The legend tells that Lucia lived towards the end of the third century AD in Sicily, heir of one of most notable families of Syracuse. After the martyrdom she has always been considered the protector of sight and light, and this feature has made it the darling of the North, where light is scarce in winter...
In northern Europe they celebrate the day with less light in the year through her coronation with a crown of fir on which are fixed 12 candles representing the months of the year. On December 12 children cook cookies and offer them to the family in the morning of the 13. The youngest daughter dresses like Santa Lucia wearing a white shirt with a red belt and a crown decorated with many candles, guiding little brothers in a procession that often moves from house to house in the neighborhood, while singing a song entitled Luciasången (which is nothing but the famous song "Saint Lucia" Neapolitan with a Swedish text ... a bit of Italian also here! ).
Nelle città il 12 al tramonto vengono accesi i falò che illuminano la notte fino al tramonto del giorno successivo, e in particolare a Stoccolma viene scelta una "Lucia" che viene incoronata addirittura dal premio Nobel per la letteratura; seguono canti e balli e una celebrazione religiosa. La corona viene poi buttata nel camino e viene allestito un pranzo a base di arrosti, dolcetti speziati e birra.
In cities December 12 at sunset are lit bonfires that light up the night until sundown the next day, and especially in Stockholm is chosen a "Lucia" which is crowned by the Nobel Prize for Literature; in the following everyone sing and dance and there is a religious celebration. The crown is then thrown into the fireplace and a lunch with roast meats, sweets and spicy beer is served.
Questo è un periodo magnifico per visitare la Svezia, la Norvegia e la Danimarca. Al di là della loro presunta freddezza, questi nordici sanno assolutamente come preparare il Natale!
This is a magnificent time to visit Sweden, Norway and Denmark. Beyond their apparent coldness, these Nordics absolutely know how to set up Christmas!
Per entrare anche noi nella 'calda' atmosfera nordica, cuciniamo i loro dolci tipici per questa giornata: i Lussekatter, ovvero le focaccine dolci allo zafferano di Santa Lucia.
To get ourselves in the 'hot' Nordic atmosphere, we may cook their sweets for this day: the Lussekatter, a kind of sweet saffron muffins.
700 g di farina per dolci (ma va bene anche la 00)
200 g di burro
250 ml di latte
150 g zucchero
150 g zucchero
50 g di lievito
sale
1 uovo
1 bustina di zafferano
uva passa
Ingredients:
700 g of flour for cakes (but it's okay also 00)
200 g of butter
250 ml of milk
150 g sugar
50 g yeast
salt
1 egg
1 sachet of saffron
raisins
Ingredients:
700 g of flour for cakes (but it's okay also 00)
200 g of butter
250 ml of milk
150 g sugar
50 g yeast
salt
1 egg
1 sachet of saffron
raisins
Porre il burro in una pentola, farlo fondere, aggiungere latte e zafferano e scaldare fino all'ebollizione. Aggiungere il composto al lievito e poi aggiungere anche gli altri ingredienti, tranne uva e uovo.
Lasciare lievitare l'impasto per 40 minuti. Dividere la pasta in pezzi più piccoli a forma di S, decorare con l'uvetta, precedentemente fatta ammollare, lasciare riposare altri 40 minuti. Spennellare la superficie delle focaccine con l'uovo sbattuto e cuocere in forno caldo a 220 gradi per circa 10 minuti.
Place the butter in a saucepan, melt it, add milk and saffron and heat to boiling. Add this mixture to the yeast and then add the other ingredients except raisins and egg.
Let the dough rise for 40 minutes. Divide the dough into smaller pieces in the shape of S, decorate with raisins, previously done soaking, let stand another 40 minutes. Brush the surface of the scones with the beaten egg and bake in oven at 220 degrees for about 10 minutes.
(Viva Santa Lucia e Buon Natale!)
(Hooray Saint Lucia and Merry Christmas!)
...e auguri alla 'nostra' Lucia!
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