Food & Drink

Heat up those heart-shaped irons: March 25 is Waffle Day

Some say to-may-to, some say to-mah-to.

In Sweden, a slight difference in dialect of the word waffle hundreds of years ago helped start a national holiday dedicated to the warm breakfast treat.

“It’s a day that began because of dialect corruptions,” American Swedish Institute President and CEO Bruce Karstadt told us back in 2016.

In Sweden, March 25 once was known as Our Lady’s Day, a day celebrating the Virgin Mary’s Annunciation. Today it is known as Våffeldagen, or “Waffle Day.”

“How does Mary’s pregnancy become associated with waffles? It’s because of a mispronunciation of the date,” Karstadt continued. “It was long called Our Lady’s Day, which was called ‘Vårfrudagen’ in Swedish. When people from Northern Sweden pronounced it, it came across as ‘Vår Fru’ which is the old Swedish word for waffle, and it eventually became Våffeldagen. That’s somewhat how it happened.”

Swedish waffles often are heart-shaped and have a consistency similar to pancakes because they’re made without yeast. While Americans might associate waffles as a breakfast food, Swedes typically enjoy waffles for snacks and dessert.

Even though countless Swedes will celebrate Waffle Day on March 25, waffles very much are a part of Swedish culture year-round.

“Waffles are a reflection on Scandinavian and Swedish hospitality,” Karstadt told us in 2016. “When people welcome guests into their homes, the host will often whip out the waffle iron and make waffles with jam and cream.”

Those living in the Minneapolis area can get a taste of Våffeldagen at FIKA, the award-winning café at the American Swedish Institute. The café will be churning out both sweet and savory waffles from 11 a.m.-2 p.m.

For everyone else, head on over to Swedish Freak to learn how to make your own Swedish waffles.

Happy Waffle Day!