Food & Drink

These Smörgåstårtas Are Too Pretty To Eat

When Maria Ibsen read our article breaking down the savory Swedish sandwich cake that is smörgåstårta, she had to shoot us an email. And boy, are we glad she did.

Ibsen is a Scandinavian who’s been living in the Bay area since 2011. She’s been a chef since 1999, but in 2012, she got her Patisserie and Baking diploma from Le Cordon Bleu in San Francisco and created Ibsen’s Kakes.

And while she doesn’t have a storefront, she definitely has talent. Baking for friends, family and through her online business, Ibsen brings the flavors of Sweden to the United States, and does it beautifully. Literally.

Her email stated that she saw our post and wanted to share some of her sandwich cakes with us. If we’re being truthful, we expected to see a shoddy, homemade attempt at a rather complicated cake.

We were wrong. Very, very wrong.

We have seen many a smörgåstårta, but none like Ibsen’s. They are works of art. Too pretty to eat… almost.

The sandwich cakes have the obvious. Eggs, salmon, shrimp, veggies. But the grandeur is not in the “what” but the “how.” It’s the presentation. The cakes are adorned intelligently and artistically with edible flowers, green herbs and paper-thin, sliced cucumbers twisted in ribbon-like curls. Who knew slices of cheese could look so poetic?

To make your mouth water, or perhaps provide a new art print for your home, here are some photos of Ibsen’s masterpieces.

Aside from museum-worthy smörgåstårtas, Ibsen offers a range of other Swedish baked goods including Princess Cakes, Pepparkaksdeg, Semla, Tosca Cakes, Choklad biskvi and more. While primarily baking for friends and family these days, if you are local to the Bay area, feel free to contact Ibsen at ibsenskakes@gmail.com if you are interested in placing an order.