Thursday, June 25, 2009

nutella filled ebelskiver


nutella filled ebelskiver

in addition to my ice cream maker, husband also got me a new pan for my birthday in may. i have wanted this pan for a while and once he saw it, i'm sure he was happy to give it to me. buttery, filled, pancake-like balls of goodness can hardly be considered a bad birthday gift for the giver...even if it mean the recipient has to cook.

to go with my ebelskiver pan, he also included the great scandinavian baking book by beatrice ojakangas . it is filled with traditional recipes and i think you must bathe in butter before making any of them. i'm pretty certain it says that in the foreword.




mini muffin scooper for the assist

so if you haven't figured it out, this pan makes something close to little, round pancakes. they are fluffy and light and it's because the batter starts out with whipped egg white folded into the rest of the ingredients. to be honest, i've never made pancake batter from scratch. i hate bisquick, so i use bob's red mill varieties. it might be possible that all homemade from scratch pancake recipes have a meringue-like base, and in that case, they're probably fluffy, too.


where. it's. at.

nutella filled ebelskiver (adapted slightly from the great scandinavian baking book)
1 c milk
1/2 c melted butter
3 eggs, separated
2 tbsp sugar
1 1/2 c all purpose flour
2 tsp baking powder
nutella (amount varies by preference, and by how much you sample while assembling)

1. heat milk to lukewarm
2. whisk in the butter, egg yolks, and sugar
3. turn into a bowl and add the flour and baking powder, whisking until blended and no lumps remain
4. whip egg whites until stiff and fold into mixture
5. heat pan over medium high heat until a drop of water sizzles when dripped onto the pan
6. put 1/2 tsp of butter into each indentation (here i used nonstick spray, because that's too much butter)
7. spoon in 1 tablespoon of the batter and let it cook for 30 seconds.
8. drop about 1 teaspoon of nutella into the center and top with more batter to cover
9. when the bottoms are browned, turn the cakes over and cook on that side until browned
10. remove from pan and place on serving plate


flipping

i made the first batch and at first i was all flustered. hot pan, lots of drippy batter, nutella everywhere. but the pan makes things as simple as can be. we used chopsticks to flip and you cannot mess up because once you turn them, the shape is automatic. husband tried his hand at turning and found it to be easy and fun. i believe he was also more generous with the nutella...surprise, surprise.



and oh. mah. gah. this "breakfast" turned into lunch and snack. it made 1 million (or 4 batches) and they were irresistible. somewhere about 12 in, husband removed the plate from my general vicinity because i must have been visibly sick looking. tiny, fluffy pancakes filled with the spread of the gods. they needed no syrup, no powdered sugar, no utensils.

i tagged them here as both "real food" and "dessert" because it's hard to choose. i can see them served at a brunch because they're so easy to make and eat. traditionally, you make them with applesauce, which i can see as somewhat appealing. we tried a few with berries and they required a bit more cooking time, but were tasty. i imagined putting a candy bar or a square of caramel filled chocolate inside and then serving with ice cream for dessert. there is no wrong way.



if this doesn't make you want to rush out and get an ebelskiver pan, then we might have a problem...

14 comments:

nicole said...

yum! and GREAT pics... I especially love the first one.

Ellie said...

I freakin' LOVE my ebelskiver pan!! The nutella-filled ones rock - great post!

Caitlin said...

I've held out against the lure of the ebelskiver pan for months and months now, but I think this post may have broken me. I wonder if I have time to stop on my way home...

Chris said...

Oh goodness, those look fantastic!! Nutella filled pancakes that you can pop in your mouth one after the next - can't get any better than that!

FIL said...

This isn't fair! You told us about the ebelskiver pan when you were in MN last weekend, but you didn't say how fantastic they turned out. It makes me weep to think I might have been able to talk you into making some while you were here. Seriously.

What's Cookin Chicago said...

I've been contemplating getting this pan because I love mini and individual portioned foods. These look fantastic!

Thomas said...

Seemaijay. I want some now! They look so good and fried and buttery and chocolicious inside. I bet applesauce WOULD be delicious, but it wouldn't be Nutellakins.

Thomas said...

I just looked at these again and I was already hungry, so now I'm hungry for something delicious. Dang you, yummy cooker, you!

Anonymous said...

I have a term for the feeling that comes over me when I eat way too much chocolate: Chocolate Fever. I wonder if your husband saw you in the throes of Nutella Fever. Looks like an excellent way to come down with it, though. (And no, not all from-scratch pancake batters have whipped egg whites...I think that's more of a from-scratch waffle batter thing. Either way, your "pancakes" look divine.)

Helen said...

Wants.Now!!!

Marta said...

What a great gift to get!!! Hahaha I guess your husband benefits from it too since he gets all these amazing treats!
I cannot think of anything more heavenly than these Nutella-stuffed pancakes!

Thea said...

Where did he find it? They look soooo good!

Anonymous said...

Need. These look like perfection, and I've wanted an ebelskiver pan for a few years anyway. Hm, any holidays coming up?

Kaś said...

wow, i love them, so yumi!!!