I discovered this one quite a while ago, like 6 months or even longer (?). But, for a variety of reasons, I didn't post about it until now. This was the gluten-free oat crispbread from the Sigdal Bakeri (yes, the Norwegians spell it with an "i" at the end instead of a "y'), out of the town of the same name in Norway.
We're back to the apparently very shy company founders/owners situation, as I learned little about the company's history. The "Our Story" section on the official website was brief and undetailed--it basically just said that the business's goal was to make extra flavorful crispbreads, and that the roots of the firm were in Sigdal, Norway in 1977. Which seems to imply that the company's founding date was after 1977, but the Linkedin page for Sigdal Bakeri claimed that 1977 was indeed the starting year. Linkedin also revealed that the company has 11-50 employees, and showed a brief photograph/ thumbnail and name of one of them, Jasmin Eriksen. Who, from her photo doesn't appear old enough to have been one of the founders, since he or she or they would have to be about 70 at a minimum. Aside from the gluten-free crispbread that I sampled, Sigdal also makes regular, gluten-containing crispbreads, crackers, and something called a "crisp," which is a Nordic sour dough with sea salt. So basically, they make dry, crunchy baked goods.
Sigdal gluten-free oat crispbread: The pieces were rectangular, about 4 inches by 3 inches (or about 10 cm. by 8 cm.), with a light brown color, and tons of visible seeds. Plain the texture was dry and crunchy. Blandish, but better than some plain crispbreads or even crackers. The oats definitely help with the taste, as I'm a big fan of them. I also tried some with a fruit spread on top. This improved things significantly, as the sweetness paired nicely with the dry grains. So I would recommend them, but as a canape base, not just as a plain snack. I guess especially if you have celiac disease, or a gluten allergy, since grainy baked goods for these folks are harder to get, and sometimes disappointing from a taste standpoint.
The community of Sigdal has produced its share of famous, or at least locally famous citizens. Theodor Kittlesen (1857-1914) was born elsewhere in Norway, but evidently spent much of his life in Sigdal. He was a painter who's best remembered for his depictions of nature scenes and trolls. Erik Ramstad (1860-1951) was born in Sigdal, but immigrated to the U.S. There he co-founded the North Dakota town of Minot, in 1886. And then there's Dag Aabye, born in Sigdal in 1941, but who immigrated to Canada. He was an expert skier--he was known as "The Father of Free Ride" and "The Last Ski Bum." He also appeared in some movies as a stunt performer, even allegedly in 1963's "Goldfinger." Later in life, he became interested in ultramarathons, which are performed by folks who think running 26.2 miles in one shot is too easy. He competed in the Canadian Death Race, which is a 125 km. (78 miles) run up and down several mountains in the Canadian Rockies, requiring 17,000 foot (about 5182 meters) changes in elevation.
Without going into specifics now, I'm pleased to announce that another one of my stories was recently accepted for publication. I should be able to provide some details sometime in April. So stay tuned!
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