Gadgets: The Aebelskiver Pan
Editor's Note: Nikki Goldstein, longtime friend of Serious Eats and our newest contributor, will be checking in with a different kitchen gadget every week. Please welcome Nikki!
Few would dare question the power of pancakes as comfort food--what's better than waking up to the smell of warm batter puffing up into cakey vehicles for syrup and jam?
If you thought this was the pinnacle of Sunday brunch, meet the aebelskiver. It's a warm, doughy concoction that essentially crosses a pancake with a jelly doughnut. They're relentlessly addicting. While many trek to the few eateries that make these fresh (including Aunt Else's in the Twin Cities area, Shopsin's in New York City, and almost any place in Solvang, California), aebelskivers are quite simple to make at home--that is, if you have an aebelskiver pan.
And the best part about homemade versions? Homemade fillings, of course.
Aebleskiver Recipe
Inspired to buy an aebleskiver pan? Here's a recipe to get you started: Basic Aebleskiver Batter with Bananas Foster Filling
Aebelskiver pans are available anywhere from Amazon
But perhaps the greatest aebleskiver resource is aebleskiver.com, run by "Mr. Aebleskiver" himself, Arne Hansen--the founder of Arne's Aebleskivers in Solvang. Aebleskilver.com sells a wide variety of pans for all stove types, mixes, and is full of aebleskiver cooking advice.
The cheapest pans, so long as they're made of cast iron, work just as well as the expensive ones. Always be sure to butter your pan before each batch to avoid sticking, and don't get frustrated if your first few attempts don't go over perfectly--they get prettier with additional flipping experience. And while sweet fillings like bananas foster or berry jam and chocolate chips are consistent winners, this pan is also versatile enough to churn out savory delights, like pan-puffed gougères or chili-stuffed bread balls.
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30 Comments:
Looks like a great cooking device...but could be dangerous for the waistline!
Jessica Levinson at 11:33AM on 07/23/09
Aaron Sanchez was on the Food Network talking about these things. He said it was the best thing he had EVER eaten!
zina1017 at 11:43AM on 07/23/09
my friend just gave me one of these recently, and it is the best!
i've filled them with different types of jam, nutella, fruit (blueberries explode in the middle!), and cheese.
so much fun to make! what do others put inside?
kristin314 at 11:44AM on 07/23/09
Welcome, Nikki!
I thought at first this was a takoyaki pan, and thought ick...but that would be awesome with bananas, cream, jam, etc. I want one!
Cassaendra at 11:48AM on 07/23/09
Woohoo! Congratulations, Nikki!!!!!
(and I really need to get one of these...)
-SS
theshah2002 at 12:02PM on 07/23/09
Yes, it looks a lot like a takoyaki pan. YUM!
nitsuj at 12:05PM on 07/23/09
I had the pleasure of meeting Mr. Aebleskiver himself while at a festival a few weeks back. My group was selling in the booth next to his delicious aebleskiver booth and at the end of each night he would give us all his left over treats.....man were those things good- covered in powdered sugar and smothered with homemade raspberry jam- yum! He was so funny too.....loved his accent.
joylissa at 12:10PM on 07/23/09
Aren't these the things used for escargots? Except these are cast iron right?
hungrychristel at 12:17PM on 07/23/09
I found one of these pans at a garage sale a few years ago. Homemade ones are easy and great.
aharste at 12:24PM on 07/23/09
My Mom had one of these pans, and used to make us aebleskivers every so often when we were little. She always filled them with applesauce. So yummy!
I've since inherited the pan and made a couple batches. They're a lot of fun to make, and easier than they seem. I never thought about different fillings, I'll have to try some of the suggestions!
Aidylc at 12:51PM on 07/23/09
I usually slice a banana into it, sprinkle with some good cinnamon, then a tiny dab of peanut butter or brown sugar or some walnuts. I've also made them with a small chunk of salami and some cheddar cheese. But plain with just cinnamon and sugar is the best!
mangabanga at 1:08PM on 07/23/09
i never thought of applesauce! what a great idea.
my mom used to make grilled applesauce sandwiches, i bet applesauce aebelskivers would be reminiscent of the sammies.
kristin314 at 1:21PM on 07/23/09
I have one of these pans, after taking a visit to Solvang and eating some of Arne's aebelskivers. Delicious! My favorite fillings are a tsp of apricot jam, or of course nutella.
cafire at 1:42PM on 07/23/09
I don't have one of these pans...but I do have a Tako-yaki pan from my time in Japan...they look fairly similar. Maybe I'll give it a whirl this weekend...
goldenatom at 3:10PM on 07/23/09
Could someone please tell me how to SAY that word?
