I am Norwegian by marriage. I don’t crave lefse, but I can tell by the spark in my husband’s eyes when anyone mentions it that he does. It was a Thanksgiving and Christmas tradition with his maternal grandfather’s family especially. His great-aunt made it for years (also, on the bitterest, coldest days of winter, a rich, creamy porridge called rømmegrøt. When I asked my husband to pronounce it for me, he replied, “Mush.” To my untrained ear, it sounds like “rahm-eh-GROTE.”).

When I asked my mother-in-law — who is a wonderful cook, the sort who mixes up bread, brownies, and rice pudding from scratch without ever having to consult a recipe — to show me how to make lefse, I was surprised by her response: “I am no expert. Mom [my husband’s Gram] used a shortcut recipe and frankly that is all I have ever used. For purists it wouldn’t do. We use instant potatoes rather than cooking and mashing, etc. If you are still interested knowing that we do what could be considered the “Sandra Lee Semi-Homemade” version, we certainly can give it a try.”

My inquiry sent my mother-in-law on a quest for the best lefse recipe. She thumbed through her old ribbon-bound church fundraiser cookbooks; asked friends for their recipes; and consulted the recipe, scrawled in her own hand on church stationery, that Gram had dictated to her.

Gram always made lefse for her church’s annual Christmas bazaar. She’d say: “Use the cheapest potato buds and margarine you can buy.”

Some recipes insisted that only Betty Crocker Potato Buds would do, while others swore by Real Idaho Potato Flakes.

After many batches of lefse from numerous recipes, my mother-in-law narrowed it down to three recipes calling for real potatoes, Betty Crocker Potato Buds, and Real Idaho Potato Flakes that we tasted side-by-side.

The lefse made with the real potatoes was our favorite, tender, thin [Gram would say: “Lefse too thin is just vanity”], and, in the light, translucent at the edges. (See recipe, tweaked by me, below.) However, with the peeling, dicing, boiling, and ricing, it was also the most labor-intensive. Also, you absolutely need at least two days to make lefse from scratch, as it is imperative to allow the potato mixture to cool overnight. Do not rush this step (we tried), or you will struggle to roll out your lefse without tearing it.

Our second-favorite, and a very reasonable alternative, was the recipe that called for Betty Crocker Potato Buds. (See recipe below.) It wasn’t quite as soft, but if you need to roll out an emergency batch of lefse or you’re just plain short on time, this recipe would satisfy most.

Our least favorite, the one that was the toughest and tasted, comparatively, most like a flour tortilla, was the recipe that called for potato flakes.

My mother-in-law (clearly, the world’s most patient person) spent a long Saturday in her kitchen rolling out batches of lefse with me snapping away with my camera for the series of photos presented below. The following Saturday, after we’d returned home and made a stop at Ingebretsen’s for equipment (“Buy the wider lefse stick,” my mother-in-law said), I asked my husband what we should do with our weekend. “Make lefse,” he said, with that spark in his eye. How could I say anything but yes?





Above: Peeling potatoes. [Not shown: cubing, boiling, and draining them.] Ricing potatoes, and adding butter, salt, sugar, and cream. Covering with tea towel for cooling. Note: peeling and ricing potatoes are good projects for husbands, children, and other lefse-loving kitchen helpers.

Above: [Not shown: kneading flour into cooled mixture.] Forming dough into patties.

Above: flouring pastry cloth and rolling patties out tissue-thin. Dust your hands and stocking-covered rolling pin with flour, too. Flip lefse every roll or two.

Above: [Not shown: dusting lefse stick with flour.] Transferring lefse to ungreased electric griddle.

Above: lefse baking on griddle.

Above: [Not shown, flipping lefse over to bake second side.] Transferring lefse from griddle to folded bath towel.

Above: spreading softened margarine onto lefse and sprinkling it with sugar. Cut in half and roll to serve.

Note: Both the “from scratch” and “shortcut” recipes are presented below. The rolling, baking, and serving phases are identical.

FROM SCRATCH LEFSE

Yields approximately 12 10-inch lefse

Equipment

Potato ricer

Pastry or lefse board, covered with pastry cloth

Rolling pin, either smoothed or grooved (which removes air bubbles for thinner rolling), covered with a pastry stocking

Lefse-turning stick

Electric lefse griddle or large round stove top griddle

Bath towel, folded in half, to store cooling lefse

Ingredients

2½ lbs (about 5) Russet potatoes, peeled and cubed

1 tsp salt (for boiling potatoes)

3 tbsp butter

½ tbsp sugar

1 tsp salt

½ c sweet cream

All-purpose flour, just enough for rolling, about 2-2½ c

Flour for frequent dusting of hands, pastry cloth, rolling pin, and lefse stick

Butter, softened

Granulated sugar or granulated sugar and cinnamon or brown sugar

Preparing the dough:

(Must be done at least the day before you want to bake the lefse)

Peel and cube potatoes. In a medium, covered pot, cover cubed potatoes with cold water and bring to a boil. Add 1 tsp of salt, lower heat, and simmer until potatoes are tender enough to pierce with a fork (about 15-20 minutes). Drain potatoes. While still warm, force potatoes through potato ricer into a medium bowl, twice. Add butter, sugar, salt, and cream to potatoes. Mix thoroughly. Cover bowl with a tea cloth and place in the refrigerator or cool room (e.g., in the winter, your garage) overnight until the mixture is thoroughly cooled. Do not try to rush this step or the dough will be as sticky and impossible to work with as wallpaper paste. Knead in flour, a little at a time. The less flour you use, the more tender and translucent your lefse will be. Dough should be slightly sticky, elastic, and hold together when you squeeze it into a ball. It might seem slightly pebbly, but resist the urge to add more liquid. Dust your hands with flour, then shape dough into 12 balls or patties. Place the patties on a tray, cover with a tea towel, and place in the refrigerator until they are thoroughly cold and you are ready to roll out lefse.

