My mom’s side of the family emigrated from Denmark to Idaho in the early 1900s. We were only a few generations removed, so a bit of the Danish culture stuck around. One of my favorite things were the little Aebleskiver (apple slices) we would have for breakfast. Little warm pancakes balls that are stuffed with apples, dusted with powder sugar, and dipped in jam. It doesn’t get much better. You will need a special cast iron Aebleskiver pan to make them. If you end up loving them as much as we do, you’ll probably end up with two. These are best eaten warm. The recipe below will easily feed 4 – 6 adults.

Ingredients

3 cups flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
2 Tbsp sugar
3 cups buttermilk
6 eggs, separated
7 Tbsp oil
Butter, cut into small cubes

Optional, but highly recommended:
Apple sauce and/or Jam for filling
Powdered sugar for dusting
Jam and/or Syrup for dipping

Directions

Mix your dry ingredients together and then mix in the liquids, with the exception of your egg whites. Beat those until they have stiff peaks and then fold them into the batter with a spatula. Let your batter rest for about 5 minutes.

While the batter is resting, heat your pan over medium-low heat. Drop a small square of butter into each slot. Once it is melted, spoon the batter into the pan (the batter will rise, so don’t fill them all the way up) and cook until the batter begins bubbling.

Use a bamboo skewer to turn 1/4 turn and then spoon or pipe apple sauce or jam into the middle of the Aebleskiver. I usually do half with applesauce and the other half with raspberry jam. Once filled, carefully finish turning over and continue cooking until golden brown and cooked in the middle.

Dust with powdered sugar and then serve with jam or syrup for dipping.

These take some practice. The good news is that this batter makes at least eight pans full, so you’ll get plenty!

A few tips for cooking Aebleskiver that I’ve learned over the years:

• Some recipes will call for oil in the pan rather than butter. I love the buttery flavor that melting butter in each slot gives the Aebleskiver, so I highly recommend it. Butter the slot for each set.
• The toughest part is flipping them over and filling them. Cook the Aebleskiver long enough that they have a solid base, but not so long that they’re getting cooked in the middle and don’t pour out when flipped. I like to use two bamboo skewers (the same ones you would use on a grill for shish kabobs) to turn them and then either spoon in the jam or use a piping bag to put the applesauce inside.
• If you’re having a tough time doing the quarter-turn method, you can also put in a teaspoon of batter, put the jam or applesauce on top, and then spoon another teaspoon of batter on top. This works, but my experience is that when you flip them it’s tough to keep the filling in the middle. You often end up with burnt jam in your pan.
• A little filling goes a long way. Don’t over-stuff the little guys!