The Finnish Cookbook: Finland's Best-Selling Cookbook Adapted for American Kitchens Includes Recipes for Sour Rye Bread, Bishop's Pepper Coo

by Beatrice Ojakangas

Book Overview

From the Crown Classic Cookbook series--which features a collection of the world's best-loved international cookbooks, specially adapted for use in American kitchens. This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0517501112
• ISBN13: 9780517501115
• Release Date: December 1964
• Publisher: Clarkson Potter Publishers
• Length: 256 Pages
• Weight: 0.98 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.9" x 5.8" x 8.5"

Customer Reviews

A delightful cookbook

I am interested in international cuisine. Not only does one learn new recipes and techniques but when the book is well written a lot about the people and culture in general. This book excels in all aspects. Worth a thorough read. You will dine well.

Finnish Home Cooking: The Real Thing

This book is an introduction to the Finnish kitchen. Ojakangas, a second generation Finnish-America, learned some traditional Finnish dishes from her grandmother. But when her husband was awarded a Fulbright grant in Finland for 1960-61, she was able to get make an intensive study of Finnish food culture. She discovered how some of the dishes she had learned to make as a child had roots deep in Finland, while others were presumably American creations. In this collection of recipes, Ojakangas focuses on the foods found on Finnish tables, although she does include some of the Finnish American traditions that have become standard in Finnish-American culture. The book makes fascinating reading, for Ojakangas provides not only the common recipes, but she also includes with each recipe a brief description of how the dish fits into the context of the daily diet. Rather than following the standard American cookbook organization of appetizers and soups, main dishes, sides dishes, and desserts, Ojakangas pay close attention to which types of foods are most important for Finns and how they are used together. With this in mind, the book begins with breads, moves on to the coffee table (mainly cookies and cakes), pastries (both sweet and savory), soups, fish, meat dishes (heavy on the liver, pork, and sausage, and very little chicken), vegetables and salads (mostly roots, very little greenery), desserts (fruit soups and porridges), dairy and eggs, beverages, sauces, and sandwiches (open-faced). At the end of the book is a chapter with suggested menus for special occasions and a selected reading list and bibliography. This is the best and most authentic Finnish cookbook that I've come across in English. I've tried out a few Finnish American cookbooks, and although their recipes may be tasty, they often are distinctly American in flavor, with many more ingredients like green vegetables than one would ever find in Finland. In this book, we find recipes for all the Finnish standards, for everything from kalakukko to maksalaatikko, from mämmi to sima. Ojakangas provides both the Finnish and English names for each dish; although the Finnish is generally quite accurate, there are a few typos. (I stared at "valdemariisi" for quite some time before I realized it should have been written "vadelmariisi", or raspberry rice.) The culinary descriptions make this book great reading for anyone contemplating visiting or living in Finland for an extended period. I sure wish I had read it before heading off to study in Finland as an exchange student. The first week I arrived in the country, my host-mother showed me around the kitchen and told me to make myself at home. Then she went off to work in Helsinki for the week, and I was left to fend for myself along with her teenage daughters. By the end of the week, I was starving, having consumed all the food that was familiar to me in the first few days. When my host-mother returned from Helsinki and heard tha

A great find!

My husband had a copy of this cookbook when we married, and once I discovered and began using it... wow, what a treasure! It doesn't have photos or illustrations, but then, if you think about it, our ancestors didn't have the benefit of such, either. I think the book stands strong on its own, without them. There are a lot of great recipes within - even if I have no idea how to pronounce them. :) I've found a few really good ones which are really helpful for lowcarb eating, as well.I love this book!

A Great Book, brought back a lot of memories.

I first visited Finland over 10 years ago and while I was there, I sampled a lot of the unique Finnish cuisine. Unfortunately, when I returned home, I couldn't find any recipes in any books for dishes such as the Karelian Rice Piirakkaa, spinach pancakes or a vegetable filled meat ring I had tasted while I was there. It wasn't until a few years ago that I found this book and it contained all of the recipes that I had been looking for and so many more:) Beatrice Ojakangas is the queen of recipe books in my opinion. Her personal anecdotes and background information is invaluable to anyone who wants to know more about Finland and Finnish cooking. I very highly recommend this book:)

Far beyond mere recipes, a primer of Finnish culture

This excellent collection of the unique foods common to the uncommon people of Finland not only offers easy, American (not metric) measure recipes. Along with the cooking, the author provides a rich cultural background for many of the dishes, especially for holiday events. Having married a Finn, I have also enjoyed hearing her describe the memories she attaches to some of these hearty foods from the Land of the Midnight Sun.