Brontë Aurell’s ‘The Scandinavian Year’ Released
Brontë Aurell’s new book, ‘The Scandinavian Year’ is now available to order. To celebrate its release, ScandiKitchen Victoria—owned by Brontë herself—hosted a cozy get-together.
Brontë is a Danish entrepreneur, restaurateur, and cook. Alongside her Swedish husband Jonas, she founded ScandiKitchen in 2007. Both missed the flavours of home and wanted to create a space where fellow Scandinavians could find the foods they grew up with. Today, ScandiKitchen offers dishes and ingredients from Sweden, Denmark, Norway, and Finland.
‘The Scandinavian Year’ is a journey through the seasons, featuring over 140 pan-Scandinavian recipes and essays on food traditions and seasonal celebrations. Written ten years after her first book, Brontë revisits favourite dishes, updates beloved recipes, and reflects on life as a Scandinavian cook raising a family outside her homeland. Composed during the year following the loss of her mother, Lena, the book explores themes of grief, motherhood, identity, belonging, and the comforting power of food. Brontë described it last night as “all my passions—culture, food, and family”.
It’s structured month-by-month, making it an accessible and engaging companion throughout the year. I was able to flip through the book and was taken away by the beautiful photography -shot by Pete Cassidy with styling by Kathy Kordalis and Tony Hutchinson. Even without reading it fully, the images suggest a story told through setting: a cabin in winter, a table laid with care, flowers in bloom, and a fire glowing gently at dusk.
ScandiKitchen Victoria is a cozy café with plenty of seating and a small retail section. The Fitzrovia location’s cafe is larger with over 600 goodies from across Scandinavia.
At ScandiKitchen the menu changes daily, offering pastries, homemade cakes, breakfast items, open sandwiches, salads, and of course—meatballs and hotdogs. We tried some mini open sandwiches—my favourite was the potato and garlic on rye, followed by Vasterbotten on rye (a Swedish hard cheese). Known as husmanskost, or “farmer’s fare,” this kind of food is natural, unfussy, and deeply rooted in tradition. I also sampled Tuborg, a Danish dark lager, which was smooth and had caramel notes.
Brontë has now written 9 books in 10 years- an impressive feat. Her previous books include ‘ScandiKitchen’ (everyday dishes), ‘Fika & Hygge’ (baking), the mini book ‘Hygge’ (on finding space for connection), ‘North’ (Scandinavian culture and daily life), ‘ScandiKitchen Summer’ and ‘ScandiKitchen Christmas’. With ‘The Scandinavian Year’ joining the collection, you’re bound to find a recipe that speaks to you.
With Christmas around the corner, ‘The Scandinavian Year’ makes a thoughtful (and delicious) gift. Whether you’re Scandinavian or simply curious, this book—and the café—offer a delicious window into Scandinavian culture.
Address: ScandiKitchen Victoria, 42 Buckingham Palace Road, SW1W0RE
Website: https://www.scandikitchen.co.uk/scandikitchenvictoria/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/scandikitchen
