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Johansen, Signe

October 3, 2017 by admin

WORK TITLE: How to Hygge
WORK NOTES:
PSEUDONYM(S):
BIRTHDATE:
WEBSITE:
CITY: Bloomsbury, London, England
STATE:
COUNTRY: United Kingdom
NATIONALITY: Norwegian

https://www.panmacmillan.com/authors/signe-johansen-(1) * http://www.sophiehicksagency.com/signejohansen/

RESEARCHER NOTES:

LC control no.: no2011014179
LCCN Permalink: https://lccn.loc.gov/no2011014179
HEADING: Johansen, Signe
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001 8539315
005 20110128074532.0
008 110127n| acannaabn |n aaa c
010 __ |a no2011014179
035 __ |a (OCoLC)oca08751344
040 __ |a IOrQBI |b eng |c IOrQBI
100 1_ |a Johansen, Signe
670 __ |a The ultimate student cookbook, 2009: |b t.p. (Signe Johansen) p. 9 (Signe (Sig) Skaimsgard Johansen is 28 years old)

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PERSONAL

Born c. 1989.

EDUCATION:

University of Cambridge, bachelor’s degree; attended the Leiths School of Food and Wine; University of London, master’s degree.

ADDRESS

  • Home - London, England.

CAREER

Writer and chef. Cofounder, Spirited Women; director, EastScandi supper club. Has also worked as a cooking instructor and appeared on such television shows as Kirstie’s Handmade Christmas and Sunday Brunch.

WRITINGS

  • (With Fiona Beckett, Guy Millon, and James Ramsden) The Ultimate Student Cookbook, Absolute (Bath, England), 2009
  • Scandilicious: Secrets of Scandinavian Cooking, Saltyard (London, England), 2011
  • Scandilicious Baking, Saltyard (London, England), 2012
  • How to Hygge: The Nordic Secrets to a Happy Life, St. Martin's Griffin (New York, NY), 2017

Contributor of recipes to periodicals, including the Times, Sunday Times, Daily Mail, Stella, and Marie Claire.

SIDELIGHTS

Signe Johansen is a Norwegian cook and writer who has been popularizing Scandinavian food and culture in her adopted country. Johansen moved to England in 1999 to attend the University of Cambridge. After completing her bachelor’s degree in archaeology and anthropology, Johansen attended the Leiths School of Food and Wine in London. She next went to work in several restaurants, and she also returned to the University of London to earn a master’s degree in the anthropology of food. As Johansen noted in an online Balterzens interview, “after university I thought about going to law school, I went to the States and I considered doing a PhD. But none of it made me feel joyous. I wanted to do something that made me happy, and I realised that where I was happiest was in the kitchen.” She added: “I describe myself as a cook, not a chef. I make really simple things. I’m constantly amazed how people try to overcomplicate food. I think people forget that all you need to do is keep it simple, source good ingredients and you can’t go wrong. It’s a very European philosophy. It’s also liberating; the idea of knowing that you can keep things simple, have faith and trust your instincts.”

Johansen has shared her food philosophies as a cooking instructor and as a guest on such television shows as Kirstie’s Handmade Christmas and Sunday Brunch. She has served as director of the EastScandi supper club in London, and her recipes have appeared in such periodicals as the Times, Sunday Times, Daily Mail, Stella and Marie Claire. For her first book, Johansen teamed with With Fiona Beckett, Guy Millon, and James Ramsden to write The Ultimate Student Cookbook in 2009. Johansen released her first solo cookbook, Scandilicious: Secrets of Scandinavian Cooking, two years later. Her follow-up cookbook, Scandilicious Baking, came out in 2012. Next, in 2017, Johansen combined her love of Scandinavian food and culture to write How to Hygge: The Nordic Secrets to a Happy Life.

