Æbleskiver (apple dumplings)

Recipe

Straight out of the family recipe book:

• 600 ml milk (I used an arbitrary combination of whole milk, cream and 2% milk)

• 2 tsp yeast

• 2 tbsp sugar

• 500 g flour

• 1 tsp salt

• 4 eggs, beaten

• 100 g butter, melted 

• Olive oil for cooking

There are no apples in these apple dumplings. People used to fry them with a slice in middle, but these days most just dip the dumplings in a fruit jam.

How it turned out

Good! Paired with some jam and sugar, these pillowy, yeasted treats transport me back to my childhood.

Growing up, mom would make æbleskiver and gløgg at Christmas time. It would be the reward after we finished decorating the Christmas tree. It's a special tradition my partner and I continue in our own home.

What I learned

Think sourdough. When I started the batter, it looked very runny. By the time I was ready to fry, it resembled more of a sourdough starter - bubbling and sticky. I was worried it would be too thick to fry, but it turned out perfectly with beautiful air pockets.

Start 3 hours early. Because the mixture has to get thick, I needed lots of time to let the yeast do its thing. I started making the batter 3 hours before I fried them. I also let the mixture sit in a turned-off (but still warm) oven to give the yeast an extra boost.

Don't overfill. The most finicky part is frying the dumplings. At first I overfilled the pan, which made them difficult to turn. I learned that I can make things easier for myself, and cook them quicker, if I just barely fill them to the top.

There's room to make it your own. I decided to add a tiny bit of vanilla bean paste to this batch. It wasn't enough to add much flavour, so I think next year I will try adding about 1 tbsp and see if/how that changes things.