Aebleskiver (Round, Filled Danish Pancakes)

Submitted by AB_Fan

"This Danish delicacy is served in many Danish-American homes, including mine. A special pan is needed; even though new pans are available, many cooks favor the old cast-iron pans, which are handed down from generation to generation. You can get them at many scandanavian specialty stores, and can also order them online. In Denmark, aebleskiver is served as a dessert with sugar or marmelade. On the island of Aero, a small sliver of prune is put in the middle as they are cooked. There are many different recipes, and this one is my family's favorite. We put a little jam, preferably lingonberry preserves, in the middle of our aebleskivers as they are cooking, before turning them, and we eat them with sweetened cinamon-sugar applesauce. You will need a little practice in turning these doughnut-like treats. A fork works, but some practiced "turners" use a knitting needle, preferably wooden, or a similar device such as an ice pick. Even a toothpick will do."

 

• Ready In: 30mins
• Ingredients: 8
• Yields: 24 aebleskivers
• Serves: 4-6

ingredients

• 3 eggs, separated
• 2 cups buttermilk
• 1 1⁄2 cups flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1⁄2 teaspoon salt
• 1⁄4 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon or 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
• 2 tablespoons melted butter (plus additional butter, oil, or shortening for greasing the pan)

directions

1. Beat egg whites until stiff; set aside.
2. Beat egg yolks and buttermilk together.
3. Sift dry ingredients together and add to liquid mixture.
4. Add the melted butter and mix together until smooth.
5. Fold in beaten egg whites.
6. Fill pan cups about 1/4 full of oil and heat.
7. Fill pan cups with batter. If you are adding jam, jelly, or applesauce to the middle add it now, only about a 1/4 teaspoons
8. Bake until the edges are bubbly.
9. Turn (using a fork, knitting needle, or toothpick) and continue turning until evenly browned and toothpick inserted into center comes out clean.

Reviews

[Velouria L.]

I've heard about aebleskiver and how good they are, so I ordered the pan from Amazon.com, then tried this recipe. They're delicious! It was my first time making them, so the first few came out a little flat, but the rest came out perfect. I tried turning them with a chopstick, but that was too messy. Then I tried an ice pick and that worked beautifully. I used nutmeg in the batter, which tastes great. Next time I may try the cardamom for different flavor. Thanks for the recipe. My family loved them, and I know I'll be making them often!

 

[cookingcarey]

These were great just dipped in warm syrup. Turning them definitely takes practice, but once you get it right they are fun. I found that using a small ice cream scoop is a good way to get the right amount of batter into the pan. I can't wait to make them again and try filling them.

 

[papaglenn]

Our Danish friends introduced us to many of their favorite foods when we have visited them (near Copenhagen), but had never served aebleskiver. Discovered the aebleskiver recipes online, and e-mailed our friends, asking for their family recipes (along with one for "gløgg.") <br/>Their recipes for aebleskiver were very much like this one. When we bought the cast iron aebleskiver pan a few weeks ago (on Amazon.com), we were ready to go! <br/>We have learned more and more as we practice making them. When they speak of "turning" the aebleskiver, I have learned that they were NOT talking about "rotating" them, but of "revolving" them so that the raw batter would flow out, helping create the ball shape of the finished product. We used two wooden grill skewers to turn them.<br/>We have found that we like them better without the insertion of applesauce, fruit, jam, etc during the cooking. We like to sprinkle with powdered cinnamon sugar and then eat with our favorite jam or fruit. <br/>Glædelig jul!

 

[coolbee]

Is there much better than a fresh aebleskiver with a drizzle of maple syrup and a sprinkle of cinnamon sugar? No, and if you disagree, you've never had one. I used this recipe for my first batch of aebleskivers, and I'm hooked! I made half of the recipe, used half of that for breakfast (for my boyfried and I), refrigerated the rest, then had that this morning. Wonderful both times! Tucking a berry inside was great, and when I get better at turning them I'd like to try doing some jelly, too. I did make a few changes: I added a bit more flour for a thicker batter and omitted the butter from the recipe. Fantastic nonetheless! I will try using wheat flour next time :o)

 

[UnknownChef86]

I made these recently and they were a HUGE hit! I made a couple of changes due to supplies on hand and personal preference, as noted: I didn't have any buttermilk, so I substituted soured milk (2 tabl. vinegar in a 2 cup measure, filled measuring cup with half & half) and for the spices, I combined 1/4 tsp. cinnamon and 1/8 tsp. nutmeg. Also, after they were cooked, I let them cool for about a minute, then rolled them in powdered sugar. The soured milk subbed well, the spice combo was just perfect, and the powdered sugar was a very nice final touch. They're very much like a cross between a donut hole and a pancake. And I've gotta tell you...I honestly lost track of how many of these little critters I downed...(blush). They were very, very good! Next time I make them, though, I think I'll cut the batch down by 1/3 to 2/3, only because it's just DH and I...and I REALLY don't need as many as I had this time. LOL Also, I found that while they were incredible while warm...they weren't as tasty when cold. Making a smaller batch will help with that. Btw, I used a long wooden shish-kebab skewer to turn them and it worked perfectly. Thanks for posting such a great recipe, AB. I'll definitely be making these again!