For all its newly found acclaim, little of the new creations conjured up by the Nordic kitchen can compare with the smooth, refreshing taste of a bowl of koldskål.

 

Unknown beyond our borders, and more than just a runny replacement for vanilla ice cream, koldskål is intrinsically tied to warm summer weather in Denmark.

 

The buttermilk and vanilla dessert, often flavoured with lemon, is unavailable in the winter. Rain reduces sales to near nil. A run on kammerjunkere, a biscuit that is a crucial addition to a well prepared bowl of koldskål, earlier this month caused panic hoarding by some. Others began compiling alternative lists of crunchable items suitable for crumbling over the treat

 

Frozen yoghurts, iced chai, chilled-chinos and other annual fad summer desserts may come and go. Koldskål, however, remains a perennial treat. May it flow in abundance this summer.