From fire to ice in Scandinavia

Sunset in Stockholm

Taking a break from the pastry side of things, I’d like to show you a peek at the natural beauty we’ve seen in Scandinavia. On our last night in Stockholm we were treated to this amazing sunset display. Starting out with the sun peaking through the clouds as it went down, the sky morphed into an amazing display of orange shades with tints of fuchsia and purple. Wow!

Oslo offered us vistas of sunshine, swirling clouds, sparkling water and islands along with ferries moving to and fro. Even the big cities can’t keep Mother Nature from showing off her finery.

View from the Akershus fortress in Oslo

We were in for unexpected scenes on the train from Oslo to Myrdal as we climbed into blue-iced and snow covered expanses. Though in the image below it looks grey and overcast, at points the snow cover was so vast as to be literally blinding. Photos just can’t do it justice - you had to be there!

From the train on our way to Myrdal

We peaked at an altitude of 1222 meters (4000 ft) at Finse before we descended to Myrdal’s 866.6 meters (2837 ft) to catch the Flåmsbana down to Flåm.

Above the tree line at Finse

On the Flåmsbana on our way down to Flåm

More to come! - I’ll be back!

A glimpse at the Aurlandsfjord in Flåm

Fika in Stockholm

I believe I’m probably the gazillionth person to mention the Swedish tradition of fika which is essentially a coffee (or tea) break during the day when folks get together to set their cares aside, chit chat and enjoy a piece of cake or pastry. Much like the French le gouter or British afternoon tea, it’s a lovely tradition enjoyed by so many.

For our Stockholm visit we met up with British friends Richard and Pauline and enjoyed getting to know the city and see some of its many sights. One beautiful day we visited Skansen, a large park/zoo/open air museum on the island of Djurgården, just one of the many in the archipelago.

In one of the historic buildings in the town quarter we discovered a small cafe serving coffee and baked goods and decided to go for it. With a rustic cozy flair and a lovely outdoor space it offered us a chance to rest ourselves for a bit.

All four of us snagged a cup of coffee, Richard had a slice of rhubarb cake with crème anglaise and Pauline and I chose the almond cake option with a side dollop of whipped cream. Aside from the coffee, Steve abstained.

I wanted to see how the almond cake stacked up to the one(s) I had made and written about in this post a couple of years ago. Although somewhat disappointed (feeling my efforts had yielded a much more tasty result!), the topping had some crunch and the almond cake base was okay save for the rather dry edges. It was still a worthwhile comparison though. You never know unless you try!

Our treats were served on different patterned plates, and we enjoyed them out in the sunny courtyard garden before continuing our exploration of the Skansen grounds.

On another day of strolling from island to island in central Stockholm, we stopped at Thelins Grand Cafe on the Kungstradgarden, an outdoor gathering space with gardens at one end, cafes flanking and lots of people about. It was obviously a popular spot with a line out the door and outdoor tables at a premium.

Just A glimpse of the pastry case

In addition to the intriguing items in the case, my eye spied the variations of bullar, classic intricately twisted buns such as cinnamon and cardamom. Once again I was eager to sample a true Scandi version of bulle (the singular of bullar) after my own attempts at cardamom buns a while back. There was a lighter version that appeared to be sprinkled with a bit of sugar (top rear below) - I chose that.

Some of the cafe’s treats

We were happy to grab a table inside since it was pretty breezy and cool that day.

Richard and Pauline chose savory sandwiches and Steve continued to exert great will power and abstained except for a sparkling drink.

I anticipated that perhaps my bulle had a thin schmear of almond filling since it’s so commonly used in many Danish pastries, but, alas, I couldn’t really confirm that as I ate. It was tasty nonetheless with a light sweetness, simple lovely bun texture and delicious with my large cup of hot chocolate.

Here’s to the fika traditiion and all it stands for. Thanks Sweden!!