I worked at a hospital in central Massachusetts back in the 80’s - the community had a large Finnish population. The secretary in our clinic was Finnish, and I remember the delicious spicy bread she would bring to share with us at Christmas. I never attempted to try making it myself, although she gave us all the recipe for it.
Pulla, I think? Made with cardamom?
I think cardamom is right - not a spice I was familiar with then and not a spice I use much now because I am so not into baking.
Thanks for all of this Phoenikia. I’m marking the lohikeitto - probably won’t wait until next winter to try. Loved the story from Saveur (what ever happened to RedJim I wonder).
I’ve read somewhere there are some Finns from the upper Midwest who are winter Texans, gathering down in the Rio Grande Valley. They’re still here when St. Urho’s day rolls around (probably getting pretty balmy by then in RGV) and they gather usually at a Tex-Mex restaurant for a celebration 
. I wondered if maybe they ordered grasshoppers, but, no, that’s Mexican, not Tex-Mex. Maybe there’s purple beer.
I have Swedish ancestry, not Finnish, but I love reading about any Scandinavian cuisines.
I went to the Finnish Labour Temple & Hoito Restaurant when I was in lovely (and I’m NOT being sarcastic or facetious) Thunder Bay, ON. The structure(s) seem to have burned down in 2021, however. I loved western Ontario and I love Toronto as well.
Yes, the Hoito and Finnish pancakes are a big deal for Thunder Bay. Very popular with people from Thunder Bay. A classmate from Thunder Bay, who left 30 years ago, still makes them.
The Hoito is currently operating out of the Market. The FB page is active and they’re serving food. https://m.facebook.com/HoitoRestaurant
I hope to visit Thunder Bay at some point. I’ve passed through on the train to Alberta twice but I have not stopped over.
I am impressed that you visited western Ontario!
Small world. Amy Rosen, a Canadian food writer who wrote this article for Bon Appetit, is my family friend’s close friend.
You’re welcome.
I’m glad to see the restaurant is still operating. I drove to Thunder Bay from Duluth, MN , then across Ontario to International Falls, MN and back down to Duluth, MN where I returned the retain car and flew back to where I was living at the time, Portland, OR (via Minneapolis/St. Paul).
I’ve been to a wide variety of Canadian cities/places:
Vancouver (3 times)
Calgary (twice)
Edmonton
Banff
Lake Louise
Moraine Lake
Columbia Glacier
Thunder Bay (and numerous towns in western Ontario)
Toronto
&
Quebec City
Toronto and Quebec City were my favorite cities. I hope I can visit Montreal one day and the Atlantic Maritime provinces as well.
The Hoito! That brings back memories. I’ve been to Thunder Bay a few times and have had Hoito’s famous pancakes. They were really good! The place used to get quite crowded on the weekend.
@brucesw I made that delightful lohikeitto a couple of times, thanks to @MunchkinRedux’s post in WFD. Definitely do NOT wait until the next winter. It is sofa king good!
I really oughta make it again before spring hits hard…
Thanks. i don’t follow WFD so hadn’t seen it. Looks even more enticing than the posted article above.
Probably pulla, aka Finnish coffee bread, Nisu, Finnish biscuit, etc. very popular with Christmas and St. Urho’s Day. Large loaves braided in trinity.
Finn Fest in Duluth, July 24-28!
I believe @AD1 drew @MunchkinRedux’s attention to Lohikeitto, that’s why I included the Not Your Common Salmon link from July 2023. @munchkinredux definitely has posted beautiful Lohikeittos in WFD, which has led to others making the dish.
I looked at a dozen different Lohikeitto recipes online yesterday. 
I was trying to find some from Finnish bloggers.
There are some different methods, in terms of when one adds the salmon or potatoes.
Lohikeitto on HO search results
Kalakeitto is fish soup, broader category.
Probably cuz I left out the carrots and added fennel instead. I still can’t wrap my head around having carrots with salmon… but maybe it’s just me 
Thanks again. I gave up on WFD because the portions shown are off-putting to me. I can’t possibly think about eating like that. I see I’ve been missing quite a lot though.
