In the Kitchen with Barnesklubb: Aebleskivers - Eva Varga

In our home, the second Thursday of each month is all about Scandinavia.   This is the day our Barnesklubb (Scandinavian Kids Club) gathers to explore the culture and language of our shared ancestry.  Throughout the year we engage in a variety of activities – including weaving, Rosemaling, Orienteering, and painting.  This week, we made progress towards our Cultural Skills pin in Traditional Norwegian Cooking as we learned how to make aebleskiver.

This post contains affiliate links. 

According to Wikipedia, Æbleskiver (Danish meaning apple slices, singularly is is written æbleskive) are traditional Danish pancakes in a distinctive shape of a sphere. Somewhat similar in texture to American pancakes crossed with a popover, Aebleskiver are solid like a pancake but light and fluffy like a popover. The English language spelling is usually aebleskiver or ebleskiver.

Aebelskiver (Traditional Recipe)

Mix together:
1-1/2 Cups Flour
1/2 Tsp Baking Soda
1 Tsp Baking Powder
1/4 Tsp Salt

Beat together with a whisk or fork:
1 Cup Sour Milk or Buttermilk
2 Eggs
1 Cup Sour Cream

Combine with the dry and wet ingredients and mix until smooth. Put 1 tsp oil in each space in the ebelskiver pan and heat the pan until hot before adding batter. Cook until golden brown and turn over to cook the other side until golden brown. (Can be turned with a fork or two toothpicks.)

Serve hot, right out of the pan. Dip in powdered sugar. You can also fill the inside with apples or jam by placing a teaspoon of filling in the center as soon as the batter is put into the pan, then push it down into the batter a bit with a spoon.

<— This is a great book of ebleskiver recipes.  You might also like the recipe I found at Williams Sonoma, Spiced Apple Aebleskivers with Maple Whipped Cream. When we were in China, we saw something that looked a lot like aebleskivers.  As I researched to write this post, I think it may have been Japanese Takoyaki.  Takoyaki are similar but are generally savory rather than sweet.  Regardless of your preference for sweet or savory, you’ll need an aebleskiver pan.  I highly recommend a Cast Iron Pan, but less expensive varieties (cast aluminum) are available.  You can sometimes find these at second hand stores or garage sales.

For more information about the Sons of Norway’s Cultural Skills, see my post Lessons in Heritage and Cultural Skills.  For related youth activities, you may also be interested in following my Pinterest board, Barnesklubb.