Shape, bake, and serve:

When ready to make lefse, preheat griddle to 490°. Dust pastry cloth and sock-covered rolling pin with a small handful of flour. Sweep hand across cloth to spread flour into a thin, even layer. Place patty at center of floured pastry cloth. Starting at the center of the patty, roll dough into a very thin pancake using sock-covered rolling pin by rolling in one direction, then returning to the center of patty and rolling out in another direction. Dust your hands with flour, then flip the lefse over, sprinkling the cloth with flour as necessary to prevent sticking. Roll lefse out even thinner, trying to maintain a round shape. It will be easier to fold and roll yourself (for serving) if your lefse is round, but if your lefse turn out to be shaped like imaginary countries on a map, that’s okay, too. Repeat until the red lettering of the pastry cloth is faintly visible through the lefse. If you roll it too thin, it may tear. If you tear the lefse and have to re-roll it, it will be chewy, instead of soft and tender. Dust lefse stick with flour, then slide it under the lefse at its diameter and lift to transfer lefse to the griddle by touching one end of the lefse to the griddle and layer the remainder of the lefse onto the griddle with a gentle sweeping motion of the stick. Bake on the ungreased griddle until the lefse develops air bubbles and brown spots. Slide the lefse stick under the center of the lefse to turn it and bake the other side. When both sides are lightly browned, slide the stick under the lefse to lift and remove it from the griddle. Transfer it to a towel and cover. When you are ready to eat the lefse, prepare it spreading softened butter with a knife on half of the lefse, sprinkle it with white sugar, brown sugar, or a mixture of sugar and cinnamon. Cut it in half and roll. When the lefse has completely cooled, store it by folding it into quarters and putting it in a baggie in the refrigerator or freezer. Reheat in microwave to serve.

SHORTCUT LEFSE

Yields about 12 10-inch lefse

Equipment

Pastry or lefse board, covered with pastry cloth

Rolling pin, either smoothed or grooved (which removes air bubbles for thinner rolling), covered with a pastry stocking

Lefse-turning stick

Electric lefse griddle or large round stove top griddle

Bath towel, folded in half, to store cooling lefse

Ingredients

3 c water

1½ c butter

3 c Betty Crocker Potato Buds

1 c instant nonfat dry milk

1 tbsp sugar

1 tsp salt

1½ c all-purpose flour

Flour for frequent dusting of hands, pastry cloth, rolling pin, and lefse stick

Butter, softened

Granulated sugar or granulated sugar and cinnamon or brown sugar

Prepare the dough:

(Must be done at least several hours or the day before you want to bake the lefse)

In a medium saucepan, bring water to a boil. Melt the butter in the boiling water. In a medium bowl, mix together dry ingredients, except flour. Stir boiling water and butter mixture into dry ingredients. Cover bowl with a tea cloth and place in the refrigerator or cool room (e.g., in the winter, your garage) until the mixture is thoroughly cooled. Knead in flour. Dough should be slightly sticky, elastic, and hold together when you squeeze it into a ball. It might seem slightly pebbly, but resist the urge to add more liquid. Dust your hands with flour, then shape dough into 12 balls or patties. Place the patties on a tray, cover with a tea towel, and place in the refrigerator until they are thoroughly cold and you are ready to roll out lefse.

Shape, bake, and serve:

When ready to make lefse, preheat griddle to 490°. Dust pastry cloth and rolling pin with a small handful of flour. Sweep hand across cloth to spread flour into a thin, even layer. Place patty at center of floured pastry cloth. Starting at the center of the patty, roll dough into a very thin pancake using stocking-covered rolling pin, by rolling in one direction, then returning to the center of patty and rolling out in another direction. Dust your hands with flour, then flip the lefse over, sprinkling the cloth with flour as necessary to prevent sticking. Roll lefse out even thinner, trying to maintain a round shape. It will be easier to fold and roll yourself (for serving) if your lefse is round, but if your lefse turn out to be shaped like imaginary countries on a map, that’s okay, too. Repeat until the red lettering of the pastry cloth is faintly visible through the lefse. If you roll it too thin, it may tear. If you tear the lefse and have to re-roll it, it will be chewy, instead of soft and tender. Dust lefse stick with flour, then slide it under the lefse at its diameter and lift to transfer lefse to the griddle by touching one end of the lefse to the griddle and laying the remainder of the lefse onto the griddle with a gentle sweeping motion of the stick. Bake on the ungreased griddle until the lefse develops air bubbles and brown spots. Slide the lefse stick under the center of the lefse to turn it and bake the other side. When both sides are lightly browned, slide the stick under the lefse to lift and remove it from the griddle. Transfer it to a towel and cover. When you are ready to eat the lefse, prepare it spreading softened butter with a knife on half of the lefse, sprinkle it with white sugar, brown sugar, or a mixture of sugar and cinnamon. Cut it in half and roll. When the lefse has completely cooled, store it by folding it into quarters and putting it in a baggie in the refrigerator or freezer. Reheat in microwave to serve.

RESOURCES

Ingebretsen’s Scandinavian Gifts & Foods

1601 E Lake St

Minneapolis, MN 55407

612.729.9333

Scandi-Style

Lefse Time

Thank you to the three generations of Norwegians who contributed to this story.