STRAIGHT FROM THE CHEF’S KITCHEN: Silje Alendal | Chef de Partie

Tell us about your culinary journey so far:

My love for food and quality produce started on a farm in Norway, where I grew up. My family produces dairy and meat, grows fresh fruit and berries — all set against a beautiful landscape.

My chef journey started in cooking school in 2017. That year, I also got my first job as a kitchenhand at To Glass Restaurant. Through school, I had the opportunity to work in Lyon for a month, where I was introduced to the art of French cooking.

After school I got an apprenticeship at Restaurant Renaa in Stavanger, where I learned everything from fine dining to bistro, catering and classic Norwegian ‘Christmas table’ I also entered cooking competitions with my fellow apprentices.

My next adventure took me to Australia and Freyja. I’ve been here for two years and I’m very excited to see what my future brings.

Favourite dish at Freyja:

The lamb. Its beautiful smoky flavour comes from cooking over the grill. It’s served with castel franco lettuce, both sweet and bitter, barley, wild garlic capers picked by the Freyja team, and topped with a lamb jus. It’s a game-changing dish that will convert even those who don’t like lamb.

Favourite recipe you make at home:

I don’t really cook a lot at home, but when I do, it’s usually something easy and tasty.

One of my favourites is Norwegian waffles with brown cheese. Back home we make waffles for many different occasions. And it’s the perfect winter food. Enjoying freshly cooked waffles by the fire after a long hike or a day on the ski slopes, is simply wonderful.

Ingredients:

1 egg

50 g sugar

220 g flour

0.5 tsp baking powder

0.5 tsp cardamom

250 g milk

50 g cream

60 g melted brown butter

Melt the butter until it has a light brown nutty aroma. Leave it on the side to cool down slightly.

Mix egg and sugar in a bowl.

Add the milk and cream, and then sift in the flour and baking powder.

Mix in the melted brown butter.

Cook in a hot waffle iron.

Best to serve with butter, raspberry or strawberry jam and brown cheese .