Description
Aebleskiver Danish pancakes are delicious mini pastries traditionally enjoyed during the Christmas season. Crisp on the outside, tender in the middle, they’re brushed with melted butter, sprinkled with powdered sugar, and served with jam.
Ingredients
Units
Scale
For the Pancake Batter
- 2 large eggs (at room temp), yolks and whites separated
- 3/4 cup whole milk or buttermilk
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 3 tablespoons granulated sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
- 1 1/4 teaspoons baking powder
- 3 tablespoons butter, melted and cooled
For greasing the pan: 2 tablespoons melted butter
For sprinkling: Powdered sugar
For Serving: Raspberry jam, lemon curd, or maple syrup
Instructions
RECIPE PREP: Heat oven to 200°. Melt the butter in 2 ramekins. Take out 2 skewers, a soup spoon, a baking tray, and a clean damp dishcloth. Put them next to the stove.
- In a large batter bowl, whisk egg yolks, milk and vanilla. Add flour, granulated sugar and salt (don’t add baking powder just yet!). Mix well. Add melted butter. Whisk until fully incorporated. Now add the baking powder. Whisk again, but don’t over-mix.
- In another bowl, beat egg whites with an electric mixer at high speed for 2 to 3 minutes until stiff peaks form. With a rubber spatula, gently fold egg whites into the batter.
- Heat aebleskiver pan on stovetop. The level of heat will depend on the pan (cast-iron or non-stick) and your stovetop (electric, gas or induction). In general, for cast-iron pans: low heat. Non-stick pans: medium heat. Brush wells of pan with a generous amount of melted butter.
- With a small metal scoop, fill the wells until almost full. Cook 3 to 4 minutes or until bubbles form on the surface of the raw batter and start popping, the balls rotate easily, and the bottoms are golden.
- With 2 skewers, flip balls 180°. The raw half should face down, with the cooked half facing up. Gently tuck the ends under. Between rotations, wipe skewers clean on a damp cloth. Cook 3 minutes.
- At this point, abandon the skewers and use a soup spoon to rotate the balls. It’s easier to work with. Let Aebleskiver cook until they’re golden on all sides. Remove from pan.
- Brush mini pancakes with melted butter. Sprinkle with powdered sugar. Serve with jam, lemon curd, Nutella, or warm maple syrup.
Notes
- Practice makes perfect:There’s a small learning curve for cleanly rotating the balls. If you’re new to making aebleskiver, it’s important to practice first. Start with 1 or 2 test batches of 3 mini pancakes.
- How to make pouring the batter into the pan easier: Transfer batter to a squeeze bottle. This is especially helpful when making perfectly round mini pancakes, turning them halfway and filling in the gaps with batter.
- Turning tools: If you don’t have a set of wooden turning tools, use chopsticks, toothpicks, bamboo skewers, long knitting needles, or cake pop sticks. For the second rotation use a soup spoon.
- Keep the turning tools clean between uses: While cooking, keep a damp cloth nearby. Between uses, wipe them down to remove the batter.
- How to make perfectly round pancake balls: This takes some skill. When rotating a ball, rather than flipping it over 180°, turn it 90° so the seam of the cooked part is vertical to the pan. Quickly fill in the the gap with more batter. Continue the rotation so the cooked half faces up and the raw batter faces down. Tuck in the edges.
- How to make this recipe faster: Rather than separating egg whites and beating until stiff, add whole eggs to the batter. The Aebleskiver will be a little less fluffy, but still really good!
- Prep Time: 10 Minutes
- Cook Time: 20 Minutes
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Stovetop
- Cuisine: Danish