Fika

 

‘Fika’ by Anna Brones and Johanna Kindvall was a great find! I had never heard of the Swedish tradition of a "kaffe" break with baked goods. After reading the 1st chapter I not only discovered this lovely ritual but that it means so much more. It's an ideal. Check out Wikipedia's entry on Fika here and learn something lovely. I enjoy my afternoon coffee but being an American, and not very familiar with my Swedish roots, it's more of a coffee on the road while doing errands than a relaxing way to unwind and connect. My great grandparents immigrated here from Sweden- came over on a boat, but I never knew them and their ways didn't translate down the generations. I wish I knew more about them and the culture.

This darling little book explains Fika, and gives traditional recipes- some easy and some more involved, but all authentic. I'm pretty excited to start having Fika at least once a week.I think I'll start with the Blackberry Almond Cake. My kids and friends would enjoy it, and think how much money I would save by being home more, and not spending $$ on Starbucks!

Check it out, you might learn to enjoy a slow down yourself. If you already have a ritual of Fika, or maybe something like an English Tea, let me know what you do and what it means to you. We have lost the art of slow food and gathering in homes and slowing down. I'm very aware of it but swept up...I'd like to change this about my life. This book gave me a little inspiration to make a start. It's well-written, clear, has the English and Swedish names and spellings of the goodie recipes and it's simply but sweetly illustrated. I give it a thumbs up!

*This book was given to me free in exchange for an unbiased review by the publisher.