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Finnish Christmas

Before Christmas

Certain preparations need to take place before Christmas. The Christmas cards are sent, the presents made or bought. The Advent calendar is carefully chosen to please the youngest in the family. Children, and perhaps adults too, write Santa Claus a letter with their wishes for this years presents. In the kitchen the Christmas cookies, pies, casseroles, herring in various sauces and the home made beer are prepared and handily stored until it is Christmas. Before the Christmas tree can be carried in and decorated, the house has to be completely cleaned. You may not forget a single corner, because Joulutonttus, the Christmas elfs, notice really everything. A lot of people even have special Christmas curtains to make sure their house is totally ready for Christmas.

Finnish Christmas Food

With Christmas Finns love to gather around the table with their family and eat. The Christmas dinner consists of many traditional dishes and takes a lot of time and effort to prepare. Maybe that's why they eat the Christmas dinner day after day, sometimes even more than once a day. So much trouble, but in the end good food and excellent company, why not enjoy it to the fullest.

Interesting and very typical Finnish Christmas dishes are the casseroles: Porkkanalaatikko, carrot casserole is rice porridge, carrot and some spices of your own, like nutmeg. Maksalaatikko has rice porridge, minced liver and raisins in it. And lanttulaatikko, swede root casserole is cooked swede with syrup. After some time in the oven the casserole is ready. And luckily for the little lazy kitchen princesses among us warming up these casseroles the next day only makes them taste even better.

The Finns don't have a turkey but a big Christmas ham that is slowly baked in the oven for hours. Some cover it with rye dough, some with mustard, every family has its own recipe. Herring is served in various sauces. And of course there is rosolli, a salad with pickle, potato, onion, apple, red beet, peas and a dressing.

Jouluaatto

The Finnish Christmas starts the 24th, that day is called Jouluaatto.

In the morning the cooking and cleaning get the finishing touch and the tree is carried in and decorated. Not only the house needs to be clean to welcome the Christmas: when everything is done the sauna is ready. Lunch is rice porridge with one almond in it. The lucky one who gets the almond can make a wish.

Traditionally the Finns bring a so-called Christmas greeting to family and friends. Often it is a basket of flowers. With the fall of darkness candles are brought to the family graves. Cemeteries look like a beautiful magical sea of light.

In the evening it is time for the long and leisurely Christmas dinner and after it, when the children really cannot take the suspense anymore, Santa finally comes with the presents.

Christmas tree

You can buy the Christmas tree, but of course the nicest is if you can go to the forest and find your own. After cutting your own tree, it needs a couple of days in a shed to dry from the snow and get used to being in the warmth. In the morning of Jouluaatto it is carried inside to be decorated. The decorations are more or less traditional and don't change colour and shape every year. Red, white, silver and gold together with natural materials like straw are used for the tree decorations in a modest quantity. The main idea is still to be able to see the actual tree. Sometimes tiny Finnish flags are used, as well as chocolate balls that are eaten the 1st of January.

Joulupukki and Tonttus

Of course everybody knows Santa Claus, Joulupukki, and that he lives lives in Finland, in Korvatunturi. But who are the little guys called Joulutonttu? They are the helpers of Santa, small, hundreds of years old, long bearded, invisible and wearing pointy red caps.

They keep an eye on everything, especially for Santa Claus. That's how he knows who has been good and who deserves to get presents at Christmas. The Tonttus are everywhere, always, but before Christmas you really feel their presence. Which can be almost unbearable for the children who are not quite that sweet all the time. Every once in a while you hear parents warn: 'watch out the Tonttu might be looking'. And they write every single detail about you in their big book that contains your whole history.

The Tonttus also keep an eye on things happening around the house and somehow manage to prevent bad things from happening. It is important to treat the Tonttus with utmost respect even if you can't see them. With a good household Tonttu your house never sets on fire, food never gets burned let alone minor details like pets peeing on your couch and disappearing keys.

When I was small I hung my letter to Santa on the outside wall of the house under the window. And waited eagerly for the Tonttu to pick it up. Of course I never saw him, because nobody ever does! But in the morning I always saw the tiny footprints in the snow under the window where he clearly had been looking inside, and my letter was gone!

Hyvää Joulua! Merry Christmas!