and pepper
APPLE AND BLUE CHEESE SALAD
with Toasted Walnuts
[Serving four]
Blue cheese has a very pungent taste, which many people feel should be softened a bit for
it to be pleasingly appreciated. In the salad at hand this is done quite a bit, but at the
same time the tingling fl avor of the c eese is preserved.
For the salad, peel the apple and then cut it into very narrow strips. Then break the chunk of blue cheese into small bits and place them in a bowl along with thestrips of apple, the walnut vinaigrette and the green salad. Gently toss these ingredients together.
Toast the walnuts in an oven tray at 350° F for about fi fteen minutes and then crunch them into bits; not too fi ne, though, as it is preferable to feel their crunchiness, when eating the salad.
To serve, place a fair heap of the salad in the center of a plate. Scatter the crunched walnuts quite liberally on top.
If well executed, this dish has colors pleasing to the eye. The tingling taste of the cheese harmonizes well with the freshness of the salad and the earthy taste of the walnuts, the whole creating a most savory blend.
7 oz blue cheese
1 apple
2.9 oz walnut
Walnut vinaigrette (See appendix p.239)10 oz mixed green salad
Icelanders’ did not eat eel much in the old days, but views have changed
quite a lot as far as food and things edible are concerned since then, and
now eel is considered a delicacy in my home country. It is even fi shed a
bit, for the most part in the wetlands in the south, but also a bit elsewhere
in the country.
As a matter of fact, in the summer of 1998, I was fortunate enough to exper-
ience the thrill and excitement of eel fi shing. This was in my home county
in Iceland, in Aðaldalur (Main Valley) in the north. It was summer, with fi ne weather and the midnight sun hovering on the
horizon, so the short trip to the wetlands, where we intended to trap the
eel was pleasant indeed. My companions were knowledgeable about the
most likely places for eel, so I had little to do, but to enjoy the trip and take
as lively a part in the proceedings as I possibly could.
The traps are rather long cylinders, made of net, with a circular opening
in one end, held open by a metal ring about a foot and a half in diameter,
and closed in the other. We put them in the places my companions knew
from experience were good for eel fi shing. The laying entailed quite a lot
of horseplay and happy splashing in the briskly cool waters of the wetland,
and I, for one, managed to get thoroughly wet, which was very much all
right, since the night was warm and I felt good in the companionship of
my friends and guides.
We left the traps in the wetlands for a week to give the eel ample time to
swim into them and get trapped. On returning to the wetlands, we took
out the traps, and found that, indeed, some eels had swum in and not
managed to fi nd their way out again. They writhed fi ercely and were rather
hard to get hold of, since the skin is exceedingly smooth and slippery, but
we were determined not to let our catch get away once we had managed
to trap it. So after some fi ghting with the wily fi sh, we managed to transfer
them into old milk cans holding some water, into which we scattered a lib-
eral amount of salt to numb the eel and make it less slippery. This worked
all right, and soon we were on our way home with our catch ready to be
processed through salting and smoking.
CREAMED SEA URCHIN SOUP with Braised Fennel[Serving four]
These dangerous looking spiked shells encase plump, meaty sacs of orange roe that
when combined with the fennel and cream make a delicious soup.
For the soup: remove the sea urchin roe and rinse it gently in water. In a soup pot
gently cook the onions, garlic and half of the fennel with 2 tablespoons butter.
Cook until they are soft, then deglaze the pot with the Pernod and reduce
by half. Add the wine and reduce by half . Next add the fi sh stock and
heavy cream and reduce by half. Using a hand blender, puree the soup to
a smooth consistency. Pass through a chinois into another soup pot. Add
half of the raw sea urchin roe to the soup and puree again. Season with
salt and pepper. Froth the soup again before serving.
Place the diced fennel and olive oil in a small pot on low heat. Slowly
cook the fennel until a golden color is achieved. Season with salt and
pepper.
Place a mound of warm braised fennel in the middle of a soup bowl. Next,
pour the freshly frothed sea urchin soup around the fennel. Place the remain-
ing sea urchin on top of the fennel and garnish with the fennel fronds.
4 sea urchins, (yielding approximately 20 sacs of roe)
2 bulbs of fennel, trimmed and fi nelysmall
diced, (save the tops for garnish)
1 onion, peeled and fi nely diced
2 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
2 table spoons butter¼ cup Pernod¼ cup dry white wine½ liter fi sh stock½ liter heavy creamSalt and pepper2 table spoon Olive oil
14
DELICIOUS ICEL AND
Ic
el
an
de
rs
’ d
id
n
ot
e
at
e
el
m
uc
h
in
th
e
ol
d
da
ys
, b
ut
v
ie
w
s
ha
ve
c
ha
ng
ed

qu
ite
a
lo
t a
s
fa
r a
s
fo
od
a
nd
th
in
gs
e
di
bl
e
ar
e
co
nc
er
ne
d
sin
ce
th
en
, a
nd

no
w
e
el
is
c
on
sid
er
ed
a
d
el
ic
ac
y
in
m
y
ho
m
e
co
un
tr
y.
It
is
ev
en
fi
sh
ed
a

bi
t,
fo
r t
he
m
os
t p
ar
t i
n
th
e
w
et
la
nd
s i
n
th
e
so
ut
h,
b
ut
a
lso
a
b
it
el
se
w
he
re

in
th
e
co
un
tr
y.
As
a
m
at
te
r o
f f
ac
t,
in
th
e
su
m
m
er
o
f 1
99
8,
I w
as
fo
rt
un
at
e
en
ou
gh
to
e
xp
er
-
ie
nc
e
th
e
th
ril
l a
nd
e
xc
ite
m
en
t o
f e
el
fi
sh
in
g.
T
hi
s w
as
in
m
y
ho
m
e
co
un
ty

in
Ic
el
an
d,
in
A
ða
ld
al
ur
(M
ai
n
Va
lle
y)
in
th
e
no
rt
h.

