Andrew Zimmern in Viking

Travel Channel star and James Beard Award winner Andrew Zimmern graces the October 2014 cover of Viking magazine, and we couldn’t be more excited! In addition to hosting his hit television shows, including “Bizarre Foods,” Zimmern is a chef and food writer. Born in New York, Zimmern lives in Minnesota with his wife and son. In the article, he talks about Nordic food, life and values. Here are a few more comments from Zimmern that didn’t make it into the article:

“Here’s what I adore about Nordic and Scandinavian culture: They embrace everything that’s around them. They accept what they have. And we do that here [in Minnesota] to a large extent; people who move away from here are people who don’t figure out how to deal with winter. I like to ski and snowboard, but it’s not like I go out every day with the cross-country skis. But we love our outdoor activities, including sledding, ice fishing and ice-skating. I hunt in the winter, and we snowmobile. We’ve turned wintertime into a really cool exploration that we’re not afraid of. We’ve got our son Noah going to different state parks every weekend in the winter, and we’re talking about tromping in the woods through four-foot snowdrifts. We have so much fun doing that, coming home all wet and cold, having hot chocolate to warm up and then snuggling and watching a movie. In Scandinavia, the acceptance that you work with the cards that you’ve been dealt is a big part of their cultural way of viewing life. Spending time in Iceland in small little towns where nine months of the year you can’t even go outside: bleak, wind-swept sorts of places where they’re eating dried fish, always having a piece of harfiskar in their pocket so they can put dried fish in their mouth and eating the same four food items all winter long. I mean, it makes you hard in the best sense of the word.”

In July, the Viking team had an exclusive photo shoot with Zimmern at The Bachelor Farmer in Minneapolis, which serves up Nordic-inspired cuisine. We had three hours of Zimmern’s time on set, so things had to move pretty quickly. Here’s a look at how the day went and a few behind-the-scenes shots.

What: Andrew Zimmern photo shoot for the October 2014 issue of Viking magazine
Where: The Bachelor Farmer, Minneapolis
When: July 11, 2014
9-10 a.m., photographer Steve Henke and his team set up the shots
10 a.m., Zimmern arrives on set
10-10:30 a.m., wardrobe and makeup
10:30-11 a.m., shot one, (the cover photo)
11-11:15 a.m., set up for shot 2
11:15-11:40 a.m., shot 2  (seen on page 16)
11:40 a.m., food delivered by The Bachelor Farmer’s Executive Chef Paul Berglund  
11:45 a.m.-12:15 p.m., shot 3 in the Afghan Room (seen on page 14-15)
12:15-12:45 p.m., shot 4 (seen on page 3)
1 p.m., photo shoot wraps

Zimmern and photographer Steve Henke

Zimmern brought a whole bag of pocket squares to the set!

Planning the cover shot on set.

Half-way through the shoot.

The Bachelor Farmer Executive Chef Paul Berglund puts the finishing touches on the dishes.

The amazing Afghan Room at The Bachelor Farmer.

If you’re in the Minnesota area, see Andrew Zimmern speak at the Nordic American Thanksgiving Breakfast in Bloomington, Minn., on Nov. 25. For details, go to sonsofnorway.com.

Keep up with all of Zimmern’s globe-trotting adventures on his website, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and Pinterest accounts.

Anya Britzius is editor of Viking magazine. She lives in Minneapolis, Minn., and enjoys baking, reading and keeping up on modern Norwegian trends.