In Sweden and other Scandinavian countries, creamy porridge – often made with rice and topped with butter and cinnamon – is commonly enjoyed for Christmas. There are several traditions associated with this Christmas porridge, including the practice of leaving some porridge to thank the tomtes, gnome-like creatures who take care of the household and barn. In The Tomtes’ Christmas Porridge, a human family forgets to leave a bowl of porridge out, so the tomte family come up with a plan to sneak some for Papa Tomte.

Learn more about Scandinavian Christmas traditions in A Swedish Christmas: Simple Scandinavian Crafts, Recipes and Decorations.

1. Preheat the oven to 180 °C (350 °F).
2. Heat the butter, syrup and sugar together on the stove top until the butter has melted. Allow to cool for 5 minutes.
3. Place the flour, spices and bicarbonate of soda in a large bowl. Add the butter mixture, egg and vanilla extract and stir until combined.
4. Divide the dough so each child can join in. Knead each portion on a floured surface.
5. Use a rolling pin to roll the dough to a 1 cm thickness.
6. Use cookie cutters to cut out your biscuit shapes.
7. Decorate with currant buttons and eyes, and the lemon-peel mouth – or you can simply draw on a smile shape with a knife.
8. Place the gingerbread on trays and bake in the oven for about 10 minutes, or until golden brown.
9. Cool on the trays and when solid transfer to cooling racks.