Winter Warming the Swedish Way with Vinglogg and Pepparkakor

A few years ago when teaching in Cambodia, I was fortunate to meet a group of Swedish women with whom I traveled after teaching and came to become great friends with. In the years that followed, we have met in Spain to travel and they have visited New York City on several occasions  This week, one of my lovely Swedish friend's boyfriends was lecturing at Columbia University on Scandinavian crime fiction, so they came to stay with us in New York City. It has been wonderful to spend the week with them and catch up over dinners and drinks!

I always love our comparative discussions on the culture of The United States and Sweden. While usually our conversations revolve around politics or the politics of education, this week, with the Christmas season rapidly approaching, we also talked about Christmas traditions in Sweden and in the United States. As a thank you for letting us stay gift, Janna and Jonas (can you get anymore Swedish!?) brought us a typical Advent treat which was fun to hear about and sample!

In Sweden during the Advent season (those weeks leading up to Christmas), which is also a cold, blustery time in those northern reaches of Scandinavia, one common household tradition is to eat what is essentially gingerbread and buns with mulled wine. As a child, I remember lighting candles on Sunday evening to represent each week of Advent and I also remember opening little paper windows to reveal a chocolate treat for each day of Advent. It was fun to add a more adult interpretation of the holiday into my repertoire!

I definitely need to make this the year that I visit Sweden. Can't wait to begin planning that trip, but, in the meantime, I will indulge in some pepparkakor and vinglogg!