RømmeGrøt was often served at Christmas time at the meals hosted by many of the local Minnesotan Norwegians when I was young. In Norwegian, Rømme literally means sour cream and Grøt means porridge. While there are some porridge variations that use milk or whipping cream, RømmeGrøt really isn’t really RømmeGrøt if the recipe doesn’t include sour cream! Traditionally, RømmeGrøt was served with smoked meats or fish as a side dish or even as a breakfast.

As a child, given a choice between the rather bland looking white porridge and the colorful plethora of other goodies at Christmastime, I always chose the other treats and RømmeGrøt always lost out. I never chose to eat it!

As I got older, I realized RømmeGrøt actually offered a wonderfully decadent blend of butter, sour cream, sugar and cinnamon. I knew then that I was the one who had really lost out! I still hesitated to make it myself. It seemed that it would be challenging to make such a creamy, rich dish! When I saw a Toro RømmeGrøt mix offered at Norsland Lefse, I decided it was past time for me to make RømmeGrøt!

Since we had company coming and it was a cold January evening, it seemed the perfect time to serve some warm, creamy porridge! The mix was imported from Norway and had a sticker over the Norwegian directions, supplying directions in English. It was simple enough. I emptied the package into a medium saucepan, added some water and a cup of sour cream, brought it to a boil, and then, with the heat lowered, boiled it while stirring for another seven minutes and it was ready!

[Picture Caption: RømmeGrøt mix cooking.]

I served it with melted butter and topped it with cinnamon sugar—heaven in a bowl!

[Picture Caption: RømmeGrøt dished and ready to serve.]

Everyone enjoyed the creamy, dairy-rich RømmeGrøt!

[Picture Caption: The traditional Norwegian treat was a hit with guests.]

To me the only drawback was that I needed to watch and stir the RømmeGrøt as I was trying to finish the rest of the meal preparations since I wanted it to be warm when I served it!

I later found another Toro mix for RisenGrøt at Norsland Lefse as well. RisenGrøt means rice porridge and is served with cinnamon sugar and butter as well. Looks like I’ll need to try that as well!

There are a multitude of recipes for RømmeGrøt and its variations online. I also found an easy recipe for RømmeGrøt Bars that echoes the flavors of RømmeGrøt. The following recipe can be prepared in advance and served at room temperature.

RømmeGrøt Bars

Ingredients:

• 2 packages crescent roll pastry sheets
• 2 eight oz. packages cream cheese, softened
• 1 ⅓ cup sugar (1 cup in the filling and ⅓ for mixing with cinnamon to sprinkle over the top layer)
• 1 egg separated
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• ½ teaspoon cinnamon

Directions:

Step 1: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and grease a 9"x13” baking pan.

Step 2: Press one package of crescent roll dough into the bottom of the pan. I could not find the pastry sheets, so I just used the regular crescent rolls and pressed the seams together.

Step 3: Mix two eight oz. packages cream cheese, 1 cup sugar, 1 egg yolk, and 1 teaspoon vanilla extract with a hand mixer.

Step 4: Spread the cream cheese mixture over the crescent roll layer in the baking pan.

Step 5: Cover the cream cheese layer with the second package of crescent roll dough.

Step 6: Beat egg white until foamy and brush the egg white over the top layer of crescent roll dough.

Step 7: Mix together ⅓ cup sugar and ½ teaspoon cinnamon. Sprinkle over the egg white.

Step 8: Bake for 25 to 30 minutes or until golden brown.

Step 9: Cool, cut into bars and enjoy!

Check out the step-by-step pictures for making RømmeGrøt Bars below!

1. RømmeGrøt Bars base of Crescent rolls.

2. The cream cheese layer of the bars is ready to spread.

3. Ready for the top layer of crescent roll dough.

4. Egg white beaten to foam is ready to add over the top layer of crescent roll dough.

5. After spreading on the egg white, cinnamon sugar will be sprinkled on top.

6. The yummy bars after baking.

7. RømmeGrøt Bars are plated and ready to serve.

Try the flavors of RømmeGrøt soon whether you use the Toro mix, another recipe or the RømmeGrøt Bars. The cinnamon sugar, buttery flavors will provide a warm cozy treat on these harsh January days!