Oh, there’s no way like HYGGE for the holidays…
Unless you’ve been hiding under a woolly blanket—which would be very hygge of you—we’re sure you’ve heard of this before. The word (pronounced hoog-uh) is Danish, and it’s the sort of word, like umami or terroir, that doesn’t translate neatly into one English word. It can be distilled, though, into a collection of emotions, activities and ways of being in the world. It’s about togetherness, breaking bread, lighting a fire, keeping warm and cozy, and buoying one another up through a long, dark, cold winter, Scandi-style.
For Nordic folks, it’s a wintertime way of life: an embracing of winter while at the same time creating a fuzzy shield against it by cooking up some venison stew over a campfire; going for a walk or playing in the snow; locking mittens and gathering together for a little much-needed camaraderie. OK, mittens are unlocked long enough to sip on warming glögg and nibble hearty, heart-warming foods. And while most of us don’t live as far north as our Scandinavian brethren, we aren’t so very different. We too endure some pretty challenging winters and lack of sunlight, and much of our geography, or terroir, is similar—our landscapes and waters offer up many of the same foods—wild and cultivated.
Along with keeping the cold and dark at bay, another vital aspect of surviving a northern winter, and of any hygge get-together, is a good supply of rich and filling food
