Hemma Hos

From Mandelbiskvier to Havreflarn

By Judi Lifton

Immersed in the Swedish culture since childbirth, I heard endless stories about my grandparents. How my dad’s father was on the road as a young boy going from town to town to deliver his immigrant father’s Swedish newspaper. And how my mother’s father Oscar (from Dalarna) came in on the train from Ellis Island to St. Paul one wintry night, only to encounter a postman who knew a relative of Oscar’s. After travelling through harrowing snowy conditions, he was safely delivered to the home of his mother’s cousin.

I spent the first years of my life reveling in the Swedish traditions, listening to the weekly local Swedish hour and hearing my mother sing and my uncle preach in their parents’ native tongue. Mother had a Swedish women’s choir and helped direct the Santa Lucia festival for many years. I never could have been the Saint wearing a ring of lit candles. They only selected blonds … and I was reddish brown.

My closest ties to my ancestors are baking and Swedish décor. I have many Tomten-hangings in my lake house, Dala horses on the wall, and what I call a Swedish-Industrial kitchen (that’s my name for it). Up until my young teenage years, when we lived in a Scandinavian town in Minnesota, we made our own Swedish sausage (potatiskorv). I did the grinding or held the casings onto the chute. We also made our own head cheese (sylta). Uncle Myron (who

Treats[ ] à la Judi

Hemma hos

was Norwegian) and Aunt Toots (Swedish, Dad’s sister) were farmers nearby and thus we had all the ingredients we needed.

After relocating to Minneapolis, the “from-scratch” delicacies stopped. We began a different metropolitan lifestyle and bought our sausage and head cheese from Ingebretsen’s Scandinavian Foods. Mom organized a Swedish choir and Santa Lucia event and joined the Swedish Institute. Our family’s spoken Swedish dwindled to singing the hymn Tryggare kan ingen vara. I became the family cookie-

Almond Macaroons

Judi Lifton’s mother. meister, and after many years am still dubbed “The Baker.” I now live in Ohio; my any-occasion present is baking cookies and sending or delivering them to relatives and friends. Here are two recipes that are easy to make and delicious to taste. Enjoy!

Ingredients:

• 4 large egg whites • One 14-ounce bag of sweetened shredded coconut • ½ cup sugar • 1 (7 oz.) tube of almond paste • One pinch of salt

Mandelbiskvier Preparation:

Place almond paste in freezer, preheat oven to 325 F, and line two large baking sheets with parchment paper (I make the macaroons small, so use two sheets). Before whisking egg whites, grate the frozen paste onto wax paper so it is available when done with whisking (I use an electric hand mixer). Whisk until frothy and fold in the almond paste and sugar/salt. Use fingers or 2 teaspoons to put macaroons on the sheet. Bake until brown which will be around 20 – 25 minutes depending on size of macaroons. Dip in chocolate if you so wish.

Oatmeal Lace Wafers

Ingredients:

• ½ cup butter • ¾ cup sugar • 1 teaspoon cinnamon • 1 cup of oatmeal • 2 Tablespoons of sifted (I don’t) flour • 1 teaspoon of baking powder • 1 egg

Havreflarn Preparation:

Melt butter (I use a casserole dish so don’t need any other dish). Remove from heat and stir in remaining ingredients until blended. Line cookie sheets with parchment paper. Only make one sheet at a time to check size and spreading of the wafers. Drop batter by teaspoon onto cookie sheet, 3 inches apart. Bake at 375 F for 6 – 8 minutes or until golden brown. Leave until cool and remove from parchment. Alternatively, remove when hot (don’t burn your fingers); using the round wooden handle of a spoon, quickly wrap around the handle to make a tube.