My family celebrates Christmas with several Norwegian culinary traditions thanks to my mother-in-law’s Norwegian heritage. This Norwegian butter cake with almonds is by far the most simple cake I have ever made. Its simplicity makes it the perfect accompaniment to a light Christmas dinner or tea time treat. This cake doesn’t even need a frosting – simply a flurry of powdered sugar snow.

Another Norwegian Christmas tradition is making Krumkake (pronounced crumb-kah-gah). That might look like a crumb cake, but they are actually cookies! The Krumkake press is a beautiful cookie press with ornate designs inside. The Krumkake batter, flavored with cardamom, gets cooked inside the press over the stove top, leaving a gorgeous embossed design on the cookie. Immediately after taking the cookie off the press, they get rolled over a wooden dowel to make a cone shape. Once cooled, they can be filled with any flavor combination. My mother-in-law likes to fill hers with whipped cream and berries. We like to make these on Christmas Eve to accompany our smorgasbord. By far my favorite Christmas Eve tradition is the smorgasbord, a collection of fancy meats and cheeses, fresh bread and butters, jams and pickles. I tend to go overboard on Christmas Day with a special menu, so making Christmas Eve dinner much lighter on prep makes a big difference. When selecting ingredients for a smorgasbord, choosing quality ingredients is paramount. This is a holiday dinner, so reserve your finest jams and select aged cheeses and nice prosciutto for this occasion. Because this is a mainly cold meal, I like to lightly toast the assortment of breads just before serving. I also like to include a warm dish like Scandinavian meatballs. 

You probably already have the ingredients in your pantry. This Norwegian butter cake only has five ingredients! To make this cake, simply soften a stick and a half of butter and cream the butter with the sugar in a mixer for a few minutes. Mix in the eggs, one at a time. Stir in the flour and blend until well combined but not over-mixed, which can result in a tough cake. Grease or line a 9-inch round pan with parchment paper. Fill the pan with batter, top with raw sliced almonds and bake for 45 minutes. Start checking for doneness around 40 minutes. The cake should be soft but not runny. It will set up and firm as it cools. Once completely cooled, the texture should be like a brownie. You really don’t want to over-bake this cake or it will lose its gooey magic. To finish the cake, use a sieve or a flour sifter to sprinkle powdered sugar on top.

Norwegian Butter Almond

Ingredients:

1 1/2 sticks unsalted butter

1 1/2 cups sugar

2 eggs

1 1/2 cups all purpose flour

3 tablespoons sliced raw almonds

Pinch salt

Powdered sugar for dusting after baking

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2. Grease or line a 9-inch cast iron skillet, cake pan or pie pan with parchment.

3. In a stand mixer, beat the sugar with the melted butter on medium for a few minutes until well combined. You can also do this by hand. No mixer is really necessary if you have a whisk and a strong arm.

4. Mix in the eggs, one at a time.

5. Add salt and flour. In the mixer, stir on low until just combined. Don’t over-mix.

6. Pour batter into the pan. Top batter with sliced raw almonds.

7. Bake for 40-50 minutes. Allow to cool. Sprinkle with powdered sugar. Should be soft but not runny, like the texture of a brownie or more firm if desired.