2017 Húsel Menu
in Honour of Heimdall and Syn

The recipes of the húsel feast have been selected to honour Heimdall and Syn. Heimdall is associated with the sea, being the son of Nine Wave Maidens, as well as being associated with sheep. Historically, he was particularly honoured in Hiberno-Norse areas, such as the Isle of Man. Thus, historical recipes and ingredients from these regions inspired this menu. Syn is known as the guardian of the hall, the maiden at the hearth-stone where there is both black coal and white ash. Syn has an aspect that divides the world into sharp answers of yes-and-no, black-and-white, bitter-and-sweet. So this contrast has also influenced the menu.

First Course
Bitter Herb Small Mead~
A naturally-fermented effervescing small mead beverage flavoured with bog-myrtle, wormwood, mugwort, nettle, and chagga.
Sweet Hazelnut~^
Honey-caramelized hazelnuts.

Second Course
Apple-flesh^
A spread of caramelized apples and bacon.
Carrots with Garlic, Caraway, and Horseradish*^
A lightly lacto-fermented pickled salad of carrots, flavoured with garlic, caraway, and horseradish.
Oat cakes^ & Rye crisp-breads*
Crispy flat breads, of both oat and rye.

Third Course
Nine Worlds Soup*
A mushroom stock enriched by lentil and barley, flavoured with nine herbs.

Fourth Course
Cod, Leek, and Seaweed Stew^
A clear soup of leek and kelp, flavoured with cod and lobster broth.

Fifth Course
Seethed Lamb in Onion and Ale Broth
Meat of sheep slowly-cooked on the joint in a broth of onion, butter, and dark beer.
Wheaten Sollagan*
Toasted emmer wheat pilaf, in the Manx-style.
Black Lentils*^
Lentil pottage fragrant with caraway and cumin darkened with edible hardwood charcoal.
White Barley~
Pearled barley pottage enriched with milk and egg.

Sixth Course
Malted Carageen Pudding~
A gelled pudding made from Irish Moss, enriched with cream, and flavoured with malt and honey.

For those with dietary restrictions, below are the symbols for the most commonly requested accommodations. At registration, either on-line or in-person, please let staff know if you have any significant dietary restrictions.

* vegan

~ vegetarian (ovo-lacto)

^ gluten-free

Since honey was used as a sweetener and butter as the main fat in historical times, many dishes are not vegan. For vegetarians only (not the meat-eaters) there will be a special sacred main course prepared. Also, none of the common New World crops in the nightshade family are used as ingredients, for people with those sensitivies.

(Unfortunately, we cannot guarantee that ingredient items may not have some cross contamination, for those who are extremely sensitive.)