Mrs. Omlid's Lefse

Submitted by Wendelina

"Hands down the best lefse I've ever eaten was from my neighbor growing up, Mrs. Omlid. Her lefse was always thin and delicious no matter how it was served (butter, sugar, jam.. anything!) I recently (Dec 2016) had the privilege of spending an afternoon with her to learn the recipe and the craft of making awesome lefse. It will work best if you have a lefse griddle, but any heavy, large skillet with constant heat will work. Also needed: a heavy, grooved rolling pin with a cloth covering or sock over it, a heavy board, also covered in cloth, and a lefse stick for flipping. Here's the recipe and directions from that day."

 

• Ready In: 24hrs 5mins
• Ingredients: 5
• Yields: 52 pieces

ingredients

• 15 cups potatoes, mashed
• 1 1⁄2 cups cream or 1 1/2 cups half-and-half
• 1 1⁄2 cups margarine
• 3 tablespoons sugar
• 3 lbs flour, some for recipe, some for rolling dough

directions

1. Boil 5 lbs (this equals about 15 c of potatoes mashed) of peeled potatoes, cut in chunks.
2. When they are tender, drain well and put through a potato ricer.
3. While they are still hot, add the margerine (in small chunks) and sugar.
4. Stir well and then add the cream inches Potatoes should be a soft, smooth consistency but still hold shape. Divide into 3 bowls and let cool overnight in the fridge.
5. In the morning, add 1/14 c flour to each bowl and mix well into a paste.
6. Divide into balls that are about 1/2 c to 3/4 in size and place on cookie sheets. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until ready to cook them.
7. Heat lefse griddle (or other heavy griddle) to about 400 degrees (may have to do a few testers to get the temp right-be sure to eat the evidence!).
8. Only take 1 dough ball out of the fridge at a time. Flour the cloth covered surface well, and roll the dough ball in circles to cover all sides in a light coating of flour.
9. Then roll in several directions with a heavy rolling pin covered in cloth until paper thin. Use the lefse stick to lift the dough circle through the center, place on the griddle, and UNROLL the dough onto the griddle. 1st side will bubble up within a few minutes when the heat is right, and the center will appear "dry".
10. Flip to the other side with the lefse stick, using the same "unrolling" technique. Cook another minute or two or until the bubbles have even browning on them. You can flip them multiple times to get the correct browing on each side. Cooking them too long will create dry lefse, so cook the minimum amount of time for them to be cooked through and the bubbles browned.
11. As each lefse piece is finished, stack them into a pile and brush off any excess flour. Also brush the browned flour off of the griddle. Add more flour to rolling board as needed - just enough to keep things from sticking.
12. After they have cooled completely (a few hours) they should be stored in air tight containers. A suggested idea is to fold 3 lefse pieces into wedge shapes, then store in quart sized ziploc bags, then put in the freezer. As needed, take them out and thaw at room temp for a while.
13. Traditionally, lefse is served spread with butter and/or sugar and then rolled up. Some people use jam on them as well. A little cinnamon sugar on them is also delicious. I prefer them warm, but can be served cold as well.