Commenting on her efforts to promote her native cooking and lifestyle in a Daily Mail Online interview with John Koski, Johansen explained: “We’ve [Scandinavians] been very bad about trumpeting our food heritage, but a new generation of chefs, cooks and food writers in Scandinavia and abroad are putting it on the map. We may not have the same restaurant tradition as France, but we have some really tasty, authentic food which is quite easy to prepare.” The author also told the Balterzens interviewer that “Britain has a love affair with the flavours of the Mediterranean but in terms of the kind of food that is grown here, there’s a lot more in common with Scandinavia. . . . It’s been interesting in the last two years to watch the rise of the new Nordic food movement. The Scandinavian attitude to food isn’t about class or aspirations; it’s a deep-rooted understanding of food and cooking from scratch, using what’s in season or preserving food for use in winter. A lot of chefs have returned to the traditions of pickling, curing and smoking.”

The traditions are evident in How to Hygge: The Nordic Secrets to a Happy Life, which discussed the Danish-Norwegian tradition of Hygge (a word that encompasses feelings of coziness and camaraderie). It’s this practice that helps Norwegians get through the long and dark winters, and it revolves around cooking and spending time with friends, though it really speaks to a philosophy that centers on enjoying the simple pleasures of life. Hygge can mean anything from spending time with family and friends to lighting a candle or exercising outdoors. As Johansen explained, hygge is about balance and  hospitality. Creating a warm and inviting home, and cooking and eating are all part of the hygge lifestyle, and Johansen includes fifty recipes in the book.

Discussing How to Hygge in her Balterzens interview, Johansen remarked: “There’s lots of good data showing that Scandinavia has exceptional standards of living and in this book I’m trying to analyse why. I studied anthropology at university so the idea behind the book is to understand everything in context. It’s too simplistic to look at one element of Nordic living; everything is interlinked.” The author additionally stated that “the book also has elements relating to kinship and community, as well as nature and the outdoors. Everything starts with nature. The hygge mindset is based on the strategies we developed to get us through the long, dark winters.” 

Anne Heidemann praised Johansen’s efforts in Booklist, and she advised: As camaraderie is a defining characteristic of hygge, ideally the preparation of these dishes will be a shared activity.” According to a Publishers Weekly Online columnist, “Johansen’s tone is an embodiment of the [hygge] philosophy: she encourages readers to appreciate the small moments.” Another positive assessment appeared on the Info Cafe: Davenport Public Library’s Reference Blog, and a critic  found that the book “moves past cooking and decorating tips to sections about how connect more with the people we care about . . . In the end, the message is to focus on the little details that make your life warmer and cozier.”

BIOCRIT

PERIODICALS

  • Booklist, January 1, 2017, Anne Heidemann, review of How to Hygge: The Nordic Secrets to a Happy Life.

ONLINE

  • Balterzens, http://www.baltzersens.co.uk/(November 28, 2017), author interview.

  • Daily Mail Online, http://www.dailymail.co.uk/ (November 28, 2017), John Koski, author interview.

  • Info Cafe: Davenport Public Library’s Reference Blog, http://blogs.davenportlibrary.com/ (November 28, 2017),  review of How to Hygge.

     

  • Publishers Weekly Online, https://www.publishersweekly.com/ (November 28, 2017), review of How to Hygge.

  • Signe Johansen Website, http://www.signejohansen.com (November 28, 2017).

