Crazy Can Cook: Aebleskiver

When I was 5 my best friend was Peter Andersen, whose sweet Danish mom used to made the best aebleskiver for breakfast. Aebleskiver is Danish for "apple slices," but these little round pancakes can be filled with any type of fruit. They're even great plain with powdered sugar and jam.

You have to buy a good-quality aebleskiver pan. Those "pancake puff" pans that cost $10 don't work because they are too lightweight, tip over, and cook unevenly. I got my aebleskiver pan several years ago at Williams-Sonoma. It is heavy, has a smooth base that's great on stove grates, and it has a dark nonstick finish.

Disclaimer about the photos: Making aebleskiver is a two-handed project. Taking photos is a two-handed project. I don't have four hands, so these aren't exactly Pioneer Woman photos here.

The first step is to make the batter. Williams-Sonoma sells an ebelskiver mix, which admittedly I haven't tried, but just take the 10 minutes to make your own batter. The aebleskiver pan will come with several recipes, but here's one I like:

2 egg whites
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 tablespoon white sugar
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 egg yolks
4 tablespoons butter, melted
2 cups buttermilk

In a clean glass or metal bowl, beat the egg whites with an electric mixer until they can hold a stiff peak. Set aside. Mix together the flour, baking powder, salt, baking soda, sugar, egg yolks, melted butter and buttermilk at one time and beat until smooth. Gently fold in the egg whites last.

There are other recipes that don't require you to beat the egg whites separately, but it makes the aebleskiver lighter and fluffier if you do.

First, heat up the pan over medium heat. Now put your Paula Deen on and brush on some melted butter for nonstick insurance and flavor.


Drop about a teaspoon of batter into each hole. I scoop up a spoonful of batter and use another spoon to push the batter off. I'm not a human octopus, so I couldn't take a photo of this step, obviously.

Now you want to place a little bit of fruit or jam into the middle of the batter. I'm using blackberries today, but I'm also a fan of blueberries. You could even use some fruit pie filling if that's what you've got on hand.


Quickly cover the fruit with another spoonful of batter. The batter should be just below the edge of the pan's holes. Try not to overflow the holes or flipping the aebleskiver will be difficult.


When the aebleskiver have browned a little around the edges and are starting to barely bubble, it's time to flip. Use two skewer, one to gently push down on one edge of the aebleskiver and one to help flip up the other side. Again, this is a two-handed process, so I kind of faked this photo and slightly burned the aebleskiver in the process. Normally the skewers would be held in two hands, not like chopsticks. What can I say -- I tried.


When the aebleskiver look done, flip them onto a plate. Sift some powdered sugar on top and you've got the tastiest Danish breakfast (or dessert) in the world!