It
w
as
s
um
m
er
, w
ith
fi
ne
w
ea
th
er
a
nd
th
e
m
id
ni
gh
t s
un
h
ov
er
in
g
on
th
e
ho
riz
on
, s
o
th
e
sh
or
t t
rip
to
th
e
w
et
la
nd
s,
w
he
re
w
e
in
te
nd
ed
to
tr
ap
th
e
ee
l w
as
p
le
as
an
t i
nd
ee
d.
M
y
co
m
pa
ni
on
s
w
er
e
kn
ow
le
dg
ea
bl
e
ab
ou
t t
he

m
os
t l
ik
el
y
pl
ac
es
fo
r e
el
, s
o
I h
ad
li
tt
le
to
d
o,
b
ut
to
e
nj
oy
th
e
tr
ip
a
nd
ta
ke

as
li
ve
ly
a
p
ar
t i
n
th
e
pr
oc
ee
di
ng
s a
s I
p
os
sib
ly
c
ou
ld
.
Th
e
tr
ap
s
ar
e
ra
th
er
lo
ng
c
yl
in
de
rs
, m
ad
e
of
n
et
, w
ith
a
c
irc
ul
ar
o
pe
ni
ng

in
o
ne
e
nd
, h
el
d
op
en
b
y
a
m
et
al
ri
ng
a
bo
ut
a
fo
ot
a
nd
a
h
al
f i
n
di
am
et
er
,
an
d
cl
os
ed
in
th
e
ot
he
r.
W
e
pu
t t
he
m
in
th
e
pl
ac
es
m
y
co
m
pa
ni
on
s
kn
ew

fro
m
e
xp
er
ie
nc
e
w
er
e
go
od
fo
r e
el
fi
sh
in
g.
T
he
la
yi
ng
e
nt
ai
le
d
qu
ite
a
lo
t
of
h
or
se
pl
ay
a
nd
h
ap
py
sp
la
sh
in
g
in
th
e
br
isk
ly
c
oo
l w
at
er
s o
f t
he
w
et
la
nd
,
an
d
I,
fo
r o
ne
, m
an
ag
ed
to
g
et
th
or
ou
gh
ly
w
et
, w
hi
ch
w
as
v
er
y
m
uc
h
al
l
rig
ht
, s
in
ce
th
e
ni
gh
t w
as
w
ar
m
a
nd
I
fe
lt
go
od
in
th
e
co
m
pa
ni
on
sh
ip
o
f
m
y
fri
en
ds
a
nd
g
ui
de
s.
W
e
le
ft
th
e
tr
ap
s
in
th
e
w
et
la
nd
s
fo
r a
w
ee
k
to
g
iv
e
th
e
ee
l a
m
pl
e
tim
e
to

sw
im
in
to
th
em
a
nd
g
et
tr
ap
pe
d.
O
n
re
tu
rn
in
g
to
th
e
w
et
la
nd
s,
w
e
to
ok

ou
t
th
e
tr
ap
s,
an
d
fo
un
d
th
at
, i
nd
ee
d,
s
om
e
ee
ls
ha
d
sw
um
in
a
nd
n
ot

m
an
ag
ed
to
fi
nd
th
ei
r w
ay
o
ut
a
ga
in
. T
he
y
w
rit
he
d
fi e
rc
el
y
an
d
w
er
e
ra
th
er

ha
rd
to
g
et
h
ol
d
of
, s
in
ce
th
e
sk
in
is
e
xc
ee
di
ng
ly
sm
oo
th
a
nd
sl
ip
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D
ELIC
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S IC
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N
D
Tales of unique northern delicacies
DELICIOUS ICELAND
Tal s of unique northern delicacies
ISBN-10: 9979-768-72-X
ISBN-13: 978-9979-768-72-2
Chef Völundur Snær Völundarson
in Iceland in 1973 and raised in the northern
countryside by the banks of Laxá in A
one of Iceland’s most renowned salmon rivers.
It was there that he first experienced the wonders
of produce and wildlife fresh from the
rivers, and ocean.
He has roasted venison ove
from fiery volcanoes, poached A
over Iceland’s steaming geysers
in some of the most celebrated rest
Europe and North Americ
Trotter’s Restaurant in Chic
Domaine de Clairefontaine
Philippe Girardon), T
in Oregon, and Iceland’
and Hotel Holt. H
a popular cooking show
His quest for cha
Thank you for an exquisite meal.
You are an amazing chef. Many thanks.
Orlando Bloom
Three cheers to you, Völundur, you have
produced a masterpiece!
Charlie Trotter
www.salkaforlag.is
DELI IOUS RECIPES
DRAMATIC LANDSCAPE
UNIQUE TALES FROM
ICELAND
64x246 1 15.8.2006 12:28:42
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Augl ATL506.indd 31 20.8.2006 11:52:26