  • The Ultimate Student Cookbook Absolute (Bath, England), 2009
  • Scandilicious: Secrets of Scandinavian Cooking Saltyard (London, England), 2011
  • Scandilicious Baking Saltyard (London, England), 2012
  • How to Hygge: The Nordic Secrets to a Happy Life St. Martin's Griffin (New York, NY), 2017
1. How to hygge : the Nordic secrets to a happy life LCCN 2016059131 Type of material Book Personal name Johansen, Signe, author. Main title How to hygge : the Nordic secrets to a happy life / Signe Johansen. Edition First U.S. edition. Published/Produced New York : St. Martin's Griffin, 2017. Description 206 pages ; 23 cm ISBN 9781250122032 (hardcover) CALL NUMBER BD435 .J58 2017 Copy 1 Request in Jefferson or Adams Building Reading Rooms 2. Scandilicious baking LCCN 2012540855 Type of material Book Personal name Johansen, Signe. Main title Scandilicious baking / Signe Johansen ; photography by Tara Fisher. Published/Created London : Saltyard, 2012. Description 223 p. : col. ill. ; 25 cm. ISBN 9781444734676 (hbk.) 1444734679 (hbk.) Shelf Location FLM2015 035024 CALL NUMBER TX763 .J573 2012 OVERFLOWJ34 Request in Jefferson or Adams Building Reading Rooms (FLM2) 3. Scandilicious : secrets of Scandinavian Cooking... LCCN 2011499139 Type of material Book Personal name Johansen, Signe. Main title Scandilicious : secrets of Scandinavian Cooking... / Signe Johansen ; photography by Debi Treloar. Published/Produced London : Saltyard Books, an imprint of Hodder & Stoughton, [2011] ©2011 Description 217 pages : color illustrations ; 26 cm ISBN 9781444703924 (hardback) Shelf Location FLM2015 085794 CALL NUMBER TX722.A1 J64 2011 OVERFLOWJ34 Request in Jefferson or Adams Building Reading Rooms (FLM2) 4. The ultimate student cookbook LCCN 2011286309 Type of material Book Personal name Beckett, Fiona. Main title The ultimate student cookbook / Fiona Beckett with Signe Johansen, Guy Millon and James Ramsden. Edition Repr. Published/Created Bath : Absolute, 2009. Description 288 p. : col. ill. ; 25 cm. ISBN 9781906650070 (pbk.) 1906650071 (pbk.) CALL NUMBER TX652 .B352 2009 CABIN BRANCH Copy 1 Request in Jefferson or Adams Building Reading Rooms - STORED OFFSITE

11/13/2017 General OneFile - Saved Articles
http://go.galegroup.com/ps/marklist.do?actionCmd=GET_MARK_LIST&userGroupName=schlager&inPS=true&prodId=ITOF&ts=1510634506216 1/1
Print Marked Items
How to Hygge: The Nordic Secrets to a Happy
Life
Anne Heidemann
Booklist.
113.9-10 (Jan. 1, 2017): p26.
COPYRIGHT 2017 American Library Association
http://www.ala.org/ala/aboutala/offices/publishing/booklist_publications/booklist/booklist.cfm
Full Text: 
How to Hygge: The Nordic Secrets to a Happy Life. By Signe Johansen. Jan. 2017. 208p. illus. St. Martin's/Griffin,
$19.99 (9781250122032). 641.5.
Hygge is a Danish-Norwegian word that describes a feeling of coziness, kinship, and hospitality. This concept has
recently become popular in the U.S, as people look for ways to enjoy simple pleasures and increase their quality of life.
This book offers a variety of recipes and strategies for making one's life more hygge, including striving for a balance of
sedate and vigorous activities, spending time both in and outdoors, being self-sufficient, welcoming others into one's
home through homemade food and drink, and cultivating a functional and stylish home. Johansen incorporates
inspiration from luminaries such as Henrik Ibsen, Diane Ackerman, Ralph Waldo Emerson, and even Ron Swanson.
The bulk of the book consists of over 50 recipes for snacks, meals, desserts, and drinks. The recipes all have
Scandinavian roots, and the author includes a few sentences with each about her own inspiration. As camaraderie is a
defining characteristic of hygge, ideally the preparation of these dishes will be a shared activity that brings the
participants closer together. Appealing, subdued color photographs illustrate the recipes and concepts.--Anne
Heidemann
Source Citation   (MLA 8th
Edition)
Heidemann, Anne. "How to Hygge: The Nordic Secrets to a Happy Life." Booklist, 1 Jan. 2017, p. 26. General
OneFile, go.galegroup.com/ps/i.do?
p=ITOF&sw=w&u=schlager&v=2.1&id=GALE%7CA479077905&it=r&asid=ef35e71dd724e92734935448d6ec3e23.
Accessed 13 Nov. 2017.
Gale Document Number: GALE|A479077905

Heidemann, Anne. "How to Hygge: The Nordic Secrets to a Happy Life." Booklist, 1 Jan. 2017, p. 26. General OneFile, go.galegroup.com/ps/i.do? p=ITOF&sw=w&u=schlager&v=2.1&id=GALE%7CA479077905&it=r. Accessed 13 Nov. 2017.

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