Victoria Gazette-Hook Line & Sinker

Do you know anybody who serves walleye for Christmas dinner? How about baked salmon? Okay, let's keep it more local. How many of you or your friends fry up a batch of sunfish for Christmas dinner? Just doesn't happen, does it! But if I bring up lutefisk, I betchure sweet life that a bunch of you will say, "Oh, ja, shure, luv dat lutefisk at Christmas time." That Norwegian fish dish has come to take pride of place here and there throughout Minnesota.

I serve it myself, of course, having grown up with it. Today it's simple to boil and serve with melted butter and it's super slippery delicious. It's been some years ago already that we found the Lutefisk Dinner at Mount Olivet Lutheran Church in Minneapolis. We now await each Lutefisk Dinner with great anticipation. We're anticipating Friday, December 5th.

Maybe you'd like to know what else besides lutefisk Mount Olivet serves as part of this traditional Norwegian dinner: Swedish Meatballs, Boiled Potatoes, Pickled Beets, Lefse, and Rice Pudding with Lingonberries. I hope to take some pictures while we're at the festive event and I'll be sure to share them with you again in the next issue of the Gazette. I've even convinced a couple Victoria friends to join me and Allan this year.

Last month several people found the fishhook buried in the chin of the screaming lady in the Chaska Community Center ad on page 36. When I dove into the minnow bucket and swished the entries, I found Donna Williams of Eden Prairie. That rescue will cost me $10. As I've said before at this time of year, it's worth a stocking stuffer or maybe even a bottle of wine, if your taste isn't too sommelier.

There's another fishhook hidden in this issue of the Gazette. If you find it and want to be part of the drawing, drop a line to Sue@VictoriaGazette.com, telling of its location, or use P.O. Box 387, Victoria, MN 55386 and sinker in the mail.

In the meantime, in this season of Great Anticipation, think of me and the Gazette when you eat your next plate of wiggly jiggly buttery fluttery lutefisk.