Watching the Aurora Borealis (aka Northern Lights) segment on my favorite Sunday morning television show this past weekend reminded me how energizing and emotionally overwhelming it can be to take in and capture nature's beauty. Like it was yesterday, I can still recall how the up-close experience of seeing and feeling the majesticness of mountains on my very first trip to Rocky Mountain National Park literally caused me to weep. The beauty of the sky, mountains, and surrounding landscape combined with the energy emanating from the mountains was more than just one of life's memorable moments, it changed something for and in me. This first trip to Colorado turned into an annual trek. Not only to capture as much of the landscape as possible with my camera (am trying to find an inner Ansel Adams) but to find some solace as well as escape from the stressful chaos of my life. As perplexing and worrisome my solo trips were to some of my friends (sometimes with good cause), I almost always experienced a sense of calm and fearlessness when in the midst of nature's beauty. Retrospectively though, I wished a little more common sense and caution was operating before I made the knuckle-clenching drive from Leadville to Aspen on a sudden, dramatic shift in the weather day. One causing snowy, icy, and treacherous driving conditions on Independence Pass. For a little more than an hour I failed to appreciate the splendiferousness of the mountains while trying to hold back the tears.
Getting energized through the consumption of carbohydrates isn't exactly the same kind of energy one experiences from a hike in or a drive through the mountains. Because when one lives in the flat lands of the midwest the only kinds of mountains in existence are the imaginary ones created by squinting one's eyes on days when the sky is filled with those large, billowy Cumulus clouds (yes, I have a very active imagination). Needing to energize my body after a pre 5K race run with my running group on Saturday, I was craving a plate of pancakes. Not my favorite buttermilk pancakes, but Swedish pancakes sprinkled with confectionary sugar and served with some butter and lingonberry jam. My cravings can sometimes very specific.
Traditionally considered a dessert, Swedish pancakes (Pannkakor) have been around since the middle ages. The Swedish tradition of serving the pancakes with pea soup for dinner on Thursdays traces back to a time long ago when Sweden was largely Catholic due to Danish influence. Considered a hearty meal, it was intended to stave off any of the anticipated Friday fasting hunger. While the Thursday pea soup and Swedish pancakes meal custom remains a part of the culture, today the large, thin, crepe-like pancake has evolved into a breakfast or lunch main dish. One you can savor on any day or should your little heart desire, every day of the week.
When I was very young my maternal grandmother once told me there was some Swedish heritage in my genealogy. However, this did not manifest itself in the celebration of any Swedish customs or the handing down of any Swedish family recipes (not even the Swedish meatballs we ate growing up). Other than having one of my best friend's 'super secret can't ever share or risk life and limb' recipe for Glogg, I have not been fortunate enough to be the recipient of any other traditional, family Swedish recipes. As in most cultures, there are multiple versions of recipes for the same foods. Without the benefit of a family recipe for Swedish pancakes, I had no choice but to try to find the 'best' one out there. Or at least one that tasted as close to the Swedish pancakes I had recently had in the north woods of Wisconsin. It can be sometimes hard to 'trust' a recipe one finds in a cookbook, food magazine, or on the internet, but when I rediscovered the Swedish Pancake recipe shared in Cook's Country magazine I had faith this could be the 'one' worthy enough to be described as one of the 'best'. However, there were two ingredients listed in the recipe I thought would cause anyone growing up 'Swedish' to immediately gasp and declare it as being devoid of any authenticity. Club soda or instant flour (Wondra) were probably not in existence in the middle ages.
But had they been, maybe Swedish Pancakes would have become embraced as a main course (breakfast, lunch or dinner) centuries earlier. However, I can't imagine the early version of the recipe could have been as buttery, silky or as addictively delicious as the Cook's Country version.
The batter for these Swedish pancakes does not need to rest several hours or even overnight. Instead any craving you have for them can be almost instantly gratified (and for some things I skew more to the instant versus delayed gratification end of the spectrum).
Whether you are using either a 9 or 10 inch cast iron or non-stick skillet, the pan needs to be hot and butter needs to be added to the pan each time you make a pancake. Swirling a generous third of a cup of batter into the hot, buttered pan helps to create a perfectly round, even in thickness pancake. The cooking time for each pancake is approximately 1-2 minutes (one minute per side).
The cooked pancakes can be stacked on one another and kept warm in a preheated 200 degree oven. This is critical as it will take at least 20 minutes to make all of these pancakes. To prevent the pancakes from sticking together, lightly dust with confectionary sugar. When serving the Swedish pancakes, I like folding before plating them, however, many roll them 'crepe-style'. Note: Any leftover pancakes can be covered, stored in the refrigerator, and reheated in the microwave.
The fearlessness I experienced when making the Swedish Pancake recipe from the Cook's Country magazine was rewarded well beyond my (high) expectations. They were as good as, if not better than, the ones I recently had. Think I may have just found the perfect long run reward food, although, I wouldn't want to limit the making of these Swedish pancakes to an activity, event or even to a day. Now that I have the perfect recipes for Glogg and Swedish pancakes, I need to start looking for that 'perfect' Swedish meatball recipe so I begin to channel some of that Swedish heritage I supposedly have.
Recipe
Swedish Pancakes (slight adaptation of Cook's Country Swedish Pancakes recipe, October 2010)
Ingredients
2 cups instant flour (recommend Wondra)
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 1/2 cups half and half
1 1/2 cups club soda, room temperature
2 large eggs, plus 2 egg yolks, lightly beaten, room temperature
4 Tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and slightly cooled
Additional butter for cooking
Confectionary sugar for dusting
Ligonberries for serving
Directions
1. Preheat oven to 200 degrees (F). Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
2. Combine flour, sugar and salt in a large bowl.
3. Combine the half and half, club soda, lightly beaten eggs and four tablespoons of melted butter until just blended.
4. Slowly whisk the liquid ingredients into the dry ingredients until the flour mixture is smooth.
5. Pour or brush two teaspoons of melted butter onto the hot skillet (be careful to not let butter brown or burn), and immediately pour a generous 1/3 cup of batter into the skillet, tilting pan to evenly coat bottom of pan. Cook until lightly golden, approximately 1-2 minutes per side.
6. Transfer cooked pancakes to baking sheet and place in preheated oven or transfer to a plate and cover tightly with aluminum foil. Note: Lightly sprinkle confectionary sugar over each pancake before stacking.
7. Serve folded or rolled along with sides of room temperature butter and lingonberry jam.
