17 Most Delicious Scandinavian Desserts

Norway famously has the longest Easter public holiday in the world, which is kind of funny considering most of the country is pretty secular. No, Norwegians aren’t using their time off to go to church. They’re heading to their mountain cabins!

Easter is a huge ski holiday in Norway and Sweden. I used to work in a supermarket in a ski resort town in Telemark, and Easter was one of our biggest weeks of the year. And while working in the supermarket I also saw that Easter is a huge food holiday in Scandinavia as well, especially when it comes to desserts and sweets.

If you also plan on baking a lot over Easter, I’ve gathered some of my favorite Scandinavian dessert recipes for inspiration.

Silvia Cake

Silvia cake not only looks like so pretty with its yellow cream frosting and white coconut flakes, but it’s the most delicious Swedish cake I know. You have to try it! I’ve shared my Silvia cake recipe here.

Success Cake

Success cake is another yellow favorite! I was really torn between making Silvia cake or success cake this Easter, but I think I’ve decided on success cake. Well, I’ll make it if I can manage to find eggs somewhere in Bergen. Easter really isn’t the best time for an egg shortage in Norway.

Success cake, or suksessterte, is a Norwegian almond cake with the most delicious yellow egg cream frosting. This cake is one of my Norwegian mother’s favorite cakes to make for dinner parties, and it is always such a success. I’ve shared her success cake recipe here.

Dream Cake

While Silvia cake is my favorite Swedish cake and success cake is my favorite Norwegian cake, dream cake is definitely my favorite Danish cake. Danish dream cake is a light and buttery vanilla sponge cake with an incredibly flavorful caramelized coconut topping. It’s simple and yet quite unique, plus you can cut it up into tiny squares perfect to serve at a party.

I’ve shared my Danish dream cake recipe here.

Sunshine Buns

This year in Scandinavia we’re setting our clocks forward on Easter Sunday, and what better way to celebrate longer days that with some Norwegian solskinnsboller, or sunshine buns? Solskinnsbolller are cinnamon rolls filled with vanilla egg cream, and they’re so tasty.

I’ve shared my sunshine bun recipe here.

School Bread

Skoleboller (also called skolebrød) are Norwegian “school buns” made with a sweet cardamom dough, filled with vanilla custard in the center, and then coated in icing and dipped in coconut flakes.

I’ve shared my skoleboller recipe here.

World’s Best Cake

I’m sure kvæfjordkake, which Norwegians have nicknamed “world’s best,” will be making a lot of appearances in Norway this Easter. In fact, a few weeks ago Norwegians once again voted kvæfjordkake their favorite cake. Kvæfjordkake is a meringue topped sponge cake filled with a velvety vanilla cream and sprinkled with sliced almonds. And we usually serve it with a generous serving of fresh berries!

I’ve shared my kvæfjordkake recipe here.

Danish Layer Cake

While Danish lagkage, or layer cake, is probably the most popular birthday cake in Denmark, you’ll also see it at other holidays and celebrations like Easter. It’s simple, but oh so delicious, and very reliable. Lagkage is a vanilla sponge cake with layers of raspberry (or other berry) jam and vanilla pastry cream, all topped with icing as well as whipped cream along the edge of the cake.

I’ve shared my Danish layer cake recipe here.

Sarah Bernhardt Cookies

Probably my favorite Danish dessert is Sarah Bernhardt cookies. Sarah Bernhardt cookies have the perfect combination of a soft almond cookie topped with a velvety milk chocolate cream dipped in dark chocolate. But for Easter I would opt for a yellow egg cream filling instead! Actually I think the yellow egg cream version is even tastier than the original chocolate version.

I’ve shared my Sarah Bernhardt cookie with yellow cream recipe here.

Æbleskiver Pancake Balls

One of the best Scandinavian purchases I’ve made for my kitchen was my æbleskiver pan! Æbleskiver are spherical pancake-like snacks, usually sprinkled with powdered sugar and served with raspberry jam. We make them in Norway as well and call them munker. They take a bit more work than regular pancakes, so I usually make them for special occasions – like Easter!

You can order your own æbleskiver pan here. And I’ve shared my æbleskiver recipe here.

Mazariner

Of course I have to include mazariner, which are my favorite treats to buy at Scandinavian bakeries. They are simple but oh so tasty almond tartlets with a shortbread cookie shell and almond filling. You can make them extra festive by decorating them with colorful sprinkles.

I’ve shared my mazariner recipe here.

Raspberry Squares

If you’re looking for a Scandinavian dessert that will look gorgeous on your table, look no further than hindbærsnitter, or Danish raspberry squares. Hindbærsnitter are made with two sheets of vanilla shortcrust pastry filled with a thick layer of raspberry jam, topped with icing and cut into squares. You can decorate your hindbærsnitter with crumbled freeze dried raspberries or sprinkles.

I’ve shared my hindbærsnitter recipe here.

Tiger Cake

A quick and simple but fun Swedish dessert to make is tigerkaka! Tiger cake is a fluffy sponge cake made from vanilla and chocolate batter marbled together, or layered in “tiger stripes.”

I’ve shared my tiger cake recipe here.

Almond (Or Apple) Kringle

Another absolutely beautiful Scandinavian classic is kringle! Kringle is perfect for parties because it’s essentially a giant cinnamon roll that guests can pull apart, or cut into slices. I like to fill my kringle with almonds or chopped apples, but you can experiment with all sorts of different fillings.

I’ve shared my kringle recipe here.

Kransekake

It’s not a Scandinavian celebration without kransekake! Kransekake, or “wreath cake,” is a tower of 18 almond cookie rings made of just three ingredients: ground almonds, powdered sugar, and egg whites.

I’ve shared my kransekake recipe here.

Chocolate Oat Balls

If you’re looking for a dessert to make with kids, these Scandinavian no-bake chocolate oat balls are super easy and also really pretty!

I’ve shared my chocolate oat ball recipe here.

Norwegian Fyrstekake

I can’t compile a list of Scandinavian desserts without including one of my favorite cakes in the world, fyrstekake, or prince cake. Fyrstekake is a vanilla lattice pie with a soft almond filling. It’s considered a bit old fashioned these days, but it’s still one of the best Norwegian cakes, in my opinion.

I’ve shared my fyrstekake recipe here.

Lefse Kling

In Norway, I always know it’s a celebration when lefse with kling is served. Making lefse can be a difficult and time consuming process, but my Telemark lefse recipe uses semolina instead of potatoes, which is much easier (and tastier!). You can also make small lefser in a pan instead of the giant lefser you need a special lefse griddle for.

I’ve shared my Telemark lefse with kling recipe here.