Ever since I was a little kid Norwegian lefse has been one of my favorite foods, especially when it’s filled with butter and sugar to make kling. And I’m certainly not alone in my love for lefse. Lefse is a traditional soft Norwegian flatbread made with flour, butter, cream and sometimes potatoes. Potato lefse is not quite as common in Norway these days, but it is still very beloved in certain regions, with recipes passed down through generations. Potato lefse takes a bit more effort to make than the more popular wheat versions, but I think potato lefse is well worth the extra effort! I’ve als ..read more

I first started this blog by working my way through Den Rutete Kokeboken, a classic Norwegian cookbook first published in 1980. This cookbook is full of traditional Norwegian recipes, and still today you’ll find this cookbook in many Norwegian kitchens. I love classic Norwegian food, and so today I’m sharing some of my favorite traditional Norwegian recipes. Rømmegrøt One of my favorite traditional Norwegian dishes is rømmegrøt, or sour cream porridge. Porridge is one of the oldest hot dishes in Norway, and Norwegians have been making sour cream porridge for centuries. Rømmegrøt is a porridge ..read more

It’s finally feeling like summer here in Bergen, which is perfect timing since we celebrated Midsummer over the weekend! Swedes celebrated Midsummer Eve on Friday and Norwegians celebrated Sankthansaften on Sunday, and one dish that featured on many tables was smörgåstårta. Smörgåstårta, or smørbrødterte in Norwegian, is a savory cake made of several layers of different sandwiches and decorated with cream cheese, vegetables, and seafood or cold cuts and cheese. While we call it a cake, it’s more like a giant layered sandwich that has been decorated to look like a cake. Swedes traditionally ea ..read more

I’ve shared a lot of Norwegian recipes here, and while I love them all, there are definitely some that I make more often than others. While I do enjoy diving into a long, multi step recipe like Sarah Bernhardt cookies, when I’m short on time (or energy) there are some quick and easy Norwegian recipes I’ll opt for instead. Here they are! Eplekake (Norwegian Apple Cake) Eplekake, or Norwegian apple cake, is such a popular cake here in Norway largely because it’s so quick and easy to make. Eplekake is a classic vanilla sponge cake topped with sliced apples, cinnamon, and sugar. Interestingly th ..read more

Norwegians are incredibly proud of their apples, so it’s no surprise they have lots of incredible apple desserts. Norwegian apple cake is one of the most popular cakes here, A kringle (also called klippekrans) is a yeast based pastry filled with cinnamon sugar, sort of like a wreath of connected cinnamon buns. In fact I developed this recipe from my kanelboller (Norwegian cinnamon rolls) recipe. This apple kringle is also filled with chopped apples, which make this kringle even juicier. Kringle is a popular coffee time treat to sever to guests here in Norway. It’s easy to m ..read more

After visiting Hardangerfjord, “the orchard of Norway,” last week I was not so mysteriously in the mood for apples. Of course it’s not yet apple season here in Norway, but luckily we can still buy apples at the supermarket. So I decided to make äppelkaka, a deliciously fluffy Swedish vanilla sponge cake topped with sliced apples, cinnamon, and brown sugar. Swedish apple cake is quite similar to Norwegian apple cake (I’ve shared my Norwegian apple cake recipe here), however it’s typically a lighter sponge cake with more milk in the batter. To be honest I prefer Swedish apple cake, but if you te ..read more

My birthday is this month, and this weekend I decided to celebrate early with a Swedish pannkakstårta, or pancake cake. This is a popular cake in Sweden to serve on birthday mornings – like a pancake breakfast but more festive! Pannkakstårta is made with a stack of thin Swedish pancakes filled with cream, berries, and jam. Some people make the cake simply with a pile of pancakes, but I like to wrap the entire stack in pancakes as well so that it looks like a proper cake. And wow, let me just say that pannkakstårta is so good. If you like thin, crêpe style pancakes you will love this pancake c ..read more

Over the weekend I went on a ski weekend in Myrkdalen with some friends and we were staying at a cosy little cabin, so of course I wanted to bake something delicious for us. And what’s cosier than kanelbullar, or Swedish cinnamon buns? Kanelbullar are made with a sweet cardamom dough filled with cinnamon sugar and butter and twisted into large knots. I’ve tried a lot of kanelbullar recipes over the years, and I really do think this one is the best. It’s extra buttery, with just the right amount of cinnamon and sugar. Kanelbullar are very similar to their Norwegian sisters, kanelsnurrer. The ma ..read more

Last night I went to dinner at my friend Ida’s house, and I wanted to bring a dessert that looks pretty but that we could all eat with our hands without any big fuss. So I decided to make Danish flødeboller! Flødeboller are Danish marshmallow puffs made with baked marzipan cookies topped with whipped vanilla egg whites and dipped in chocolate. You can also decorate them with coconut flakes, freeze dried berries, or whatever else you like. Flødeboller, also called Danish dream puffs, are one of those desserts that look a lot more impressive than they really are. They’re actually quite easy to m ..read more

Denmark has so many wonderful sweet buns and pastries (hello, Danishes), and one reliable Danish classic is kanelsnegle. Kanelsnegle, or “cinnamon snails,” are Danish cinnamon rolls made with a buttery cardamom dough and filled with cinnamon, sugar, and butter. Kanelsnegle set themselves apart from other cinnamon rolls with the great amount of butter in the dough and their hint of freshly ground cardamom. Traditionally they are bare or drizzled with powdered sugar icing. However last time I was in Copenhagen I had the most delicious kanelsnegle with cream cheese glaze at Andersen & Maillar ..read more