Blogger Interview - Mona from Mona’s Kjøkkenskriverier

Mona from Mona's Kjøkkenskriverier

GUEST BLOGGER INTERVIEW

Norwegian Food Blogger, Mona from Mona’s Kjøkkenskriverier

Welcome to the latest blog series at Thanks For The Food, blogger interviews. This blog series is designed to help introduce you to my favorite food (and other) bloggers living (mostly) in Norway. Since I’ve been receiving more and more feedback from you all asking me about the bloggers whom I follow, I thought I’d interview some of them in order to help you get to know them better. 

This series is my chance to help you get to know not only my favorite blogs, but also help you get to know more about the experience of blogging in Norway.

Today’s feature is on Mona from Mona’s Kjøkkenskriverier. Mona is Norwegian and blogs in Norwegian and also in English.

1. What is your name, blog address and what is your blog about? What can readers expect to learn from your blog?

My name is Mona Ristesund Steinsland and I blog at Mona's Kjøkkenskriverier.

From my blog, readers will hopefully learn how easy it is to make tasty everyday food from scratch, how tasty healthy food can be, how easy and quickly it can be done, and hopefully also find inspiration to new dishes.

2. Share a bit of your history with us. How did you get into blogging? When did you begin blogging and why? Did you have any previous writing, photography or video making experience before you started blogging?

I started blogging mainly in order to write down and collect the recipes that I create when I'm cooking. I have a tendency to take a bit of this, a bit of that - and when I want to re-make a dish or when people ask for the recipe I'm not able to provide it, simply because it was all in my head at the time. I started blogging on 1 January 2011 when I was on maternity leave and I had just started to make home-made baby food for my little daughter. Initially, my blog was also a way of gathering information on making baby food, as well as my own baby food recipes, to provide inspiration and information to other parents wanting to make nutritious and tasty baby food from scratch.

3. What advice, tips or insider secrets would you give anyone starting a food or other type of blog in Norway?

I think it's important to have some kind of mission when starting a blog, and to be true to that mission, whatever the focus of the blog is. What do you want to write about on your blog, and why? It's easier to write about issues that truly engage you.

4. Let’s say you win the lottery, and you can make any food or dish you want for a dinner party of 4. What would you make?

It has to include loads of fresh, delicious seafood. And a lot of fresh herbs, and garlic. What a combo!

5. Which meal of the day is your favourite? Breakfast, lunch or dinner?

In the weekends, I really enjoy our family breakfasts and lunches, the joy of watching and supporting our two-year-old daughter becoming more and more interested in trying out new foods and ingredients, having a positive and relaxed atmosphere around the table. But I do appreciate dinners too; I mainly have dinner recipes on my food blog and I really enjoy the feeling of preparing something new and different, and when new ideas turn out to be really tasty and successful, then I'm in food heaven!

6. What’s your favourite tip for anyone cooking on a budget in Norway?

Supermarkets always have selected good value items, typically on a weekly basis, look out for adverts and plan your purchases if you find something of interest. Check the expiry date and buy as many items at reduced prices as you think you'll need within the expiry date. Remember that many types of food can be stored in the freezer, e.g. meat, minced meat, chicken and fish, so look for reduced prices on such products.

7. How do you continue to improve your cooking skills?

Sometimes new ideas just pop up in my head. I either try them out on my own, or search the internet for some guidance. From simply trying out new ideas, I evaluate the result and make the necessary adjustments to improve the dish according to my taste.

8. What trends do you see within the blogosphere in Norway?

Regarding food blogs, I'm very happy to see that more and more people are engaged in making real and honest food from scratch, either as writers or as readers of food blogs, realizing that real food made from scratch can be both healthy, tasty and easy to make. And food bloggers are more frequently used by newspapers and magazines, thus having more "media power".

9. What other social media sites can we find you on (Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest, Instagram, SlideShare, YouTube, etc.)?

I also have a Facebook site for the blog, and I'm a member of "Matbloggsentralen" which is a Nordic food blog "community".

10. Is there anything else you’d like to tell us about your life as a blogger or your blog itself?

When starting up as a food blogger I wasn't aware of how much joy and energy it would bring! By inspiring others to make food from scratch I also inspire myself to explore new ideas and come up with new dishes. And my husband and children profit from it too, as they enjoy good food as much as I do. I have also become a guest writer for a commercial blog, Wabi Sabi (http://sushisabi.blogspot.no/), related to the Norwegian sushi restaurant chain Sabi Sushi. And I'm responsible for arranging events for food bloggers in the Stavanger area - it's great fun meeting other food bloggers in "real life".

11. What tools or services do you rely on to help you develop your blog?

None

12. What has been your biggest success as a blogger?

I get a lot of positive feedback on my blog, also from people that I didn't even know were reading it, and I really appreciate that. And being a guest writer for a commercial blog is also rewarding and fun.

13. What has been your biggest failure as a blogger?

A couple of times I have realized that I have forgotten to include some ingredients in a recipe, having to correct it. It has taught me to read thoroughly through the blog post before publishing it.

This post is for non-commercial, personal use only. Copyright ©2012 by Whitney @ Thanks For The Food.

                                                     

Be sure to check out my Useful Links Page 1 and Useful Links Page 2 or read more about me on the About Page. You can also find TFTF on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and You Tube.