Not Exactly Italian, But... Filled Ebelskivers for Breakfast

Ok, so this isn't exactly an Italian sweet treat, but believe me, these are just as comforting as the filled donuts made on St. Joseph's day, filled zeppole or Sfingi. Ebelskivers in Danish translates as "apple slices", and though you might want to put cooked apples inside a few, they are not a required ingredient. They also fit right into the Italian concept of colazione (breakfast).... a couple of sweet breads or cakes with your espresso and you're buona per andare (good to go) .

In our home, Lisa makes Ebelskivers several times a year as a Sunday breakfast treat. Lucas feels the Love that Mom puts into this recipe after he's put in a special request--usually for his birthday or another holiday. Many say that these are round pancakes, but I think the recipe is more like a scrumptious filled donut.

The fillings can be anything your imagination comes up with: jams, Nutella (Lucas' favorite), applesauce (homemade is best), raisins, chocolate chips, a butter/cinnamon filling, fresh blueberries, peanut butter & jelly, or even a sweetened ricotta. Many people simply make them plain and use fresh fruit compotes as dips. Of course, topping them with powdered sugar or a cinnamon-sugar or drizzling with honey or maple syrup works well, too.

Before making  Ebelskivers, you need a special pan. You can get one from Norpro on Amazon HERE.  Here's a photo of one in use:

As you can see in the photo, the trick to making them is to pour batter into each of the seven compartments, place in the filling of your choice and then, after the first side is golden brown, turn them over carefully using wooden skewers. Here's the recipe Lisa uses:

Ingredients

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 Tablespoons sugar
• 4 eggs - separate yolks and whites into two small bowls
• 2 cups milk
• 4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) unsalted butter for the recipe
• 2 tablespoons melted butter for brushing the pan
• 2 wooden skewers for flipping the Ebelskivers in the pan

Directions
Before starting the batter, do a mise en place (put in place) for your fillings. When Lisa makes Ebelskivers, she typically uses three different fillings at a time and lays them out in little prep bowls close to her pan, each with a small spoon as a scoop. The Ebelskivers cook fairly fast, so you really need to have everything close by and ready to go. Remember, these aren't like crepes or donuts which you fill afterwards... these are filled as they are being cooked. Lisa tends to make each batch (7 per pan) with the same filling to speed things along.

For the batter:

• In a large mixing bowl, mix the dry ingredients together... flour, baking powder, salt and sugar.
• In a second bowl, lightly beat the egg yolks with a fork or small whisk until foamy, then mix in the milk and 4 tablespoons of melted butter.
• Next, mix the egg yolk mixture into the flour mixture (lumps are OK).
• Beat the egg whites on high speed with a mixer just until stiff peaks start to form. This should take 2 or 3 minutes.
• Using a silicon (soft) spatula, gently fold the whites into the batter--a little at a time. Use the French technique of holding your spatula axe-like when first entering the batter, then turn sideways and upwards as you come under and up out of the batter. This helps keep the batter filled with air. Go smoothly and gently.
• Let the batter sit for a few minutes before using it.
• Heat the Ebelskiver pan over a medium high flame for a minute or two, then turn the flame down to medium. (The first time you make these, you really have to adjust the flame under the pan according to how fast the Ebelskivers are browning/bubbling).
• Brush a bit of melted butter into each of the 7 wells in the heated pan. When the butter bubbles, you are ready to go.
• Pour 1 tablespoon of batter into each well quickly, but neatly... then immediately after filling the wells, spoon 1/2 teaspoon of your selected filling into the center of each pancake, and then top it off with another tablespoon of the batter.
• Cook for a couple of minutes until the bottoms are golden brown, and you start to see little bubbles forming on the top side... in the same way to see bubbles forming when cooking the first side of a pancake.
• Holding a wooden skewer in each hand, flip the pancakes over and cook the second side... 2-3 minutes more. Lisa assures me that this isn't as fussy as it sounds. She uses the point of one skewer to reach under one side to start the flip, then assisting with the second skewer to make sure you don't flip the Ebelskiver completely out of the pan.
• When each batch is finished, remove them and place on a plate nearby. Repeat for each batch, cleaning out the wells if needed beforehand, and brushing with butter again.

Lisa typically gets about three pans worth from this recipe--about 21 Ebelskivers. Of course, Lisa's prerequisite for this breakfast is putting starting the espresso in her Mokka pot first.

Filled with mozzarella, fontina or caciocavallo

Pepper and ham filling

Now, if you really want to make these Italian, try adding lemon zest from 2 large lemons into the batter, and then filling them with lemon curd. Presto... Amalfi-skivers! If you want to make savory Ebelskivers, try using a bit less sugar (half teaspoon, total) and a tad more salt (1 teaspoon, total) in the batter. You can also add Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese into the batter. Fillings can be ham or prosciutto and cheese, peppers and ham, or even a bit of bolognese. Serve these with a marinara dip and you now have a righteous, Italian recipe (and haven't broken any rules).  

Buon colazione!

--Jerry Finzi

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