This project started as a compilation of recipes for Christmas but as I started thinking about the relevance of cooking Finnish laatikkos in the Southern hemisphere I discovered there was a whole lot more behind it than just food. This became a journey into the personal history of my family’s immigration from Finland to Australia that inevitably encompasses our local community. My hope was to resolve a sense of duplicity that I grew up with and find an understanding of my own identity within society. And of course finally pin down some of my favourite family recipes and enjoy the smells and flavors that truly made Christmas.