I want to start this post by saying I love this game. I’m having so much fun learning Norwegian, exploring the geography as I go from place to place, keeping my running going strong and getting to expand my cooking skills in new and unique ways – it’s basically all my favorite things! This week, I landed in the beautiful town of Trondheim.

Trondheim was the first capital of Norway, initially named Kaupangen (market place) by Viking King Olav I. Despite being a very busy city (the country’s third largest), Trondheim boasts a variety of wildlife from otters and beavers to moose and deer. Wetlands are abundant and its centralized location within the country gives it a comfortable, mild climate. It’s home to statues of King Olav and Norse explorer Leif Ericson as well as the stunning Nidaros Cathedral.

Coincidentally, it’s considered a top European food destination with three Michelin-Starred restaurants. I don’t know if my dinner would have earned a Michelin Star, but it did receive rave reviews from the only food critic I care about: my wife :-)

Menu:

Cocktail: Elderflower & Grape Spritzer (Mocktail)

The Simpson household is in the process of doing a hard cutback on booze, primarily in the interest of mental and physical health but also because we’re not spring chickens anymore and hangovers just keep getting worse! With that in mind, I subbed the planned cocktail this time around for a refreshing mocktail that doesn’t really have a proper name aside from basically naming the ingredients: Elderflower Syrup, Grape Juice and Sparkling Water. I sliced some frozen grapes for garnish. Truthfully, probably not even top 10 mocktails I’ve ever had, but it was crisp, sweet and refreshing, definitely not bad at all!

Hoverdrrett (Main Course): Fiskesuppe med Sitron og Poteter (Fish Soup with Lemon and Potatoes) with Loff (Traditional Norwegian White Loaf Bread)

When I told my parents what I was making for dinner, they were apprehensive (despite not being invited). I had to admit that I wasn’t entirely sure how much I’d be into “Fish Soup,” though I had hope because I know I love clam chowder. Otherwise, I’d never had seafood soup of any kind. I found this recipe for Fiskesuppe and trusted the positive reviews to treat us well. Either way, this project is just as much learning and exploring as it is flexing!

The soup starts by making fish broth using filtered water, the skin from the salmon you’ll later add to the soup, allspice berries, fennel seeds and bay leaves. I was excited – and somewhat relieved – when the broth started bubbling and it smelled SO GOOD! After simmering for a bit, I removed from the heat, covered and let it sit for the rest of the afternoon until it was time to cook. By the time dinner rolled around, the broth had taken on a nice foggy yellow color.

I love how root-vegetable-heavy these Norwegian dinners are and this soup was no exception. In addition to the salmon, the homemade broth, the ground allspice and saffron, this soup is packed with baby potatoes, carrots and diced fennel. When it was nearly time to serve, I tasted and …

… it kinda sucked, bland. Mortified, I added some salt and pepper, then stirred a bit and tasted again. Better, but still not great. I added more salt, stirred a few more times then had to accept that this project involves 12 Norwegian dinner nights, they can’t all be bangers! It was good enough, so I garnished with fresh parsley and served. I don’t know what happened between that second tasting and sitting down to eat, but by the time I got to the table, that soup had gotten damn-near perfect! The flavors were so unique but positively delicious. The potatoes and carrots were soft but with a nice bite and the salmon had been perfectly cooked by the warm broth. Oh, and then there was bread.

I wanted to serve the soup with a nice crusty bread and I found this recipe for a Norwegian white loaf. It’s pretty simple, but it came out beautifully. Our trash needed to be taken out and the smell hit me when I got home, so I got rid of the garbage and opened the windows. It was hot and humid outside, which then made it warm and a little humid inside, which then made my dough rise to perfection. It ended up not only being the perfect compliment to the soup but it may also be the prettiest loaf of bread I’ve ever made. 

Dessert: Tebrødstenger med Syltetøy (Norwegian Tea Cake with Marmalade)

Making dessert was kind of hilarious. This recipe for Norwegian Tea Cake was pretty simple and required the use of my stand mixer and a few hours to chill in the fridge. After taking it out and kneading the dough a bit, I shaped it to be kind of like a cookie canoe and baked. Simple, however, upon trying to transfer the cakes to the wire rack to cool, one crumbled along the edge while the other broke completely in half. The texture of the cake/cookie portion is very much like a shortbread so it was a bit more sensitive than I realized.

Oh well. I let them cool to room temperature before filling with orange marmalade (that’s what we had at home) and making a really simple icing from water and powdered sugar (that came out more like donut glaze, but whatever). They may have been broken, but they’re damn good and made for a pretty photo by the flowers on the table! Not only was this a great dessert, I was already excited about waking up the next day so I could have some more with coffee.

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This leg was almost a perfect hit with distance and timing, which is to say I won’t have much to carry over into the next leg. The new running program is off to a great start and I don’t think the five-days-per-week running situation is going to wear me out as bad as I thought it was going to.

Additionally, it’s weigh-in week and it’s whatever. I feel like my physique is better than it’s ever been but my numbers are just alright this month. I did eat Pal’s the night before weigh-in so it’s possible I was holding onto some water and may have been a little bloated. Whatever! It’s all still positive, so let’s get on with the monthly tracker:

Body Comp Tracker, Week of June 7, 2025
Measurement	Value	Monthly Change	Change Overall
Weight	228.2	-0.6	+4.2
Body Fat %	17.8	-0.1%	+0.4
Neck	15.875”	0	+0.125”
Arms (L/R)	15.25”/15.25”	+0.25”/+0.25”	+0.75”/+0.75”
Chest	43”	0	+0.5”
Waist	39	0	-0.25”
Hips	40.25”	+0.25”	+0.75”
Quads (L/R)	24”/24”	0	+1”/+0.5”
Calves (L/R)	16.5”/16.5”	0	+0.5”/+0.5”
Blood Pressure	149/106	-6/-1	0/0

And now, let’s get out that final tracker to Trondhem:

Road Trip Tracker
Road Trip Mileage	Total Mileage	Percentage Complete
1,284.37	397.604	30.96%
Miles to Trondheim	Leg Mileage	Percentage Complete
95.6912	95.6912	100%
Date	Type	Distance (Miles)
6/2/2025	Recovery Run	0.35
6/3/2025	Strength Day Cycle	3
6/3/2025	Speed Run	2
6/4/2025	Recovery Run	1.06
6/5/2025	Speed Run	2
6/6/2025	Strength Day Cycle	3
6/7/2025	Weekend Run	1

Starting Monday, I begin the 121.167-mile trek to Kristiansund! 

Alltid Videre!

-JTF