Since this year's autumn and winter collection "Nordic Aesthetics" is all about the Scandinavian countries, we would like to spread the Nordic Christmas spirit during Advent. In our content series "Nordic Christmas" we will therefore introduce you to the Advent and Christmas traditions of a different Scandinavian country every week and share our favorite recipes so that you can celebrate your Christmas in a very hyggelig Scandi style!

The Danish Christmas - A feast with many traditions

In Denmark, the Christmas festival “Lillejuleaften”, the so-called “little Christmas Eve”, begins on December 23rd. This is when the Christmas tree is decorated and preparations are made for Christmas Eve.

The Danish Christmas tree is decorated with traditional tree decorations, Danish flags and, watch out: real candles! This is a very important part of Christmas hygge. In addition, "Julehjerter" are THE Danish Christmas decoration par excellence. These beautiful decorative pieces are braided hearts made of glossy paper in which small items can also be hidden. Typical colors for the hearts are the combination of red and white. The very first "Julehjert" probably came from Hans-Christian Andersen. The Danes also have an Advent wreath, but this one has 24 candles called "Kalenderlys".

The Danes like to spend a few hours at the dinner table on Christmas Eve. A typical Christmas dish usually consists of roast pork, duck, boiled potatoes, red cabbage and gravy. The most popular dessert that follows is called "Risalamande", a rice pudding with cherry sauce in which only one almond is hidden. Whoever finds this almond also receives a gift or a prize. After the beloved feast, it is tradition to dance hand in hand around the Christmas tree and sing popular Christmas carols before the presents are handed out. In Denmark, too, "Julemand", the so-called Santa Claus, brings the presents.

Julefrokost - Celebrating in the run-up to Christmas

The pre-Christmas period is used to celebrate as many “Julefrokost” as possible. “Julefrokost” means a cozy get-together with family, friends or colleagues where a Christmas lunch is eaten. Typical Danish specialties such as liver pate, herring or roast meat are served. It is very important to have schnapps and beer on the table. A typical spicy Christmas beer is the so-called “Julebryg”. It can be served for the first time on the first Friday in November at exactly 8:59 p.m. Another special event is the white-clad “Santa Lucia”, who brings light back to the dark country on December 13th. She is honored and celebrated throughout Denmark on this day, as from this point on the days become longer again.

The Christmas Elves - A Danish Superstition

The "Nisser" are particularly important to the Danes. These are so-called Christmas elves that can be found in every home in Denmark during the Christmas season. According to superstition, they bring either good or bad luck. It is traditional to put a large bowl of rice pudding in the attic. This is said to be the elves' favorite food and people try to make them happy with it so that they don't become a nuisance for the rest of the year.

Recipe - Traditional Christmas dessert "Risalamande"

Ingredients:

125 g rice pudding

1 liter of milk

1 packet of vanilla sugar

250 ml whipped cream

100 g very finely chopped almonds

1 whole almond

sugar to taste

For the sauce:

1 jar of sour cherries or morello cherries

Preparation:

Bring the milk to the boil and stir in the rice pudding. Let the rice pudding simmer in a closed pan over a low heat for about 45 minutes. Stir well every now and then. Then let the rice pudding cool down.

Whip the cream until stiff and slowly add the vanilla sugar. Carefully mix the rice pudding with the whipped cream and the finely chopped almonds. Sweeten to taste.

Add a single intact almond. If it still has a dark shell, place it in hot water to loosen the shell.

For the cherry sauce, heat a jar of sour cherries or morello cherries in a saucepan. If the sauce is a bit too runny, you can thicken the cherries with cornflour.

Daniela Barth