Vínarterta (, "

Vienna Vienna ( ; ; ) is the capital city, capital, List of largest cities in Austria, most populous city, and one of Federal states of Austria, nine federal states of Austria. It is Austria's primate city, with just over two million inhabitants. ...

torte") or Randalín, is a popular dessert originating in 19th century Iceland, now popular among the descendants of Icelandic migrants to North America. The recipe has exhibited little change in the past 150 years and is often rigorously preserved by North American makers. Alterations to the recipe are often shunned. Recipes vary slightly from family to family but most vínarterta are multi-layered cakes made from alternating layers of

almond The almond (''Prunus amygdalus'', Synonym (taxonomy)#Botany, syn. ''Prunus dulcis'') is a species of tree from the genus ''Prunus''. Along with the peach, it is classified in the subgenus ''Amygdalus'', distinguished from the other subgenera ...

and/or cardamom-flavoured biscuit and prunes or sometimes plum jam, the filling sometimes including spices such as

cinnamon Cinnamon is a spice obtained from the inner bark of several tree species from the genus ''Cinnamomum''. Cinnamon is used mainly as an aromatic condiment and flavouring additive in a wide variety of cuisines, sweet and savoury dishes, biscuits, b ...

vanilla Vanilla is a spice derived from orchids of the genus ''Vanilla (genus), Vanilla'', primarily obtained from pods of the flat-leaved vanilla (''Vanilla planifolia, V. planifolia''). ''Vanilla'' is not Autogamy, autogamous, so pollination ...

clove Cloves are the aromatic flower buds of a tree in the family Myrtaceae, ''Syzygium aromaticum'' (). They are native to the Maluku Islands, or Moluccas, in Indonesia, and are commonly used as a spice, flavoring, or Aroma compound, fragrance in fin ...

s, and

cardamom Cardamom (), sometimes cardamon or cardamum, is a spice made from the seeds of several plants in the genus (biology), genera ''Elettaria'' and ''Amomum'' in the family Zingiberaceae. Both genera are native to the Indian subcontinent and Indon ...

. Other fillings such as

apricot An apricot (, ) is a fruit, or the tree that bears the fruit, of several species in the genus ''Prunus''. Usually an apricot is from the species '' P. armeniaca'', but the fruits of the other species in ''Prunus'' sect. ''Armeniaca'' are also ...

and

rhubarb Rhubarb is the fleshy, edible stalks ( petioles) of species and hybrids (culinary rhubarb) of ''Rheum'' in the family Polygonaceae, which are cooked and used for food. The plant is a herbaceous perennial that grows from short, thick rhizomes. ...

are less well known, but traditional going back to the 19th century. The cake's history was the subject of a book chapter by historian L.K. Bertram who argues that Icelandic "Vienna torte" came to Iceland from Vienna through Denmark, likely arriving on the far northern island in a Danish cookbook or through a baker connected to Copenhagen sometime after 1793, but it's a debatable issue. Icelandic bakers then revised the recipe to adapt to limited access to imported goods, resulting in a recipe that focused on dried plums, which were more cost effective and could withstand the long trip to Iceland. This recipe was brought to

Manitoba Manitoba is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada at the Centre of Canada, longitudinal centre of the country. It is Canada's Population of Canada by province and territory, fifth-most populous province, with a population ...

by Icelandic

immigrants to Canada According to the 2021 Canadian census, immigrants in Canada number 8.3 million persons and make up approximately 23 percent of Canada's total population. This represents the eighth-largest immigrant population in the world, while the propor ...

, many of whom initially settled at

New Iceland New Iceland ( ) is the name of a region on Lake Winnipeg in Manitoba founded by Icelandic settlers in 1875. The community of Gimli, which is home to the largest concentration of Icelanders outside of Iceland, is seen as the core of New Icela ...

, but can be found throughout Icelandic settlements and households in North America, including the American midwest and the Pacific coast. The cake is now better-known in the Icelandic communities in Canada and the United States than it is in Iceland. The modern Icelandic cake differs from the traditional cake, with common substitutions for the

plum A plum is a fruit of some species in Prunus subg. Prunus, ''Prunus'' subg. ''Prunus'.'' Dried plums are often called prunes, though in the United States they may be labeled as 'dried plums', especially during the 21st century. Plums are ...

jam including cream or strawberries. The cake is typically served in rectangular slices with coffee. It can be iced with

bourbon Bourbon may refer to: Food and drink * Bourbon whiskey, an American whiskey made using a corn-based mash * Bourbon, a beer produced by Brasseries de Bourbon * Bourbon biscuit, a chocolate sandwich biscuit * Bourbon coffee, a type of coffee ma ...

flavored sugar glaze, however some recipes strictly reject the use of liquor, sometimes as a result of strong first wave feminist and temperance sentiment amongst earlier generations of Icelandic women.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Vinarterta Cakes Icelandic cuisine Shortbread Wedding food Christmas cakes Cuisine of Manitoba

See also

References

Further reading

External links