St. Lucia’s Day card from 1916

My Norwegian ancestors arrived in the Midwest in the 1840s and while we are no longer Norwegian when it comes to other traditions, we continue celebrating St. Lucia’s Day.  – Chapter 2, Christmas Surprise

Albert Szent-Gyorgyi at the Santa Lucia feast in Stockholm, Sweden, 1937.

Albert Szent-Gyorgyi at the Santa Lucia feast in Stockholm, Sweden, 1937. Public domain.

Jennifer, a character in The Rock Star’s Wife series, celebrates what her roommate calls an obscure holiday.  How common is St. Lucia’s Day and how is it celebrated?

The holiday is celebrated in Sweden, Norway, and Swedish-speaking parts of Finland on Dec. 13.  The day honors St. Lucia, a girl who was martyred in 304 for taking food to Christians who were hiding in Rome.

On the morning of the 13th, the eldest daughter in the family wears a white dress with a red sash and a crown of candles.  She awakens the family and brings them coffee and pastries.

In some communities, public processions of children are held after dark.  The children parade through town with candles and lanterns while singing songs.  They are led by a girl who has been chosen to represent St. Lucia.

Schools and businesses close early to prepare.

The event marks the beginning of the Christmas season and, because it falls so close to the Winter Solstice, brings light to dark days.

Traditional Holiday Foods

Cookie making must be pretty similar to Lussekatter. – Chapter 7

Saffron buns.

Saffron buns. This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic license.

Traditional foods include ginger snaps, Swedish mulled wine, sweet bread and Lussekatter, a saffron bun.

“The shape you see here is the classic one ‒ the name Lussekatter means ‘Lucia Cats’ which come from the way this shape supposedly looks like a cat’s tail,” Always Use Butter says. “If they’re homemade, they can however come in many different shapes and sizes.”

The buns are made with milk, yeast, butter, saffron and rum.

Click here for a Lussekatter recipe.

Here’s the 4-1-1

This blog is a companion piece to Christmas Surprise available in eBook, paperback and hardcover.  This multi-POV interquel in the Rock Star’s Wife series follows four young adults through one fateful holiday break in the year 2000. Buy now.

To listen to the songs mentioned in The Rock Star’s Wife series, follow The Rock Star’s Wife on Spotify.

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