St. Lucia Day is this week, which means it’s time to bake some lussekatter, or Swedish saffron buns! Norwegians and Swedes traditionally bake these fluffy Santa Lucia buns for Saint Lucia’s Day on December 13th, but they are delicious year round. St. Lucia saffron buns are called lussekatter, or “Lucia’s…
cardamom
-
Continue ReadingWhile I love most cookies, cakes, and sweet buns, I’ve never been a big fan of donuts. However I’ve always had one exception: smultringer. Smultringer are traditional Norwegian donuts spiced with cardamom. I don’t know if it’s the cardamom or their being homemade, but I have always loved smultringer. They’re…
-
Continue ReadingFattigmann, or “poor man’s cookies,” are some of the most nostalgic Norwegian Christmas cookies for me. When I ate the first fattigmann of this batch it instantly felt like Christmas (it also helps that it snowed in Bergen last night!). Fattigmann are made from a simple cookie dough spiced with cardamom,…
-
Continue ReadingChristmas lights are beginning to pop up around Bergen, so this morning I decided I can start Christmas baking! I eased in with a simple Scandinavian classic: Danish pebernødder (peppernøtter in Norwegian and pepparnötter in Swedish). Pebernødder are tiny little ginger snap cookies spiced with cinnamon, cardamom, cloves, and pepper.…
-
Continue ReadingWhile Danes might be most famous for their pastries, they also make so many great cakes. And then there’s one cake that brings the best of both: brunsviger. Brunsviger is a yeast based coffee cake that’s a bit of a cross between a cake and a Danish, topped with a…
-
Continue ReadingYesterday I shared a recipe for Norwegian cardamom cookies, but I have a confession: those aren’t my favorite cardamom cookies. And now I have an embarrassing confession: my favorite cardamom cookies are actually Swedish. These sliced cardamom cookies are soft and fudgy with a hint of cinnamon and caramel. They…
