Morning Train (Nine to Five)

When I was home this summer, my grandmother gave me an Ebelskiver pan. Ebelskiver are Danish filled pancakes and I have been looking forward to making some since I got the pan. Unfortunately, since I was flying, I couldn't bring the pan back with me this summer. I made sure to pack it carefully for the drive back to New York a few weekends ago and last weekend was my first chance to try it out. I haven't had these since I was little, which was the last time Mother of Ken dusted off her Ebelskiver pan ;-) I remember really liking them--it is probably the Danish part of me that also loves Danish blue cheese and pumpernickel bread.

I used this recipe, which isn't quite traditional, but I froze some blueberries this summer and wanted to use them. I cut the recipe in half and mixed the dry ingredients in this bowl--flour, baking soda, baking powder, sugar, salt, and lemon zest:

Next, I added egg yolks:

Then the buttermilk:

I mixed the ingredients until they were well incorporated, but was careful not to overmix.



I put the egg whites in the mixer and beat them until they were stiff, but not dry:






The last step is to fold the egg whites into the batter in two batches:

This is the finished batter:

This is the Ebelskiver pan (really traditional ones are cast iron, but this one has a nonstick coating that came in handy). I put a little butter in each well and let it melt over medium heat. When the butter bubbles, it is time to add the batter.

I used the small scoop that I use for cookies (about a tablespoon) to fill each well with the same amount of batter and then I added a few blueberries:

I topped each pancake with another scoop of batter:

Then you have to carefully turn each one after about five minutes. I used a spoon and an offset spatula. This is what they look like after they have been turned:

Not so pretty on my first try, but at least they didn't fall apart.

When they were cooked through, I put them on a plate and dusted them with powdered sugar:

Of course, I served bacon on the side and Kenna was thrilled to have bacon grease on her dog food for breakfast. You should see how shiny her coat is! I really liked these and will be making them again. They are light and delicate because of the egg whites in the batter and the juiciness of the blueberries in the middle was really nice. The tiny bit of lemon zest in the batter also added a nice layer of flavor.