Esther Klausen’s oatmeal biscuits
Esther was married to Trygve Klausen, one of the owners and founders of Kings Bay Kull Compani AS (Kings Bay Coal Company Ltd). The couple lived in Kings Bay (Ny-Ålesund) in Svalbard. Trygve Klausen died in 1924, but Esther stayed in Kings Bay.
Before heading north in flying boats N 24 and N 25, Amundsen and the crew were given a box of Klausen biscuits. According to Amundsen, they were “a delicious product” and came in handy when the expedition was marooned in the ice near 88 degrees north.
Recipe:
500 g oatmeal
500 g butter
100 g sugar
6 heaped large teaspoons of baking powder
5 dl cold milk
500 g wheat flour
Melt the butter and sugar, mix in the milk, pour over the oatmeal and leave overnight. Mix in baking powder and flour. Roll out and shape the biscuits, but make sure they are not too thin. Fry on low heat.
In the years that followed, Esther Klausen held several lectures and demonstrations on food and nutrition, at which “Roald Amundsen’s Pole biscuits” would be served.📜