I made this among other things for Christmas. I was reading Catherine Hall Page's book "The Body in the Sleigh". This was one of the recipes that the character Faith, a wife of a minister and caterer made.
Norwegian Christmas Cake
1 pound plus 2 teaspoons unsalted butter, softened
2 cups white sugar
4 large eggs2 cups flour1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup finely chopped blanched almonds1/4 cup currants
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.
Using a paper towel, spread a 12-by-18-inch jelly roll pan with 2 teaspoons of butter.
Using a paper towel, spread a 12-by-18-inch jelly roll pan with 2 teaspoons of butter.
Cream the remaining butter and the sugar together with an electric mixer. When light and fluffy, beat in the eggs — one at a time — and then the flour and vanilla. Spread the batter evenly onto the pan and sprinkle with the chopped almonds and currants.
Bake 20 to 25 minutes, until the surface is a light gold.
Remove from the oven and let the cake cool in the pan.
Remove from the oven and let the cake cool in the pan.
Cut the cake into diamonds or squares with a sharp knife. This cake may be made up to 2 weeks before Christmas, but must then be wrapped in aluminum foil or placed in an airtight tin.
I also made Sand Bakkels, meaning sand tarts. Also a Norwegian thing. Seriously, they are great - but when you use a lot of butter, sugar and almonds what is not to love. You make this dough for the sand bakkels and put them in smallish tart tins. You can eat them plain, as Love Man's family does or you can fill them. I filled mine with a dab of nutella.
