I was thinking the other day that grammar doesn´t necessarily has to be a pain in the ass. I have noticed that you guys go crazy for sweets and cakes. So let´s practice Swedish imperative form in the best way we can. They often say “Learning by doing”. So your homework for now is to practice the imperative form by making a a simple but very popular and delicious Swedish cake called Kladdkaka. There are very many different ways to make it, but let´s start with a simple one, since sometimes the simplest things are the most delicious. Suggest the recipe exercise for your Swedish teachers! If you have a kitchen at school it will be a great way of learning it.

By reading recipes you will understand how the imperative form functions in grammar. Use the imperative form when giving instructions or orders. You don´t have to be careful with imperative in Swedish as much as in English. In English it can be a bit impolite but in Swedish it is often considered as a request.

Some of the imperative forms have the same form as the infinitive forms. So how will you know that it is called köp! (buy!) in imperative form but köpa (to buy) in infinitive form or arbeta! (work! and to work) in both imperative and infinitive form?

Well, you should learn that the infinitive forms ALWAYS end with a vowel no matter what. You use them after modal verbs like (vill,ska, måste, borde etc. åka/dricka/be/så/bo/fly.) and the word “att”/”to” (att köra/to drive, att göra/to do, att dricka/to drink, att dansa/to dance, att be/to ask/pray, att dö/to die, att fly/to escape etc) Note the vowels in the end!!!

You can compare this with Marcus post on Imperative so you can tell the difference between these two tenses.

Ingredienser: (If you are unsure about the meanings of these words, use an online dictionary like nordstedts online)

150 gram smält smör (150 g melted butter)
3 dl socker

1 dl kakao
2 tsk (tsp) vaniljsocker
2 st ägg
2 dl mjöl
ströbröd

Gör så här! (Do like this!)

1. Sätt ugnen på 175 grader. (Preheat the oven to 175 C)

2. Smält smöret och låt det svalna av. Blanda i resten av ingredienserna. Ta ett ägg i taget. Avsluta med mjölet. (Melt the butter and let it cool. Mix the rest of the ingredients. Take one egg at a time. Finish with the flour.)

3. Smöra och bröa en form, gärna med löstagbar kant och häll i smeten. (Grease and bread a cake tin with removable side and pour the batter into it.)

4. Grädda i nedre delen av ugnen i cirka 10-20 minuter (beroende på vilken konsistens du vill ha). (Bake in the bottom of the oven for 10-20 minutes.)

5. Servera kakan med grädde eller glass och några jordgubbar. (Serve the cake with cream or ice-cream and some strawberries.)

Hoppas det smakar!