Facinating.. how could i live this long and NEVER heard of these?
TeriN at 4:05PM on 07/23/09
When I went to the aebelskiver site, all the pans I looked at said "not for FLAT TOP ELECTRIC stoves". So sad.. that is what I have. Is that because it's cast iron? Because I do use cast iron on my flat/electric stove, but i'm very very careful 8-)
TeriN at 4:21PM on 07/23/09
Yum, I learned how to make these just two weeks ago. We made a savory and a sweet batch. the savory we stuffed with cheeses, mustard, and sausage, and the batter was made with beer. The sweet ones- cream cheese and berries and bananas were my two favorite.
allistew at 12:49AM on 07/24/09
My Lord....I have to get one of these. I saw that episode where Aaron Sanchez was talking about them too. I've wanted them ever since. Off to amazon...
amiyrah18 at 2:18AM on 07/24/09
So, so good. I grew up near Solvang and it was always a treat to go have aebelskivers. I love making a cinnamon bun version, very sweet, but so delicious!
They're similar to these- http://bayareafoodieblog.com/2008/12/14/cinnamon-bun-ebelskiver/
imalittlechile at 9:49AM on 07/24/09
Thanks for the warm welcome, everyone! These filling suggestions are seriously tempting...
Nikki Goldstein at 9:53AM on 07/24/09
My Grandfather was Danish - and I remember many many summer mornings sitting across the breakfast table from him trying to see who could eat more! My poor Grandmother would be making Aebelskiver for hours!
When my girls were little these were their favorite breakfast treat - always, like at Grandmother's, with bowls of powdered sugar, and wonderful homemade jams and apple butter to scoop up in them.
My DH loves them - I don't make them too often - but they are always a warm and wonderful reminder of my childhood. Thank you for the memories. I shall have to try some savory ones one of these days. Grandmother and Grandfather will roll in their graves - but perhaps she'd have loved them.
Fanciesmom at 7:27PM on 07/24/09
Welcome and thank you for this article! I've been wanting a takoyaki maker so sometime now, but could not justify it's single usage to my husband. This offered me a cheaper option and shows many sound uses for it! And he's now excited about it!! I order one from Amazon and cannot wait till it arrives.
The Indecisive Eater at 1:09AM on 07/25/09
My mom is Danish and we use this pan all the time. It's pronounced aye-ble-skew-uh
(sort of)
Allofthebelow at 3:32PM on 07/26/09
I got mine from Amazon for very little money and it's cast iron. The pans from TV are flimsy. The pan usually comes with a small cookbook.
The pancake puffs are delicious and about as much fun as they say. I stuffed a couple with Nutella and thought my friends were going to carry me around on their shoulders.
therealchiffonade at 11:09AM on 07/27/09
I got one for Christmas but haven't broken it out yet. Does anyone have a good basic recipe to start? I don't want to resort to that mix at Williams Sonoma.
meem21 at 12:58PM on 07/27/09
Glad I could help, Indecisive Eater!
Meem, there's a recipe linked in the article above, to the right. There's a batter recipe, which is certainly worth trying, though when I'm lazy, Bisquick works well too. (It may not be from scratch, but you could never tell, and it's a whole lot cheaper than the Williams Sonoma mix!)
Nikki Goldstein at 1:24PM on 07/27/09
Ha, duh. How did I miss that? Thanks, Nikki! Looking forward to your future posts.
meem21 at 3:57PM on 07/27/09
Aebelskiver. Takoyaki. Kanom krok.
Best. Pan. Ever.
Joe MacBu at 5:01PM on 07/27/09
Thanks for mentioning us!
TeriN- my mother uses her cast iron pan on her black ceramic stove top & it works great!
We are very excited about our 9-hole cast iron pan! We are curently putting the finishing touches on it with a local foundry here In Minneapolis. We're hoping Mr. Aebleskiver will have them available on his site too!
So glad to see so many families still enjoying aebleskiver!
AuntElsesAebleskiver at 11:22PM on 07/27/09
I got my aebleskiver pan for ten bux in an after-Christmas sale at Rite Aid a few years ago.
I don't bother with fillings. I just cook cornbread batter and serve with butter and syrup. Sybaritic!
I'm most comfortable with something about as thick as a quick-bread batter.
gentlyferal at 3:26AM on 07/29/09