Becoming Less Quirky Every Day

Or just gaining new Danish quirks? I have known for quite some time that I am not a normal child. I have an unhealthy relationship with highlighters and making plans. I floss obsessively. Thinking about certain aspects of the circulatory system is enough to make me pass out. I can talk on the phone for hours. And if you had asked me 2 months ago, I hate fruit in desserts.

I knew I was going to change as a person in Denmark, but I did not think it would be in ways that I have come to just accept of myself. I am the kid who passes on berry pies and if you even try to give me some sort of dairy with over-sugared fruit in syrup I would have NONE of that. Even Strawberry Shortcake and I did not get along very well, that is, until I met this:


That is my dear new friend Rødgrød med Fløde, known in more English speaking minds as "red jello with cream". It is stewed berries (the one I had was strawberry) with a TON of sugar added and then potato flour added to that to make it turn into a weird sort of thick jelly. You serve it in a bowl with milk or cream poured over it, and it is FABULOUS. It is everything I thought I hated in a dessert. Since then I have also become obsessed with baked apples with ice cream, and apple cake is the greatest thing ever. I even ate a fruit tart the other day! I am not quite ready to move on to the big things like pastries with fruit in them, but I think that this is a step in the right direction. I am mostly proud of myself for trying something new. Speaking of which, beets are my new favorite food.

A side note about "rødgrød med fløde", is that it is the thing you can say once you have mastered the Danish language. Danish people love to laugh at people who try to say it, so they ask you to constantly if they find out you are not Danish. Here is a video of some slightly obnoxious Danish girls to illustrate.