On the 3rd Day of Christmas my true love made for me...Aebleskivers! Danish little pancake balls...a tradition at Christmas time in Denmark and in our house. If you don't have an Aebleskiver pan, yes, you need a special pan to create these, then go out an get one at your nearest Kitchen store, they will probably be half off! Or you could probably find one at the thrift shop - it will be worth whatever it cost, I promise!
Our pan has seen better days - in fact, this is the 2nd Aebleskiver pan we've owned since we've been married, we wore out the first one and the handle broke! We make these all the time and we like them plain...I mean, the mister likes them plain, no spice, he's a pancake purist. The Danes usually add 1/2 teaspoon or so of Cardamom or cinnamon to their recipe, but I leave it out so I don't have to hear any complaining. Either way they are great...with spice/without...sprinkled with powdered sugar and popped into an Aebelskiver hole or served on a plate with maple syrup or jam...you just can't eat anything better when the snow flies!
Speaking of snow - we had some! On Christmas Eve it S N O W E D ! It was only the 3rd time in 100 years that we've had snow on Christmas Eve giving us a White Christmas! That was one of my favorite gifts! It is truly a Winter Wonderland when it snows here - so, so pretty! (Every year we put out the same Christmas decorations, Frosty, Mrs. Frosty and Baby Frosty along with our candy canes and gingerbread men and lights...the only new thing we added this year was the word J O Y on the wreath on the house...and we were one of the winners of our neighborhood's Christmas Lights Contest...for the 2nd time! Ho-Ho-Ho! And if you look closely you'll be able to see Santa in our window next to the tree!)
Quick and easy to make - and fun! You'll need a toothpick to turn them, or a reasonable facsimile thereof! I'm told some people turn them, add some fillings, like chopped apples, chocolate chips or dried fruit, and then add a little more batter and turn again...yawn...way too much work for me! I turn them once, let them finish cooking, about 30 seconds, then maybe give them another spin, just to make sure all sides are equally brown, after that they are ready to eat!
Cutest little puffs of yummm...and great for breakfast or dessert, which I'm told is a Danish thing...to eat them for dessert...I would be just fine with that! Make a double batch, you won't be sorry because these get scarfed up as fast as you make them.
Aebleskivers - Pots and Pins
1 1/4 cups flour, all purpose
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 1/4 teaspoons baking powder
2 tablespoons sugar
1/2 teaspoong ground Cardamom or 1/2 teaspoon ground Cinnamon, optional
1 egg, beaten
1 cup milk
2 tablespoons butter, melted (plus more for greasing the pan if needed)
powdered sugar for serving
jam or syrup for serving
In a medium-size bowl combine flour, salt, baking powder, sugar and spices, if using. Set aside. In a small bowl combine egg, milk and 2 tablespoons of melted butter and mix until well combined. Pour wet ingredients into dry and mix until smooth.
Place Aebleskiver pan over medium heat and heat until a little bit of water sprinkled in the pan sizzles. Lightly brush each cup with a bit of butter. Fill each cup approximately 2/3's full with batter. Cook for about 30 seconds, allowing a thin shell to form on the bottom of each pancake ball. Using a toothpick, poke into the baked portion and gently pull the shell up a bit, allowing the uncooked batter to run out into the pan. Continue cookies, rotating each pancake with the toothpick about every 30 seconds as the shell begins to set. After about 4 turns, the ball should be almost formed and completely cooked. Continue cooking, rotating the balls until they are an even golden brown and a skewer inserted into the center comes out clean. Lift balls from the pan with the toothpick when done. Repeat with remaining batter. Serve immediately or keep warm. Sprinkle with powdered sugar and serve with jam or syrup. Makes about 15 balls.
Breakfast of Champions...or pigs...either way, they're dang good! Make them for your New Year's Feast! Start the year right! This time of year I don't even bother putting my Aebleskiver pan away, it just sits on the stove top waiting to be used - and it is, over and over and over!
I don't know who these people are in the picture above, but early Christmas morning, like 8:30 AM, they were in the park sledding! They should have still been at home in their jammies eating Aebleskivers! And all day long the kids kept coming out - the hill behind our house is a favorite spot for them so we had first row seats to some great sledding action!
Thanks to the Bruggerman's nephew for this one...the kids built a "ramp" out of snow so they could fly up and over the "stream"...this poor kid went up and over and landed right in the water! Oh well, it was deemed a success and it didn't seem like he broke his tail bone...surely nothing that a plate of Aebleskivers couldn't fix!
