The Finnish culture is very passionate about their cuisine and how they prepare their food for every meal! When I first moved to Helsinki, I realized that the Finnish environment does not allow for normal vegetables to grow because of the cold terrain. In Finland, the markets sell seasonal produce and local pastries from recipes that have been passed down for generations! Therefore, the Finns like to get creative about what they eat and prepare based on the environment: such as fish, traditional Finnish pies, root vegetables and reindeer. When the Finns sit down after preparing a hearty Finnish meal, they say: "Nauti ateriastasi!" - which means, enjoy your meal!
My favorite food that I have tried so far in Finland is called, the Karelian pie! It is a perfect breakfast pastry that pairs nicely with the ever-so-popular Finnish coffee. These pastries originated from the east of Finland from a town called, "Karelia!" These pies are served warm and are often topped with a Finnish favorite: egg butter (mashed egg and butter mixed together with salt). The crust was traditionally made with rye flour and filled with potatoes, rice or carrots. These pies can be found in every grocery store, but my favorite place to get these for breakfast is at my favorite pastry shop two blocks away from my apartment! Yum!
