Early Scandinavian cuisine is a bit of a challenge to recreate. There are no written recipes, very few written descriptions, and a limited amount of archaeological evidence. What is glaringly absent is just as import and the scraps of information that we have. One of these absences is centralized large scale milling. Also missing are large quantities of ovens. Milling appears to be done in small batches with a hand turned quern. I have used one and it takes a long time to make flour. Baking appears to have been done on rock or in a small pan over a fire. This begs the question: How did they eat the grain being grown? In the Vendel and Viking age we find most cooking vessels are appropriate for boiling food. Also in the Icelandic Sagas there are several references to boiling meat and also to making gröt, a thick and …