KitchenIcon – The story behind Nordic Ware

A BUNDT ® IN THE OVEN

The company behind these Scandinavian-inspired showstopper cakes celebrates its 75th anniversary this year

ABOVE LEFT:

Dave and Dotty Dalquist, here on their wedding day in 1945, started Nordic Ware in the basement of their home in Minneapolis.

ABOVE RIGHT:

Nordic Ware is still family owned, with 3 generations now involved. T apping into their Scandinavian roots, a Minnesota couple spotted a golden business opportunity in the aftermath of WWII.

Dave Dalquist, a SwedishAmerican and his wife Dotty, a Danish-American, were convinced there was a strong market amid the sizeable Scandinavian population in the American Midwest.

After being reunited when Dave returned from military service, and with $500 to their name, they moved quickly to launch a kitchenware company and in 1946, Nordic Ware was born.

The couple bought a small aluminium firm and began manufacturing traditional cookware products, such as rosette iron (a pastry mould), krumkake iron (a wafer cookie press), platte panne and ebelskiver pan (both pancake pans).

Among Nordic Ware’s extensive range is one particularly famous piece… the Bundt® pan.

In 1950, Dave Dalquist was tasked with recreating something from the old country - a heavy iron cake mould known as a bund. He replicated the mould in cast aluminium and trademarked the name Bundt® .

Despite a modest launch at the time, sales of the Bundt® took off from 1966 when a woman from Texas won second place in a national baking contest for a cake made using the Dalquist-designed pan. Now the Bundt® can be found in more than 75 million households around the world and from producing a handful of specialty Scandinavian cookware products, the company has grown to become an international success,

However, Nordic Ware has retained much of its original identity. Although bakeware, cookware and grilling accessories are distributed globally, most products are still made in Minneapolis, and the company remains family-owned and operated today,

ABOVE: An early recipe book to promote the products.

LEFT: A much more recent exhibition display for Nordic Ware.

BELOW RIGHT: The company continues to proudly manufacture most of its products in Minneapolis – including the famous Bundt.

BELOW: Dave pushes the Nordic Ware name with a stand at National Housewares Show in Chicago during the 1950s.

with 3 generations involved.

“We are committed to remaining family owned and are grateful for our customers and the hundreds of talented, dedicated employees who’ve made us what we are today,” says Jennifer Dalquist, Nordic Ware EVP/Sales & Marketing and third generation family member.

“As we celebrate our 75th year in business, we want to pay tribute to Dave and Dotty’s courageous entrepreneurship and to the decades of eff ort that followed to bring the company to its present success!” “As we celebrate our 75th year in business, we want to pay tribute to Dave and Dotty’s courageous entrepreneurship and to the decades of eff ort that followed to bring the company to its present success!”

Nordic Ware Cozy Village Pan

RRP:£54.00 Harts Price: £43.20

Nordic Ware Geo Bundtlette Pan Gold

RRP:£56.00 Harts Price: £44.80

Nordic Ware Braided Bundtlette Pan

RRP:£56.00

Harts Price: £44.80

Nordic Ware Autumn Wreath Bundt® Tin

RRP:£54.00 Harts Price: £43.20

Nordic Ware Brilliance Bundt® Pan Gold

RRP:£54.00 Harts Price: £43.20

COVER STAR

Nordic Ware Silver Wreathlettes Pan

RRP: £52.00

Harts Price: £41.60

Nordic Ware Gingerbread House Bundt® Pan RRP: £52.00 Harts Price: £41.60

Nordic Ware Apple Baskets Pan Bronze

Delight family and friends with this shaped bread loaf. Part of the Fall Harvest collection, it comes with a lifetime Nordic Ware guarantee. RRP: £50.00 Harts Price: £40.00 Recreate the cake shown on the cover with the Nordic

Ware Gold Marquee Bundt® Pan.

RRP: £54.00 Harts Price: £43.20

Nordic Ware Braided Bundt® Pan A new design created to celebrate Nordic Ware’s 75th anniversary – turn the page to see a recipe created especially for it. RRP: £54.00 Harts Price: £43.20

Neapolitan Marble Bundt® Cake

To celebrate their 75th anniversary and new Braided Bundt® design, Nordic Ware partnered with baker, author and TV personality, Edd Kimber who created this striking recipe specifically for the Braided Pan.

SERVES 15

FOR THE BASE BATTER 340g unsalted butter, room temperature 450g caster sugar 6 large eggs 2 tsp vanilla extract

FOR THE CHOCOLATE BATTER 85g plain flour 50g cocoa powder 1 tsp baking powder Half tsp fine sea salt 40ml sour cream

FOR THE WHITE CHOCOLATE AND RASPBERRY BATTER 250g plain flour 2 tsp baking powder 1 tsp fine sea salt 80ml sour cream 75g white chocolate, finely chopped 3 tbsp freeze dried raspberry powder A little red gel food colouring

FOR THE VANILLA GLAZE 150g icing sugar 2 tbsp milk 1 tsp vanilla bean paste Small pinch of salt

1 Prepare your Bundt® pan by brushing with softened butter and dusting with a thin layer of flour. 2 Place the white chocolate into a heatproof bowl and set over a pan of simmering water and heat, stirring occasionally, until fully melted. Remove from the heat and set aside whilst you prepare the cake. 3 Place the butter and sugar into a large bowl and using an electric mixer, beat on medium speed for about 5 minutes or until light and fluffy. 4 Add in the eggs one at a time, beating until fully combined. Mix in the vanilla. 5 Scrape a third of the batter into a separate bowl. To this third, add the ingredients for the chocolate batter, mixing until a smooth cake batter is formed. Into the remaining mixture, add everything for the white chocolate and raspberry batters, except the melted chocolate, raspberry powder and food colouring, mixing to form a smooth cake batter. 6 Take this batter and divide again into 2 equal portions. To 1, mix through the melted chocolate and to the other, mix in the raspberry powder and a little food colouring to make a vibrant pink. 7 To portion the batter into the tin, you can either spoon the batters in, trying to keep each batter neatly inside each section of the tin, alternating the colours as you go, or use piping bags for the neatest finish. Whichever you choose, add the batter in slowly, little by little, gradually increasing the height. 8 Give the pan a couple of sharp taps on the worksurface so that the batter fills every nook and cranny of the pan. Pop the cake into the oven for about 55 minutes or until a skewer comes out clean. Remove the pan from the oven and set onto a wire rack to cool for 10 minutes before inverting the cake and allowing it to cool fully. If you are opting to make the vanilla glaze, do this before turning the cake out and use as soon as it has been removed from the pan. 9 To make the glaze, add everything to a bowl and mix to make a smooth glaze. The finished texture wants to be on the thin side – you may need to add another half tbsp of milk. 10 Whilst the cake is still hot, use a pastry brush to coat it in the glaze which will turn slightly translucent. The finished cake will keep for 2-3 days if well covered.