As I wrote in an article about Christmas cookies for Edible Seattle magazine last year, once my maternal grandparents had frozen an adequate amount
of lefse for the holidays and cleaned away any molecules of errant flour that had crept beyond the plastic sheets, they could relax (a bit at least) and begin baking cookies.
My search for bread like things took me to a great Sweet Potato
Lefse recipe from Sweet Treats Baking, my inspiration!
For a Norwegian - American who usually spends the holidays
making lefse for far - flung relatives, this was a great excuse to bring out the griddle, rolling pin and wood stick!
They shared the family's heritage with bowls full of riskrem drizzled with vibrant raspberry sauces and paper - thin
potato lefse spread with butter and a dusting of sugar.
We will also have gluten
free Lefse and gluten free Swedish «Rye» Bread at the meal.
Take the
cooked lefse off the skillet, set aside and start again.
I occassionally have issues with the
basic Lefse recipe if the sweet potato is too moist, but the cassava in this absorbs moisture.
Each fall and winter my grandma, mom, and I would get together, often weekly, to
bake lefse, Norwegian waffles, and a variety of cookies.
The hands that once kneaded dense potatoes
into lefse dough now almost quiver as she tickles my delighted baby.
It used to be as easy to
find lefse as it was a burger.
Møsbrømmen consists of half water and half the cheese smooth with flour or corn flour to a half thick sauce that greased the
cooled lefse.
When lefse is completely cooled, package as desired or spread butter evenly, sprinkle with sugar, roll it up and enjoy!
Note: This will yield 4 cups of riced potatoes equaling 12
lefse rounds, you can easily double this recipe for a larger batch.
V Warm Za'atar
Scented Lefse, Norwegian Flat Bread Organic Togarashi Popcorn 4.
Grandma wanted to teach us how to make the treats that our family had loved throughout the years,
including lefse, krumkaker, and these sandbakkelse.
We also served the traditional Norwegian
food lefse.
Expect a lot of merry choir - singing, traditional
sweet lefse (Norwegian pancakes), and special Christmas beer on the menu, plus coffee brewed outdoors over an open fire.
Keep rolling until you have achieved the size
of lefse you'd like.
We will also have gluten
free Lefse and gluten free Swedish «Rye» Bread at the meal.
I occassionally have issues with the basic
Lefse recipe if the sweet potato is too moist, but the cassava in this absorbs moisture.
Over Christmas, The Norwegian side of the family
makes lefse (its like a potato pancake).
When plating, serve with a side of
potato lefse and a generous amount of sauce from the bottom of the pan.
oz measurements for those of you without kitchen scales, I left the out sweetener (I find sweet potatoes sweet enough) I second Laura's notes on doubling the recipe (the batter doesn't keep well, neither does the sweet potato pancake recipe if you're going to try it) but I did double the sweet potato and held off adding the dry ingredients until I was ready to cook
the Lefse, having extra in the fridge made breakfasts easy for three days straight.
Heat a cast iron skillet or a non-stick pan over medium heat, add a little coconut oil, once hot add
the lefse and cook a couple minutes per side, flipping when the bread seems to loosen around the edges (like a pancake, these really are a kind of crepe).
Scoop out a large tablespoon of batter roll it into a ball then pat it flat on your floured surface and roll it out to a 1/4 inch thick round with your rolling pin (sorry folks, I have no photos of process other the top one) making sure
the lefse doesn't stick to the rolling pin or work surface (I carefully use a bench scraper to lift it from my marble to the skillet).
Grandma Adeline would drape clear plastic sheets over the china cabinet, shelving, carpet, and furniture come autumn, in preparation for baking potato
lefse, the traditional flatbread that Norwegian - Americans love so much.
I've heard stories of my other grandmother's life and created countless sweet memories with her as she's taught me how to make sandbakkels,
lefse, krumkaker, and other Scandinavian treats.
They were one of her signature dishes, along with
lefse, sandbakkels, potato dumplings, peanut bars, and any number of Norwegian Christmas cookies.
They would miss out on
the lefse and Swedish Rye Bread, Swedish sausage and potato pudding that were the foundation flavors of Christmas for my family.
Whether it is making
lefse, cookies, or candies, the cold, dark weather makes our kitchens...
The lefse is cooked at high temperature (400 °F or 205 °C) until browned, and then left to dry.
Lefse is ready when møsbrømmen is warm and the butter is melted.
The grid cut can also aid in thinner rolling of
the lefse, as the ridges help preserve structural integrity.
Me: I'll be perfect, I even have a whole chapter in my book dedicated to the art of potatoes, I loooove potato pancakes,
lefse, latkes, potato bread......
The surest way to know if
your lefse is ready to flip is to watch for cues.
As a young girl I always looked forward to
Lefse... a treat many other kids my age had never heard about.
Then run
your lefse stick down the middle, lift and turn over using the same method mentioned in step 7.
Lefse is a tightly rolled Norwegian flat bread sugar sandwich.
Continue rotating and rolling until
your lefse is round and even in thickness.
If you miss the grill and part of
your lefse is hanging off, let it cook for 10 - 15 seconds, then using a hot pad, lay it on top of the cooking portion of lefse and gently pull the lefse that is hanging off onto the grill.
Set your patties aside to rest while you turn on
your lefse grill and let it heat to 500 degrees.
Using
a lefse turning stick, frosting knife, or thin spatula, slide it under the lefse sheet (middle of sheet) making sure to keep the tip of your tool down.
Wipe off excess flour on
your lefse grill with a dry cloth between each sheet to avoid burnt flour on your sheets.
Matching the edge of
your lefse to the edge of the lefse grill, lay the lefse down and «unroll».