Creamy Langoustine Soup (Humarsúpa)

Icelandic home cook Þorgerður Gunnarsdóttir serves ptarmigan, or wild grouse, with a sweet-tart sauce made with thyme and bilberries. Here, we substitute blueberries, a slightly sweeter cousin of bilberries. See the recipe for Christmas Grouse with Berry Sauce »

Icelandic home cook Kjartan Ólafsson serves this baked cod dish drizzled with a luscious sauce of butter and chopped hard-boiled eggs at Þorláksmessa, Saint Thorlak’s mass on December 23. Get the recipe for Cod with Egg and Butter Sauce »

Venison is a great substitute for the traditional reindeer meat in this rustic cranberry-and-pistachio-studded terrine.

Cookbook author Nanna Rögnvaldardóttir braises ruby red cabbage with warm spices, fruit, and jam for this festive, sweet-tart side dish that rounds out an Icelandic Christmas menu. Spiced Cabbage with Blueberries (Kryddað Rauðkál með Bláberjum) »

A classic Christmastime side dish in Iceland, these butter-and-sugar-glazed potatoes are ubiquitous on many Icelandic holiday tables. Any small, waxy potato will do. Get the recipe for Caramel-Glazed Potatoes »

Made of a thin, waferlike dough, this crisp flatbread is a holiday tradition in Iceland. Get the recipe for Leaf Bread (Laufabrauð) »

Slow baking gives this loaf, from Nanna Rögnvaldardóttir’s Icelandic Food and Cookery (Iðunn, 2014), its dense crumb and deep color. See the recipe for Icelandic Dark Rye Bread »

This special-occasion cake features layers of cardamom-scented shortbread baked until golden and lightly crisp, sandwiching homemade prune filling under a thin coffee glaze.

Cornflakes bring a pleasing crunch to these fluffy, chewy chocolate meringues.