Friday Feast | Researching Viking Food

This week’s Friday Feast is a wee different. As some of you may know, I’m a research geek when it comes to writing my stories. I get giddy when I have to look up anything—from historical herbs, landscape, naming a character, and food. Recently, I found out what the Vikings used as a leavening agent in their breads. Psst, I’ll let you know next week.

I have shared my love of cookbooks, but I also have another valuable reference source for medieval recipes and techniques. YouTube videos!

Do you ever wonder how a medieval person made cheese? Or what about breads? How did one heal a broken leg? What about medieval weaponry (Sorry, I have a fascination with swords)? There are tons of books and internet sites, but a YouTube video is often times the best for me. I’m able to visualize the process, instead of merely reading about the history of a particular item.

In doing research for Magnar, I fell in love with this particular website and their videos—The Ribe VikingeCenter. Located in Denmark, Ribe is one of their oldest towns. The VikingeCenter gives you a glimpse into an authentic, living Viking experience. It now has been added to my bucket list of places to visit.

Here is their website: https://ribevikingecenter.dk/en/home.aspx

I now have a new favorite to add to my ancient medieval recipes: Elderflower pancakes! You can check out the recipe on their website, along with a video.

Skål! (Cheers)