Sunday Morning - Ebelskivers

This morning was one of those easy mornings when alarm is off, we don't have to get up early and rush to get ready for something, be it skiing, hiking or going to office... just a take it easy morning that can last until lunch. And that means I can do some more for breakfast beyond a bowl or cereal or scrambled eggs. And this particular morning my heart was set on ebelskivers - light and fluffy Danish filled pancakes.

How did I get started with ebelskivers? Ebelskiver pan, of course! It was one of those things that caught my eye in Williams-Sonoma catalog, a specialized pan with round indentations, and for what? For some sort of pancake? My curiosity demanded me to buy the pan and try making these ebelskivers. And I am very glad I did.

Ebelskiver is usually very light and fluffy thanks to the egg whites that are beaten separately and then folded into the batter. I suppose it is not necessary to have a filling, but then an ebelskiver would be rather boring. Fillings can be savory or sweet. Today I'm going for something in between, both savory and somewhat sweet. I was somewhat inspired by salsa, although by no means my filling is salsa. I simply used shallot, Frenso chile pepper and a few kumquats, the chile aspect and citrus addition is what appeals to me in salsa and that is why I will call these salsa ebelskivers.

First I start with preparing the filling, cut all the ingredients finely and lightly fry them in some butter, then keep warm.

Batter is quite easy to prepare. Mix all dry ingredients - flour, backing powder, bit of salt, and not much more of sugar (especially if you are making savory ones, take it easy on sugar, otherwise feel free to sweeten the batter some more). Also mix the wet ingredients: egg yolks (whites are separated!), softened butter, and milk. Egg whites should be beaten separately.

Then mix the egg yolk mixture with dry ingredients thoroughly, beat the egg whites and then fold the egg whites into the batter. Batter should be very airy.

Now that batter and filling are both ready, it's time to start some fun. Heat the ebelskiver pan, brush some melted butter in each form. Once pan is hot, add a spoon of batter into each form. It is important to move fast from this point on.

Immediately add filling right on top of the batter, and again, immediately add a second spoon on batter on top.

Wait for just a moment for the top to set a bit, then flip the pancakes either using the specialized tools or some long bamboo skewers.

Let the other side brown for a minute or so (exact timing depend on how high you have your stove on and how fast you move - it is really up to you to figure out your timings by trial and error). Once the other side has browned, take the ebelskivers out and serve.

I served my ebelskivers with crema mexicana today. There is a variety of sauces that can be prepared for serving, depending on whether your ebelskivers are savory or sweet and the kind of filling you are using.

Now, this was a good and filling start to the day. More culinary adventures to come for dinner. Cheers!