Scandinavian Holiday Recipes

This spiral-bound, index-card-sized book offers recipes and reflections on the traditions, sites, and events associated with the holidays observed by Danish, Finnish, Icelandic, Norwegian, and Swedish Americans.

A sample:

Norwegian Wedding Cake (p. 131)
From Norma Wangsness, Decorah, Iowa; her rosemaling is on the cover of this book.

3 cups butter, softened
1 1/2 cups almond paste
3 cups powdered sugar
3 teaspoons almond extract
6 egg yolks
7 1/2 cups sifted flour

Frosting:
1 1/2 cups sifted powdered sugar
1 egg white
1 teaspoon vinegar

Cream butter, almond paste, powdered sugar, and almond extract. Beat in egg yolks. Add flour gradually and mix until smooth. Place dough in a cookie press and press into Kransekake ring molds, which can be purchased at specialty shops. If you do not want to invest in molds, shape the dough on foil-covered cardboard into 26 rings graduating in size. Start with a 1-inch ring and make each ring 1/2 inch larger than the one before. Bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes.
Frosting:Stir all ingredients together; add additional powdered sugar if the frosting is not stiff enough. Place in pastry tube with a small round tip.
To Assemble:Drizzle some frosting on a platter; this will anchor cake. Place the largest ring on the frosting. Apply frosting in scallops on the first ring and place the next largest ring on top of the first. Continue until you have used all 26 rings. The frosting will hold the rings in place. Decorate with small Norwegian flags or marzipan fruits on toothpicks.