Our Christmas Tradition: Swedish Pancakes

Way back when in 2009, we were sharing our first Christmas on the 26th floor of our downtown high rise, which was far more glamorous in theory than in actuality. Full disclosure-bugs, lots of them.

This was the view from our balcony. Look familiar?

So there we were, Christmas morning, with no family traditions to speak of, and we were hungry. Mark still hadn't seen the light that is a carnivorous diet, so bacon or a sausage breakfast casserole was out. Pancakes sounded promising, but we didn't have any maple syrup. A true crisis, I know! One quick google search of something like "pancakes that don't need syrup"and we found this gem of a recipe. 

The recipe first caught my eye because Mark's family is Swedish and they lived in Norway for several years while he was a kid. The Scandinavian influence still pervades their family especially at Christmas time when instead of tinsel, the christmas tree is festooned with banners of norwegian flags. And my mother-in-law uses her Julenisse China that features Norwegian Christmas sprites.

This tree is a gift from Norway in DC's Union Station, but you get the idea. Source

Source

But I digress, where were we? We were hungry. This recipe fit the bill of only needing ingredients we already had, with the added bonus that I could use the cast iron skillet we received as a wedding present. The same cast iron skillet Mark was skeptical of me ever using. It gets frequent use these days, most often to make these lovely, buttery, thicker than crepes, but more delicate than regular pancakes, bits of goodness. It's also a great way to use up milk that's about to expire. That doesn't happen at your house?

Swedish Pancakes

3 eggs

2 1/2 c. low fat milk

1 1/4 c. flour

1/2 t. salt

3 T butter, melted

jam and powder sugar

It's best if all the ingredients are room temp, you'll see why.

In a larger mixing bowl, beat the eggs with half the milk. Beat in flour and salt until smooth. Stir in butter and remaining milk. (This is the point where you'll be glad if you used room temp ingredients because if you didn't the butter will resolidify) If you winged it, like I usually do, it just means you have to do some extra stirring each time you pour the batter for even butter distribution. Heat a cast iron skillet with a small amount of butter. For each pancake pour 1/3 c. of batter, cook over medium until batter is no longer runny and the top starts to look dry and bubbly. Flip and cook until golden brown on both sides. Every few pancakes, you'll need to add a bit more butter the skillet. The first pancake is always too blonde. Cast iron works best, but no one will tell if you use nonstick. Serve with more butter, powdered sugar and your favorite jam. Around here, we like to be fancy and authentic and use IKEA preserves.

          

I like the Orange Elderflower Marmalade, but Mark likes Lignon Berry Jam.

This year, since we're spending the holidays with my family in St. Louis, I'm not sure that these are on the menu. Pancakes you can only make one at a time don't work well for Christmas brunches with 20+ hungry people, especially when there are gifts waiting to be opened.

Whatever you have for breakfast Christmas Day, I hope it's delicious and that the day is merry and bright!