SMORGASBORD 2025

Joy to the world for you did come to Immanuel’s 2025 Advent Smorgasbord. It was a pleasure to have you in our presence!

 A special “thank you” to those who contributed food, those who made the delicious traditional favorites, our Lutefisk chefs, those who decorated (inside & out), the amazing and very talented musicians and singers, our volunteer youth servers, those who worked behind the scenes, and the very special people who worked on this year’s committee. You all are a blessing!

Proceeds from this year’s dinner, as well as your generous “free will offerings”,  will be dedicated to Salem Lutheran Church.  As Deacon Savannah expressed, “One meal leads to another - Loaves and Fishes style!”.

The volunteer Immanuel youth workers will also receive a dedicated amount that will be added to their Immanuel account to offset expenses aligned with their service ministries.

Thank you again for being present to share the season of hope, peace, joy and love.

SAVE THE DATE FOR 2026:  Friday, December 4th

WHY A SMORGASBORD, WHY LUTEFISK?

Before the Reformation in 1536, lent was observed from the 1st of December to Christmas Day. During lent, Christians were only permitted to eat fish, including on Christmas Eve. Even though the Scandinavians countries have a long coastline, it could be difficult for a lot of people to get hold of fresh fish in time for the festive Christmas dinner. So they found new ways to utilize preserved fish instead. The popular choice was Lutefisk.

To date, Lutefisk is a very unique Scandinavian Christmas tradition. Lutefisk is stockfish that has been soaked in water, placed in lye, and then soaked in water again!  How on earth did someone come up with such a strange idea? And although ‘strange’, Lutefisk is one of the longest standing Scandinavian Christmas traditions, and is considered, by many, to be the original Norwegian/Swedish Christmas dinner.  Many Scandinavians gather annually for a lutefisk dinner, in December, to celebrate Advent and the festive season. Many Scandinavian restaurants have it on their menu as a seasonal speciality.  Its unusual consistency might be a challenge for unaccustomed pallets. There is even division among the Scandinavians, who tend to love it or hate it.

But one thing everyone agrees on is that a lot of magic lies in the delicious side dishes. Do you dare try the most quintessentially Scandinavian Christmas Lutefisk? Whether you love it or hate it, or simply want to try it for the first time, please join us for the delicious side dishes of herring, Swedish meatballs, potato sausage, beets, boiled potatoes, rutabaga, fruit soup, rommegrot, Scandinavian cookies and more.

We look forward to your presence for the traditional Scandinavian dinner followed by beautiful holiday music!

Volunteer Opportunities!

For more information and questions contact Bev Lohs 612-322-2648 or Kari Totall 952-836-4484.