We Wish You a Finnish Christmas: Two recipes to make winter a little cozier
Sofia Hartikainen is a UI student from Finland. She came to study Icelandic for one year, and we were roommates in student housing until I moved. Along with her personality, she brought some amazing baking skills to a country that only recently discovered the magic of sourdough bread. Speaking of magic, Christmas is quickly approaching, so we’ve decided to give you a taste of how Finns celebrate Joulu (Christmas) with two classic recipes with a Finnish touch.
Photos / Francesca Stoppani
Christmas isn’t just gifts and lights; one must smell and taste Christmas. When it comes to Nordic Christmas celebrations, spiced cookies are a longtime favorite. Here you have Grandma Liisa’s recipe.
Grandma’s Spiced Cookies (Mummon joulupiparit)
Photos / Francesca Stoppani
Photo / Francesca Stoppani
150 ml golden syrup
200 g sugar
250 g melted butter
2 tsp ground cinnamon
2 tsp ground ginger
2 tsp ground cloves
1 Tbsp grated orange peel
2 eggs
3 tsp baking soda
½ kg wheat flour
Add syrup, sugar, melted butter, spices, and orange peel to a pot.
Bring to a boil while mixing well.
Remove from heat and let the mixture cool.
Add eggs to the cooled mixture and blend well.
Stir in flour and baking soda to form a dough.
Cover the dough and place in the fridge overnight to chill.
Preheat oven to 200°C and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
Roll the dough into a thin layer.
Cut the cookies into any shapes you like.
Bake for 5-8 minutes.
What kind of winter would it be without a warm and fragrant drink? Here we present two versions of Finnish mulled wine, a favorite of adults and children alike! (Don’t worry, in Finland they have both alcoholic and non-alcoholic versions.)
Winter glogg (Talviglögi)
2 cinnamon sticks
3 star anise pods
10 whole cloves
a bit of fresh ginger
3 strips of orange peel
200 g sugar
300 ml strong blackcurrant juice
750 ml water (for alcoholic version: one bottle of red wine + optional vodka or cognac to make it even stronger)
Photos / Francesca Stoppani
“Christmas in Finland can be pretty depressing. We go to the cemetery, then we usually have lunch or dinner with our family and relatives,” says Sofia. Are you surprised to hear that Finns do not ride reindeers toward Rovaniemi to help Santa (Joulupukki) pack gifts?
Non-alcoholic version:
Add cinnamon sticks, star anise, cloves, ginger, orange peel, and water to a pot.
Heat, but don’t boil, then add sugar and juice and mix well.
Heat until the mixture is close to boiling.
Strain out the spices.
Decorate with extra cinnamon sticks and star anise and you’re ready to serve!
Alcoholic version:
Add cinnamon sticks, star anise, cloves, ginger, and orange peel to a pot.
Add sugar and juice.
Heat the mixture until it has a thick, syrupy consistency (approx. 10 min.).
Remove from heat, add wine, and mix well.
Strain to remove the spices.
Decorate with extra cinnamon sticks and star anise and you’re ready to serve!
“In Finland, everyone takes a sauna on Christmas day. It’s basically mandatory,” adds Sofia. Following that tradition might not be as easy here in Iceland, but if you’re lucky enough to have access to a sauna, you might want to try out the Finnish way of celebrating Christmas!