7 Best Norwegian Cakes

With long, dark winters, I suppose it’s no surprise that baking is such an important part of Norwegian culture. What better to do on a snowy day than stay inside and bake up something delicious? Actually if you ask a Norwegian that question, they’ll probably say taking their cross country skis out for a spin. But after they’ve come home from skiing, they’ll be ready to indulge in some delicious Norwegian baked goods! From sweet buns to intricate cookies to beautiful cakes, Norway has it all.

And wow does Norway have some fantastic cakes. Norwegians love eating cake – you’ll always find a cake or two (or three or four) at Norwegian celebrations, and most coffee shops in Norway will serve a few freshly baked cakes alongside their sweet buns and other baked goods. I know I’m biased because I live in Norway, but I truly believe Norway has some of the world’s best cakes.

In fact Norwegians have even named one of their cakes just that – the World’s Best! I’ve shared many of my favorite Norwegian cake recipes here over the past months, so today I thought I’d share my top picks for the best Norwegian cakes (yes, including the world’s best cake).

I’ve also shared my favorite Swedish cakes here and my favorite Danish cakes here.

Suksessterte (Success Cake)

My personal favorite Norwegian cake is suksessterte, also called suksesskake and gulkake, or success cake in English. Suksessterte is a Norwegian almond cake with a lovely yellow egg cream frosting.

Suksessterte is always a crowd pleaser – my mom often made this Norwegian almond cake for dessert at her dinner parties when living in the US, and everyone always raved about it. And the wonderful thing about Norwegian success cake is that it’s actually quite easy to make.

The almond base is very simple, made with just eggs, almonds, sugar, baking powder, and a couple spoons of flour, and the yellow cream is equally simple, made with egg yolks, sugar, vanilla, and heavy cream. I’ve shared my mother’s success cake recipe here.

Kvæfjord Cake “Verdens Beste” (World’s Best Cake)

While I think success cake is the best cake in the world, Norwegians have given that title to Kvæfjord cake.

Kvæfjord is one of the most beautiful parts of Norway, nestled between the stunning Vesterålen islands and the town of Harstad. Kvæfjord cake got its name from the two sisters from Kvæfjord who first made this cake at Café Alliance in Harstad in the 1930s.

The recipe for Kvæfjord cake spread throughout the country, and Norwegians began referring to it simply as “the world’s best.” And they loved it so much that they voted it the national cake of Norway in 2002.

Verdens beste is a meringue topped sponge cake filled with a velvety vanilla cream. I particularly love the rustic look of kvæfjord cake, as it’s spread by hand across a baking sheet instead of poured into a baking form. Norwegians usually serve verdens beste on special occasions like birthdays and confirmations – you always know it’s a special occasion in Norway when you see the world’s best cake!

The world’s best cake is another Norwegian cake that looks more complicated than it actually is. Because the sponge cake is fairly thin, it’s easy to bake through and pretty difficult to mess up. See my “world’s best” cake recipe here.

Fyrstekake (Prince Cake)

Spoiler: there are going to be a lot of almond based cakes on this list. Norwegians use a lot of ground almonds in their baking, which I’m a huge fan of. One of the best Norwegian almond cakes is fyrstekake, or prince cake in English, which is a classic Norwegian cake dating all the way back to the 1860s, when Erichsen’s Bakery in Trondheim developed this recipe.

Norwegian prince cake is a vanilla lattice pie with a soft almond filling. Prince cake tastes great warm out of the oven topped with whipped cream, but it might be even tastier the next day. The vanilla lattice can be a bit tricky to make look good, but otherwise this is a fairly easy cake to make – this is one of those cakes that always tastes good regardless of who made it. You can find my fyrstekake recipe here.

Kransekake

Another classic Norwegian almond cake that you’ll see at all sorts of celebrations in Norway including Constitution Day, Christmas, and weddings is kransekake, or “wreath cake.” Kransekake is a chewy almond cake made of a set of rings piled on top of each other to form an impressive tower. You will need a set a special kransekake molds to make this Norwegian cake – Amazon has them for quite cheap here.

I’ve shared my kransekake recipe here.

Bløtkake (Norwegian Cream Cake)

I’m including bløtkake, or Norwegian cream cake, on this list because it is a favorite cake amongst Norwegians. However to be honest I’m not a huge fan of whipped cream, so this isn’t my favorite Norwegian cake.

Bløtkake is a sponge cake split into three layers with cream and vanilla custard layered in between. It’s usually topped with icing or more whipped cream and lots of fresh berries. Norwegian cream cake is often served on Norwegian Constitution day (May 17) and as a birthday cake. I shared a recipe for a similar Danish cream cake here, or you can use this bløtkake recipe.

Eplekake (Norwegian Apple Cake)

Perhaps the most popular everyday cake in Norway is eplekake, or apple cake. Apple cake is quick and easy to make, and you can freeze it, so it’s a great cake to keep in your freezer in case you get some unexpected guests.

Eplekake is a classic vanilla sponge cake topped with sliced apples, cinnamon, and sugar. Interestingly there are no apples in the cake batter, as they are all placed on top of the cake. I’ve shared my eplekake recipe here.

Rabarbrakake (Norwegian Rhubarb Cake)

Norwegians love using rhubarb in their baking, I suppose because rhubarb grows easily in Norwegian gardens. There are many different versions of rhubarb cake here in Norway, but personally I think the very best is my grandmother’s rhubarb cake with meringue.

Her rabarbrakake is a rhubarb meringue pie (or cake) made with a thick buttery crust, cooked rhubarb, and a super fluffy meringue topping. I’ve shared my grandmother’s rhubarb cake recipe here.

Do you have any favorite Norwegian cakes to add to this list? Share in the comments!