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Swedish personality test: What does your cinnamon bun say about you?

October 4th is Cinnamon Bun Day in Sweden, but what does your choice of cinnamon bun say about you?

Published: 4 October 2023 13:31 CEST

Swedish personality test: What does your cinnamon bun say about you?

The most traditional rolled cinnamon buns. Photo: Tina Stafrén/imagebank.sweden.se

The rolled bun

You’re a traditionalist who likes to savour the good things in life and believes that the old classics can’t be beaten by new trends.

You would never queue at a hipster bakery for an overpriced kanelbulle, and you probably got your rolled bun, see the above picture, from the local bakery which has been making them the same way for decades.

You’re most likely going to eat it at 3pm with a strong cup of coffee and no, you won’t be taking a picture of it for Instagram.

The knotted bun

Knotted cinnamon buns. Photo: Henrik Montgomery/TT

You’re always following the latest trends and spent weeks researching the best kanelbulle in your area in preparation for Cinnamon Bun Day.

Appearance is key, and you want your bun to not just taste good, but look good too. You ate it for breakfast rather than a mid-afternoon fika, as you were up at 4am to get in line at the hippest bakery in town to secure your haul.

The iced bun

A less traditional iced bun. Photo: Yosep Sugiarto on Unsplash

Either you’re a bit of an anarchist, or you’re stubborn.

Maybe you grew up eating iced cinnamon buns and you’re not going to let something as minor as moving to Sweden change your habits, even if you had to actively find somewhere selling cinnamon buns the way you like them.

You know these aren’t traditional, and that Swedes will have strong opinions if they see you eating them, but you don’t care. Having said that, you’re still integrated enough to celebrate cinnamon bun day in the first place.

The cardamom bun

Cardamom seeds in a pestle and mortar. Cardamom buns look pretty much exactly like cinnamon buns, anyway. Photo: Henrik Montgomery/TT

You consider yourself to be a bit edgy and different, and had to specifically ask for a cardamom bun on cinnamon bun day to stand out from the crowd.

A few people raised their eyebrows at you when you said “oh actually, I don’t really like cinnamon buns”, but you’re just enjoying the opportunity to show off your mature, more developed tastes, and the fact that you’re not like everyone else.

The homemade bun

Who cares if they don’t look as good, they sure taste good. Photo: Fredrik Sandberg/Scanpix/TT

You don’t do things by halves – you would never dream of buying a cinnamon bun from a bakery when you can make them at home, and carrying on family traditions is important to you. Your cinnamon bun recipe was probably handwritten on a piece of paper by your grandmother decades ago, and you make it religiously each year to honour her memory (even if you secretly think it’s a bit too sweet).

You consider yourself to be thrifty, and although your homemade buns may not be cheap you still convince yourself you’re saving money as your batch of 12 homemade buns is still cheaper than buying a dozen from the nearest bakery.

The healthy bun

They taste just like normal cinnamon buns, I swear… Photo: Fredrik Sandberg/TT

You’re disciplined, and you’re not going to let something as trivial as cinnamon bun day mess up your strict diet, so to stop yourself from feeling like you’re missing out, you make a batch of “kanelbullar” from blended dates and cashew nuts.

You also have strong willpower and convince yourself that the beige cinnamon-flavoured mush – which, to be fair, actually is quite tasty – is just as good as a cinnamon bun, and can’t understand why none of your colleagues are convinced when you try handing them out at work.

The ‘this will do’ bun

They’re buns, they’re cinnamon flavoured, they’re good enough. Photo: Udo Schröter/Creative Commons

You’re busy and you’ve got more important things to be doing than whipping up a batch of cinnamon buns or taking the time out of your busy schedule to queue up at a bakery.

You barely remembered it was cinnamon bun day at all as your mind was on other things, but a sign at the local petrol station reminded you when you were filling up your car. You grab a bag of gifflar from the rack and figure that they’re better than nothing.

The alternative bun

You start off your day with cinnamon bun porridge. Photo: Food Photographer | Jennifer Pallian on Unsplash

You’re committed and creative – you’re going to make the most of cinnamon bun day by consuming cinnamon in as many ways as you can think of.

You start off the day with cinnamon bun porridge, before making up a cinnamon bun protein shake and heading to the gym. You swing by your local coffee shop for a cinnamon bun latte before work, where you eat your first actual cinnamon bun of the day.

