Recipes

15 Scandinavian Recipes to Celebrate Midsummer

Have your own Scandinavian summer solstice celebration with these 15 recipes that go heavy on the smoked fish, rye, and aquavit
Image may contain Plant Food and Vegetable

June 21 is the summer solstice, the longest day of the year. It's actually a proper holiday in Scandinavia, where, in some place, the sun doesn't even set. It's called Midsummer, and it's full of bonfires, flower crowns, and picnics. Speaking of picnics, should you choose to celebrate Midsummer, you should make sure your spread is a Scandi one. Here are cocktails, sandwiches, and desserts that have all the smoked fish, aquavit, rye, and caraway to last you until sundown.

  • Image may contain Drink Lemonade and Beverage
    Photo by Alex Lau
    3/15

    The Swedish Tart

    This cocktail is incredibly simple and incredibly good. Green tea kombucha, homemade (three-ingredient) dill syrup, and vodka are all you need.

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  • Image may contain Plant Food Seasoning Animal Seafood Lobster and Sea Life
    GENTL AND HYERS (C)2013
    4/15

    Smoked Salmon Smørrebrød

    You can slather pretty much anything on these flexible Scandinavian open-face sandwiches.

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  • Image may contain Food and Meatball
    Christopher Testani
    6/15

    Swedish Meatballs

    These Swedish meatballs, which are adapted from the ones served up at Smörgås Chef in NYC, get their distinctive flavor from nutmeg and allspice—and just a bit of sugar. Do like they do at the homey West Village restaurant and serve them alongside whipped potatoes and lingonberries. You can find lingonberry preserves, a Scandinavian favorite and classic accompaniment to meatballs, at IKEA or online.

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Danielle Walsh is the assistant web editor at Bon Appétit, and has also written for New York Magazine's Grub Street. She loves Korean food, tacos, and whiskey, and is trying really, really hard to like sardines. ... Read More
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