Scandinavian Gatherings: From Afternoon Fika to Midsummer Feast: 70 Simple Recipes & Crafts for Everyday Celebrations

“In Scandinavia, there's a reason to celebrate every season. Through her recipes and DIY projects, Melissa Bahen does an excellent job of introducing readers to thexa0cozy flavor of the Scandinavian lifestyle, whether you're planning a festive special occasion or just want to make every day a little more magical.” — Anna Brones and Johanna Kindvall, authors of Fika: The Art of the Swedish Coffee Break “I love the word hygge, a Scandinavian way to describe a life lived beautifully, simply, and cozily. Melissa Bahen has created a completely hygge world in this book.” —Adrianna Adarme,xa0author of The Year of Cozy “ Scandinavian Gatherings in one word: nostalgia! It is just the book I would have loved to have had when I moved to Scandinavia myself. Every project and every recipe is now on my to-do list!” —Brittany Jepsen, TheHouseThatLarsBuilt.com “ Scandinavian Gatherings is full of the kind of sweet celebrations that make the world a more magical and meaningful place. From the everyday tradition of fika (a daily coffee break to visit with friends and family), to Lucia Day (celebrating light and generosity), I was mesmerized by Melissa’s family traditions, delectable recipes, and heartfelt gatherings.” —Jennifer Shea, author of Trophy: Cupcakes & Parties! “Melissa Bahen has captured everything I love about the culture that I married into—including delicious, comforting baked goods and whimsical, timeless decor rooted in folk tradition. This book will make decorating and cooking for your gatherings just as fun as the gatherings themselves!” —Molly Yeh, MyNameIsYeh.com “A delightful book packed with mouthwatering recipes and charming craft ideas, perfect for anyone looking for a hands-on way to re-create traditional Scandinavian festivities, alone or with the help of the entire family.” —Niki Brantmark, MyScandinavianHome.com “I’d like to escape into the pages of Scandinavian Gatherings every afternoon, exactly when only a Cream Cake with Fresh Strawberries or Waffle Cookies will do. This gem of a cookbook mixed with crafty projects inspires me to make and celebrate.” —Maggie Battista, author of Food Gift Love and founder of Eat Boutique “Scandinavian food culture is not just about the food and the landscape or the cold and the light, it is a way of eating, a way of being together. Scandinavian Gatherings captures that beautifully.” —Andreas Viestad, author of Kitchen of Light “Make your holidays more chic.” —ELLE Decor "Really lovely... gorgeous photography. If you’re into the Scandinavian lifestyle, which I know everybody is, this is a great one!" —Design Mom “A collection of seasonal entertaining, craft and food projects drawing from Scandinavian style and traditions.” —Oregon Public Broadcasting “Great Nordic-style recipes and crafts.” —Sweet Paul Magazine “[The] go-to guide for a Scandinavian gathering.” —425 Magazine “Equal parts entertaining, crafting, and cooking.” —The Norwegian American “Get inspired by Scandinavian design.” —Domino “I immediately swooped [the book] up and began drooling over the contents.” —Lisa Congdon Blog “A sweet treat.” —Foodista “Cozy the Scandinavian way.” —ParentMap MELISSA BAHEN is the author of the popular website Lulu the Baker, where she focuses on fresh recipes and modern country life. She and her work have been featured in online and print publications like Food52 , Better Homes & Gardens, Sweet Paul, and Every Day with Rachael Ray. She has also created recipes, photos, and digital content for brands like Minted, Albertsons, and King Arthur Flour. She lives in the rolling hills of western Oregon with her husband and four children, a small flock of chickens, and a very naughty dog. She is also the author of Farmhouse Weekends. Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved. IntroductionFOR AS LONG AS I C AN REMEMBER, I have loved to make things, both in thexa0kitchen and out of it. I take after my mom in that respect; she has always been enormously creative, whether she was tole painting decorative plates when I was a childxa0or carefully illustrating a church newsletter. Her talents extend into the kitchen asxa0well. She and her mother, Nana, are both amazing cooks, and my family has alwaysxa0been very big on traditions, especially those that involve food. Growing up, we atexa0Sunday dinner together every week at the dining room table, either at our house orxa0at Nana’s—and we still have regular Sunday dinners together! Nana taught us earlyxa0how to set a proper table, and we were excited when it was our turn to help becausexa0we got to select the dishes, the tablecloth, the centerpiece, and the candlesticks. Myxa0family loves getting together for holidays too, and our traditions are deeply ingrainedxa0in us. We eat the same foods and do the same activities on the same holidays everyxa0year, whether we are gathered together to celebrate at my parents’ house or spreadxa0out across the country.xa0Being surrounded by delicious food and comforting traditions when I was a childxa0set me on a course early in life that has led me to write this book. When I was young,xa0my cousin and I decided to start a catering company when we grew up, and wexa0spent the summer mailing our favorite recipes to each other. In high school I startedxa0keeping a binder full of recipes that I had torn out of magazines. I still have it on myxa0cookbook shelf. There’s a little gold-star sticker next to each recipe that I tried andxa0loved, and a few of the really memorable ones are still in regular rotation. In betweenxa0college semesters one year, I was in charge of my family’s dinner menu for the entirexa0summer. I think my mom paid me fifty dollars for all that work! I still have the piecexa0of scratch paper that I wrote menu ideas on.This book marries my longtime love of cooking and making with my belovedxa0Norwegian heritage. My mom’s dad, Poppy, was born in 1929 to Axel and Astaxa0Andresen, Norwegian immigrants who had settled in Utah’s Salt Lake Valley. Poppyxa0spent his childhood speaking Norwegian and developing a love for pickled herringxa0and open-faced sandwiches. While he didn’t pass on a love for pickled herring toxa0his children and grandchildren, he did pass on a deep and abiding love for ourxa0Scandinavian heritage.xa0Sadly, very few of the traditional Norwegian recipes my poppy grew up with werexa0passed down to subsequent generations. One of the most wonderful things aboutxa0writing this book has been not only rediscovering and falling in love with classicxa0Scandinavian foods, but also recreating some of the delicious recipes I’ve heard soxa0much about in family lore. I’m excited to bring these lost treasures back to my family.xa0xa0I hope my children have fond memories of making Tante Tilda’s Norwegian Silver-Dollar Pancakes (page 4) with me the way my mom remembers making them with Tante Tilda. I want my children to carry on the tradition of serving Rødgrød medxa0Flød (Raspberry Pudding with Cream), page 167, on Christmas Eve like they have forxa0dessert every year at Nana and Poppy’s house.xa0Each chapter of this book will give you ideas for creating a complete gathering,xa0a get-together of family and dear friends. I love that word:xa0gathering. A gatheringxa0is comfortable and easy, almost effortless, intimate, full of good food and the bestxa0company. A gathering isn’t as stuffy or as formal as a party; it’s both coolly casual andxa0supremely sophisticated. Along with the recipes and craft projects in each chapter,xa0you’ll find ideas for styling, serving, arranging, and more. But feel free to add yourxa0special touch to these gatherings and make them your own.If you have Scandinavian heritage like me, I hope you’ll be delighted to find oldxa0favorites alongside new recipes inspired by the flavors and traditions of the region.xa0But even if you have no connection to Scandinavia, I have a feeling that some ofxa0these are destined to become family favorites just the same. Cookies for a school bakexa0sale, open-faced sandwiches for a light lunch, cake for a friend’s birthday dinner—allxa0of the recipes are as delicious on a regular weeknight as they are at a festive gathering. The Nordic-inspired projects in each chapter are perfect for holidays and festivexa0occasions, but they also make for a fun crafting afternoon with friends or great rainy-day projects with kids.xa0I’ve loved every step of this journey takingxa0Scandinavian Gatherings from a daydreamxa0to a beautiful reality. I’m thrilled with the results—the recipes, the projects, the colorful artwork—and can’t wait to share my beloved heritage with you! Read more