By lunchtime, you’re already sick of cinnamon, but you remind yourself that cinnamon bun day is only once a year and plough through at least four more cinnamon-flavoured dishes before relaxing with a nice cinnamon-scented candle in the evening before bed.

The freebie bun

The best tasting cinnamon bun is the one someone else paid for. Photo: Allis Nettréus/SvD/TT

You’re an opportunist, and you know how to find a good deal. You knew you didn’t actually have to buy your own cinnamon buns today, as you could count on other people (probably your colleagues or your boss) to buy a load for the office.

As you eat your bun – it doesn’t matter what style it is, you’ll take anything you can get – you realise it tastes even better when you know you didn’t pay for it yourself.

The ‘just one more’ bun

It’s only cinnamon bun day once a year… Photo: Susanne Walström/imagebank.sweden.se

You are a hedonist who believes the most important thing in life is to enjoy yourself, so you have accepted the fact that this is a day where you can indulge to your heart’s desire.

You’ve already eaten two cinnamon buns before arriving at work before you realise your colleagues have also supplied buns for the office. Well go on then, just one more…

The reluctant bun

Would anyone like my cinnamon bun leftovers? Photo: Magnus Carlsson/imagebank.sweden.se

You’re a worrier, but you want to fit in, so you reluctantly say yes to the offer of a cinnamon bun despite not actually wanting to eat one at all as you think it’s too unhealthy. Maybe you try and find someone to share with, or you actively look for the smallest one on the plate.

You tell yourself you’ll muster up the courage to say no next year, but secretly know you’re just going to do the same thing all over again (and you’re actually fine with it, as the cinnamon bun you ate was pretty good, to be honest).

The non-observer

You can still enjoy a cup of coffee without eating a cinnamon bun. Photo: Jessica Gow/Scanpix/TT

You’re confident and you don’t care too much about what people think.

You’re not planning on celebrating cinnamon bun day this year for whatever reason – be it health, allergies, or even that you don’t particularly like cinnamon buns – and you’re fine with people’s confused questions.

You know what’s best for you, and you’re sticking to it, even if that does mean you won’t be eating any sticky buns this year.

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How to grow your own fruits and vegetables in Sweden

Know your growing zone

Sweden is split into eight different growing zones, known as växtzoner in Swedish, with one being the mildest zone in the far south of the country and eight being the harshest, in the far north.

The easiest way to figure out which zone you live in is to search your address on a digital growing zone chart like this one from the Swedish Garden Association.

There are two “bonus” zones too, which you’re unlikely to see on plant labels: zone zero, which refers to extra mild conditions in zone one, like a sheltered south-facing garden or the climate inside an unheated greenhouse, and the fjällzon or zone nine, which is found in mountain regions.

Lots of fruit trees can handle snow, for example, but not all of them will survive the winters in harsher, colder zones.

“Apple trees or fruit trees will survive snow,” British gardener and cider maker John Taylor, known for presenting Swedish gardening show Trädgårdstider (Garden Times), told The Local.

“You can grow all kinds of apples, pears, plums, cherries, we can grow edible quince in southern Sweden, so there’s a bunch of fruit trees which will survive, but it depends what rootstock they’re on – that’s called grundstam in Swedish,” he explained.

“There’s one rootstock called B9 that survives down to minus 40, because it’s from Russia, then there’s another called M106, and that probably doesn’t want to live in the depths of Norrland.”

Buy plants local to you

An easy way to make sure the plant you’re planning on buying is going to survive in your zone is by sourcing it from a local plant nursery or garden centre, as they won’t sell plants that can’t handle the local climate.

“There’s a nursery in the north of Sweden and Finland called Blomkvists, they sell lots of fruit varieties which will survive up there,” Taylor said. “You can grow pretty much anything you want up there, just as we can [in Skåne, southern Sweden], but it will be different varieties that taste different and will survive the frost.”

You won’t be able to grow Mediterranean fruits like lemons or oranges in Sweden unless you bring them inside during the winter, although you should be able to grow peaches or nectarines in most of the country.

“The further up in the country you go, the further north you are or the further away from the coast, the harsher the climate becomes, so you might need to have them on a south-facing wall or in a greenhouse,” Taylor said.

Think outside the box

Although the growing season in Sweden may be shorter than it is further south, there are still a number of crops from warmer climates that do surprisingly well.

“People don’t really grow cucumbers outside here, I don’t think they realise that you can actually grow them outside,” Taylor said. “Tomatoes, too. You don’t need a greenhouse, you just stick them in the ground, they’re basically a weed – you’ll get so many you won’t know what to do with them.”

