Y’all know I love a cookbook. So, I thought it’d be fun to occasionally focus one of these things on all the items I’ve made from a specific cookbook. I’ll typically snag a copy of a cookbook from the library, furiously cook out of it up to its due date, and then decide if it’s one I need to add to my personal collection (spoiler alert: they typically all come home to me for good).

That is precisely what happened with Nichole Accettola’s Scandinavian From Scratch: A Love Letter to the Baking of Denmark, Norway, and Sweden. I typically steer clear of books that are heavy on bread and pastry recipes, but the instructions in this one are so clear that it seemed foolproof enough to be worth a try. The presented flavors are also a nice departure from your typical American sweets - cardamom reigns supreme with cinnamon, star anise, and nuts making regular appearances, and seasonal fresh fruit is often highlighted. I haven’t touched any of the smørrebrød recipes yet, mainly for fear of them becoming an obsession, but I’ll get my paws on them and other goodies in this one soon enough. For my San Francisco buds, please visit Nichole’s bakery Kantine next time you’re in that neck of the woods and report back!

I’ve included my thoughts, feelings, and rankings (S is best, with A, B, C, and - denoting descending judgments) of each of the treats I’ve made from this gem below. I don’t think it needs to be said, but I am not a professional chef or baker and don’t know what I’m doing in the kitchen half the time. As such, my reviews are based more on personal execution and preferences and don’t really speak to the efficacy of a recipe. However, I am a nigh-perfectionist and follow every recipe to the T, so if something just didn’t work for me and it wasn’t due to something I knowingly messed up, I’ll make it known.

✨A✨

I made this yeasted cake most recently and was very pleased with how easy it was - low effort, high reward! However, I am quite befuddled by the instructions to use a half-sheet baking tray since half-sheets don’t measure 9×16” as described here… but maybe they do in Denmark? I searched high and low and could not find such a thing here! So, I made it smaller and thicker than it ought to have been, but it was still lovely, crisply sweet and spiced and perfect with coffee.

✨A✨

I expected and partially hoped that these would taste like fancy brownie brittle, but instead, they’re more reminiscent of chocolate fudge poptarts! Equally good outcome, I think. Will be making again soon for the holidays.

✨A✨

These convinced me that almond is a personally undervalued flavor. They were quite sweet, light, and worthy of the best-quality almond paste you can find.

✨S✨

While these don’t seem to be particularly Scandinavian, they were absolutely stellar! The lemon curd recipe alone will always have a place in my kitchen.

✨A✨

What do you get when you put a laminated dough in the hands of someone who’s always been fearful of pastry? Ugly buns! I use the term ugly lovingly - while these certainly didn’t turn out nearly as beautiful as presented in the book due to my failure to properly shape them, they were at least tasty! And, I’m not scared of laminated doughs anymore! Much more practice is in my future, however…

✨A✨

We hadn’t made waffles in a while, which was a perfect excuse to try this recipe! Kefir is a fermented milk (goat milk is what I have most often seen) that is similar to yogurt and makes for a tangy addition to these cardamom-sweetened, crispy waffles. This is now my “fancy” waffle recipe!

✨S✨

These cinnamon knots were the first thing I made out of this book that made me excited to try more! They are not nearly as overwhelmingly sweet as your typical cinnamon roll, but they hit the spot the same way. Catch me putting pearl sugar on everything! (Please ignore the other goodies in this pic - this was a treat box for a bud after a baking bonanza).