Musings on Welsh Rarebit, Lefse, and Brunost

Last week I was gifted with two bottles of home-brewed beer. As T prefers his nips light and generic, I scanned a few old cookbooks in search of the perfect recipe with which to share a bottle. The day was brisk and wet, so something comforting was called for.

I like rarebit not only because of its funky title but also because it blends three of my favorite foods: grilled cheese sandwiches, beer cheese soup, and cheese fondue. I like to ladle the finished cheese mix over bread then broil in the oven, although purists might not agree to this method. Serve with a big green salad and a bowl of steaming tomato soup (a great use of any dwindling supply of preserves from last summer) for a hearty and almost healthy dinner.

Tomorrow is our biannual lefse making party with S and her friends. I never thought I'd experience Norwegian Lutheran envy, but this custom of gathering together to make lefse is a fantastic tradition. S and her friends enjoy it so much that they asked if we can do it more than once a year, and our new spring lefse tradition is born. After we put the "kids" to work balling, rolling, lifting, and griddling, we will enjoy a menu of gravlax-lefse pizza, lingonberry salsa with lefse chips, and brunost (brown cheese).

I'll be posting details of the mysterious "brunost narratives" next week. Guaranteed to be a real page toggler...