How to make Danish æbleskive

We are enjoying Scandinavian traditions this time of the year. It is so much fun! We look forward to do Scandinavian cooking, holiday decorating and celebrations with our family and friends. A great weekend afternoon snack to make for our family is Danish aebleskiver or in Danish æbleskiver. 

What is an æbleskive?

These are traditional Danish pancakes but in the shape of a sphere or a doughnut hole. 
Traditional æbleskive are served with sugar or jam. There are a variety of recipes. Some recipes require buttermilk and other recipes use wheat flour.  Below is a typical æbleskiver  recipe with buttermilk.

How to make æbleskive  

Ingredients:

 

• 2 eggs
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 a cup of sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 4 tablespoons butter, melted
• 2 cups buttermilk
• 1 cup vegetable oil or butter for frying 
• An aebleskive pan 
• 1 long knitting needle or a fork or a skewer  
• You can add 1 tsp cardamomand/ or peal of 1/2 lemon

• Below the video is an example of how to make aebleskiver. 

Directions:

1. Place the æbleskive pan on a stove top and lightly oil or butter the pan.
2. Pour in about 2 tablespoons of the batter into each cup. 
3. As soon as they get bubbly around the edge, turn them quickly with a knitting needle.  (In Denmark, the Danish cooks traditionally use a knitting needle.)
4. Continue cooking, turning the ball to keep it from burning and it creates the characteristic spherical shape of an æbleskive.
5. Remove all of the æbleskiver from the pan and generously sprinkle with powdered sugar. Traditionally æbleskiver are served with raspberry jam, strawberry jam or sugar.
6. If you want to get creative, you can fill æbleskiver with fruit, chocolate, jam or cheese.  Now a days, æbleskiver are served for either breakfast, as an hors d'oeuvre, dessert or light supper.

What is an Aebleskive Pan?

The æbleskive pan is a special cast iron pan used specifically to make æbleskiver. Pans are usually made of cast iron because it allows good heat conduction. The traditional is a cast iron pan indented with seven holes, about 2-1/4 x 1 inch deep, which gives you a finished æbleskive the size and shape of a golf ball. The pan exists in versions for gas and electrical stoves (the latter with a plain bottom).  Now a days it is easy to find an æbleskive pan from either buying it online or at a retail store such as William Sonoma. Also, the traditional models in hammered copper plate exist but are today used primarily for decoration. Sometimes the traditional models are found in flea markets or antique shops.

When and where do the Danes eat æbleskiver?
In Denmark, æbleskiver are common to have before Christmas and served with gløgg on the sidewalk cafes. If you are in Tivoli, the restaurants offer æbleskiver as a snack too. Æbleskiver can be bought fried and frozen at supermarkets, only needing heating in an oven. 

Trivia: Did you know that æbleskive is singular and æbleskiver is plural?

This history of Æbleskiver

Nobody knows when and where æbleskiver was first made.  However, there are interesting theories and legends of how the æbleskiver were created.  Below are a couple of fun theories.

One theory is that Vikings during a battle didn't have the proper cookware to make pancakes. The Vikings greased their dented shields and poured the batter on them over a fire which created the the round shape æbleskive.

Another theory is that in the 1600s, the Siam government pushed the European Christian missionaries out of their country including Danes. A Dane brought back a pan from Thailand designed to make Thai delicacies. Once the Dane returned to Denmark, he used pancake batter in the pan and created a new treat called æbleskive.

Trivia: Did you know that the Danish meaning of æbleskiver is apple slices?


*how to make Danish Christmas rice pudding with cherry sauce dessert recipe (Risalamande med kirsebærsauce)
*how to make Swedish Glogg for Christmas & cold evenings! (glögg or mulled wine recipe) 
*how to make aeblskiver (æbleskiver)
*how to make Danish Christmas Klejner
*how to make easy Danish cucumber salad (arguksalat)
*how to make Danish sugar browned potatoes (brunede kartofler)
*how to make Danish red cabbage (rødkaal)
These recipes are perfect for the holiday season. Please let us know what you think! Glædelig Jul and Merry Christmas♥ !

Our Scandinavian recipes including Danish, Norwegian, Swedish and Finnish are on http://scandinavtoday.blogspot.com/

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