Most of Orlando, and probably America, knows lingonberry from IKEA.

The fruit, so popular in Scandinavian countries, is available in its market, in jams and such, and in a fountain soft drink, as well.

In fact, a quick Google search turned up a recipe called the IKEA lingonberry old-fashioned, which delivers a Swedish twist on the classic cocktail via lingonberry syrup.

Nordic almond bar, spiced orange cardamom knot and lingonberry streusel bar from Scandi Bakery. Check out the beautiful shortbread crust on the latter. (Amy Drew Thompson/Orlando Sentinel)

This would likely not surprise Sara Ingvardsen, whose Scandi Bakery began churning out traditional Swedish pastries — along with fun, new takes — back in 2023. Her lingonberry streusel bar ($5.50) is one of them.

Its dense and wonderful shortbread base, with a slight hit of orange to balance out its supreme butteriness, serves as a foundation for tart and gooey lingonberry jam and a lovely streusel on top.

“It’s a berry that’s native to Scandinavia,” she explains. “And because so many people know it from IKEA, I thought it would be an awesome one to include.”

She’s not wrong, as familiarity helps bring new customers into the fold. But really, I can’t imagine anyone gazing at the beautiful, sugar pearl-studded spiral of Scandi’s Swedish cinnamon rolls (kanelbullar) and thinking, “Nope. Too foreign.”

That said, they are quite a bit different than their frosting-forward counterparts, which, if you hail from Sweden, might be the ones that look strange.

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Not long ago, a reader whose husband so often missed this favorite from back home turned me on to Scandi via email. Subject header: Wonderful Discovery!! (Yes, two exclamation points.)

“I have a Swedish husband (from Stockholm),” she wrote, “and every time we travel to Sweden, he comments on how he wishes we had ‘real’ Swedish cinnamon buns (kanelbullar) locally.

“I do NOT bake,” she noted.

Fortunately, she found Ingvardsen, who does. A lot. In fact, she does all the pastry for Scandi — all by herself, all by hand.

“[They] are the real thing!!” the reader told me.

I love real things. Real good things. And I have this fun lady to thank.

Swedish maple coffee cake: moist and crumbly and streusel-y and spiced. Two very sticky thumbs up! (Amy Drew Thompson/Orlando Sentinel)

We missed each other by minutes on the night of my visit to Scandi Bakery’s regular spot at Monday night’s Audubon Park Community Market, where I tried literally everything Ingvardsen had in the case.

This included the dense, marzipan-rich Nordic almond bar ($5.50) and the spiced orange cardamom buns ($6).

Also, the absolutely stunning Swedish maple coffee cake ($6), a gorgeous, moist and crumbly hunk of cake with light and lovely streusel and a complex blend of spices. It had me regretting I didn’t hit up Stardust for a coffee before digging into this sweet, Swedish scrum.

If you visit, this would definitely be the strategy I’d recommend. Ingvardsen agrees.

“That would make the perfect fika!” she tells me, explaining the very social, very Swedish tradition.

Scandi Bakery owner Sara Ingvardsen changes out the menu monthly, but a few things are always there — the brown sugar cardamom bun among them. (Amy Drew Thompson/Orlando Sentinel)

“It’s a daily thing, where you take a break for coffee that can be accompanied by a treat,” says Ingvardsen. “It’s usually some type of cinnamon or cardamom bun, but it doesn’t have to be.

“It’s just a time to relax, reflect, be with loved ones. Most often in the afternoon, but it can be any time of day, a way to stop and reflect and set aside the craziness of the world.”

Ingvardsen grew up in Northern California in a community rich with Scandinavian culture. Her great-grandmother was the first to arrive in the States.

“We are Swedish and Danish,” she tells me, “but most of our cooking and baking came from the Swedish side, and she was the family baker. She had a whole family recipe book that was very important to her, very cherished, and she passed that on to my grandmother.”

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Invardsen adored growing up around her family’s heritage. Nearby Solvang, a Danish cultural stronghold in the Santa Ynez Valley, was a place for regular trips. She feels grateful that it was so accessible.

“My childhood was just surrounded by family who lived and breathed the culture,” she says, “and we were all really big on food, making lots of Swedish meatballs and limpa (a classic Swedish rye bread) and pepparkakor (ginger snaps) and all these different meals, around Christmastime especially.”

Scandi’s menu changes monthly, and sometimes Ingvardsen lets followers help choose the new additions. December’s roster, TBD at press time, might feature white chocolate caramel ginger bars, cranberry-orange white chocolate cookies or white chocolate Biscoff cookies, for example, but two favorites always remain.

Scandi Bakery chef/owner Sara Ingvardsen and her heavy-lifting husband, Seaborn Algee, staff the “counter” in their regular spot at Monday’s Audubon Park Night Market. Customers can order in advance for pickup or plan on getting there early if they want the biggest range of options. Scandi sells out pretty quickly! (Amy Drew Thompson/Orlando Sentinel)

“I have to have the Swedish cinnamon rolls and the brown sugar cardamom buns,” she says. “If I don’t, people will be mad.”

It’s a good problem to have, and ideal for folks like my reader, whose husband is now among the many Swedes and Scandinavians who have discovered Ingvardsen’s prime pastry.

There are pockets around the country — in the Midwest, in New York, around San Francisco, near where she grew up — where these treats, essentially the same in countries like Denmark and Norway, are more widely known.

“And there are Swedish bakeries all around Europe where people know them all,” she notes, “but people here in Orlando are learning.”

And the Swedish people here, she says, find them.

Swedish trifecta: clockwise from top left, the Swedish maple coffee cake, Swedish cinnamon bun (kanelbullar) and brown sugar cardamom bun from Orlando’s Scandi Bakery. (Amy Drew Thompson/Orlando Sentinel)

“We get a few at every single market, most recently a man and his daughter. A lot of them didn’t know we existed, but they are so happy to see us.”

Getting the word out has been a high hurdle, says Ingvardsen, who bakes it all at their commissary space, but there have been big wins.

In October, two large orders — one for 1,500 cinnamon buns and another for 950, plus 800 coffee cakes — were a boon. Scandi is happy to field small ones, too, like the 12-bun request of my reader, who enjoyed them (along with some lingonberry and almond bars) last week with some Swedish friends who came to town for a visit.

They’ll be popping up elsewhere throughout December; follow them on social to stay in the know. And if you can’t make the Monday night market early, I’d recommend reaching out via DM on Instagram or through their website and ordering ahead.

By 6:30 pm, Scandi had maybe five items left in the case, IKEA you not.

And with that, (I’ll Swede myself out.)

Want to reach out? Find me on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram @amydroo or on the OSFoodie Instagram account @orlando.foodie. Email: amthompson@orlandosentinel.com. For more foodie fun, join the Let’s Eat, Orlando Facebook group.

If you go

Scandi Bakery: scandiswedishbakery.com; instagram.com/scandibakery; facebook.com/profile.php?id=100095079146746

https://www.orlandosentinel.com/2025/12/04/scandi-bakery-orlando-review-amy-drew-thompson/