Meet Koselig Kitchen: How Renee Bolstad Recreates Delicious Retro Treats

BY JEFFREY FIJOLEK

Bolstad studied pastry at New York’s French Culinary Institute, but it is the memories of cooking with her father as he imitated the Swedish Chef and enjoying Scandinavian sweets with her grandparents that influenced her nostalgia-inducing treats as much as her work in a Michelin-starred kitchen and with Seattle’s Relay restaurant group.

Koselig, pronounced koosh-lee, is a Norwegian concept that embodies community, comfort, coziness and contentedness. These are all traits that Renee Bolstad aims to bring to local farmers markets this summer as she launches Koselig Kitchen.

Bolstad studied pastry at New York’s French Culinary Institute, but it is the memories of cooking with her father as he imitated the Swedish Chef and enjoying Scandinavian sweets with her grandparents that influenced her nostalgia-inducing frozen treats as much as her work in a Michelin-starred kitchen and with Seattle’s Relay restaurant group. Koselig Kitchen represents a fresh start for Bolstad, who relocated to Eastern Washington during the pandemic to join her parents, both Spokane natives, who have always encouraged her to own her own business.

By drawing influence from ice-cream-truck-classics like drumsticks, orange dreamsicles and strawberry shortcake bars, Bolstad has done just that. She and her gnome-adorned icicle tricycle can be found all summer long selling banana mousse pudding pops with rum caramel and vanilla wafer cookies, ice cream sandwiches with coffee frozen custard and almon toffee crunch, and other seasonally-inspired treats at markets in both Washington and Idaho.

“It’s important for me to keep true to my background. I like bold flavors,” says Bolstad, whose recipe for Black Forest Mousse Cake with Cherry-Chile-Pomegranate Glaze was featured in Food & Wine Magazine in 2018.

Bolstad hopes to collaborate with other local food artisans and farmers throughout the season to produce new flavors that transport market-goers back to their childhoods and help them cool down with something cold and delicious along the way.

By the end of the summer, Bolstad had introduced caramel corn spiced with togarashi and spicy cheese crackers to her market offerings.

Koselig Kitchen and Bolstad look forward to sharing their treats at markets in both Washington and Idaho going forward.

About Koselig Kitchen

KOSELIG KITCHEN
koseligkitchen.com

Related Stories