Practicing Hygee

My big Maine Coon cat, Aiden, and I are practicing "hygee" this winter.  Hygee, pronounced hoo...ga, is the Danish art of embracing the cold winter months with warm fuzzy clothing, lit candles, warm drinks, comfort foods, a good movie or great reading materials!  With lots of frigid temperatures this week, it's easy to enjoy the comforts of home.

Just remember, hygee is an attitude to accept our long cold winters and enjoy the shorter daylight with the coziness of home and family life.  Hygee teaches you to slow down your lifestyle during the winter months and appreciate a warm cup of coffee or tea with a little sweet treat, while enjoying time with your loved ones.  In my case, it's usually three cats snuggled on the couch with me during the day or night.  It's funny, but there's no opportunity for me to experience coldness during the winter months because we have four cats living in our home.  Morning, afternoon or night....I always have a cat nearby to keep me warm.

For me, hygee means saying good bye to a busy summer and fall and saying hello to a quieter time of year.  When I think back to years ago, I would always tell my friends that I was looking forward to the winter months when all my gardening and canning/freezing foods was complete.  Now I realize, deep down inside my soul, I wanted to naturally experience hygee as a way to enjoy the winter months.  I also think the Danes are very smart and know how to enjoy the little treasures of life.

I challenge you to enjoy hygee this winter.

PS, I give you approval to enjoy wearing your PJs until 10 am!!! 

Time To Bake in the New Year

Swedish Cardamom Rolls (Swedish Bullar)

So what do you do on a cold 8 degrees below zero day?  Stay indoors, drink lots of hot tea and immerse yourself in BAKING! One of my favorite things to bake is a buttery cardamom & cinnamon roll. 

One year ago, my friend Caryn, treated me to one of her freshly baked cardamom rolls.  I was hooked on these buttery beauties!  Caryn, who's ancestors were Swedish, has always love to bake and cook favorite foods from Sweden.  After sharing the recipe with me, I believe I made these rolls like three or four times last winter.  I also decided to make a batch last year only using cinnamon since some of my family members are a little shy to the taste of cardamom.  Yes, I do think you have to acquire a taste for cardamom!

Just be aware if you make this recipe, that it's very buttery and rich dough.  This is not your typical cinnamon roll dough.  So, after making a batch yesterday, I edited the recipe.  I redo or edit recipes often, something I just learned from my mother and grandmother.  So now, I've decided it's better to cut your dough strips in 1/2-inch to get a smaller roll.  Of course, you can still cut your strips by 1 inch, but you will just get a much larger buttery roll!!!

If you want to learn the proper technique to shaping/twisting the dough, go to: http://www.fixfeastflair.com/home/2015/2/9/swedish-cardamom-rolls-kardemummabullar-recipe

To find this recipe, click on Turtle Recipes in the top menu.  Give this recipe a try if you love to bake and can devote 3-4 hrs at home.  Stay warm friends and Happy New Year.