Sweetcorn, for example, performs well in a Swedish climate, Taylor said, although Swedes more often grow it as a feed crop for pigs.

You can also test things by trying to build a microclimate so you can grow things that are one or even two growing zones away from yours. Usually this is done by providing shelter from the wind and the weather using fences, hedges or by planting near buildings, as well as providing protection during the winter.

And if you’re pushed for space, look into companion planting, where you can grow multiple plants which complement each other in the same space.

One example of this is the “three sisters”: corn, climbing beans (or peas), and squash. The corn provides a support for the beans or peas, which anchor the corn in high winds while fixing nitrogen in the soil, while the squash’s large leaves provide shade for the soil, preventing it from drying out.

Don’t be put off just because you don’t have any outside space

Thinking outside the box applies to balconies too.

“If you’re in a built-up area, you will get reflected light from other buildings, so even if you’re on an east-facing balcony, you should be able to grow a lot of stuff. North is a bit more tricky, but east and west are probably better than south as you’re not getting hammered by the sun all day,” Taylor said.

You should be able to grow things like tomatoes, cucumbers and flowers, but it’s important to get hold of good soil and replenish it each year, so your plants have enough nutrients.

“Anybody with a balcony can grow pretty much the same that you can in a garden, you just have to get the soil up there and you always have to fertilise, the soil becomes nutrient deficient after one season.”

“But if you’re prepared to get the soil up on your balcony you can grow anything, even fruit trees. They will be smaller and stunted, and won’t give as much fruit – I’ve done it myself – so don’t see it as an obstacle, see it as a possibility.”

Kale and tomatoes growing on a balcony. Photo: Johan Nilsson/TT

Take inspiration from Swedish growers

Thinking outside the box doesn’t mean that you should completely ignore what all your Swedish neighbours are doing. If you’re not sure what to plant in your garden or what fruit and veg you should try to grow, take a look at what other people who live near you are growing.

You might also come across some crops you’ve never tried before which work well in a Swedish climate, like Alpine strawberries (smultron), honeyberries (blåbärstry), wild garlic (ramslök) or sea buckthorn (havtorn).

This doesn’t just apply to varieties, but also where you plant them in your garden. Some crops need full sun, some work best in shade, and others, like asparagus, can grow tall and cast a shadow over your garden.

“You want a south-facing location for all fruit, and berries – check out what your neighbours are doing,” Taylor said.

If you don’t want tall plants to cast a shadow over other crops, see if you can plant them at the northernmost edge of your garden, while making sure that sun and soil conditions are still optimal. Blueberries, for example, need acidic soil to thrive, meaning you will probably need to amend your soil if planting in the ground, or even plant them in containers.

Think about what you want to do with your harvest

This may seem obvious, but it’s important to plant what you like to eat, too. If you hate the aniseedy, licorice-y taste of fennel, why bother growing it?

You should also choose the variety of crop based on what you’re going to use it for. Do you want to make pickles with your cucumbers, or are you going to eat them on salads? Do you want cherry tomatoes for snacking on, or big beef tomatoes for making sauces?

“Think ‘what am I going to do with my harvest’,” Taylor said. “Am I going to juice it? Am I going to preserve it? Am I going to make cider with it, for example?”

Apples, for example, can range from sweet eating apples to tart cooking apples, so make sure you do your research before you commit to buying an apple tree. Most varieties exist in English-speaking countries, so you should be able to search the name of the variety online and find some information in a language you understand, if you don’t speak Swedish.

“Patience is a virtue,” he added. “A lot of fruit trees are going to take two or three years, or even more, to give a harvest. So you have to have patience.”

Learn to deal with the Swedish weather

Many areas of Sweden along the coast or in the south of the country can get windy, which you’ll have to learn to deal with.

“How to deal with the wind? You can’t,” Taylor said. “We cannot affect this, we are powerless.”

“What you have to do is plant them in areas where there’s less wind, usually behind large buildings.”

Some plants simply won’t survive the wind, so either you plant them close to buildings, protect them, or accept that you’re restricted in what you can grow.

Make sure to provide supports for crops which will grow tall, like sunflowers, peas, beans and sweetcorn, and tie these down well or bury them deep in the ground, so summer storms can’t blow them away.

Listen to the full interview with John Taylor in The Local’s Sweden in Focus Extra podcast for Membership+ subscribers. Out on Wednesday, May 8th.

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