Tuesday, September 13, 2011

Ableskiver or Ebleskiver or Aebleskiver!!!???

I love strolling in open air markets, closed in markets, anywhere there is food, food products or just ingredients or produce!!  On one such strolls, I came across these yummy little, perfect Danish Doughnuts!!  Airy, soft, round, pancakey, perfect in every way for a liesurley weekend breakfast!   They looked so cute in their cast iron pan with round indentations, the creamy liquid, bubbling away with gentle flames cooking it from beneath!  I couldn't wait to get my hands on it until the little girl frying them messed it up :(((  I was heartbroken.

But the chef in me wouldn't let me give up that easily either!!  I had to recreate this!!  And moreover, they looked like a breakfast food from my native land also!  So, all the more reason to attempt it!!  Next day as I was lunching with a bunch of friends in a park, I casually mentioned the past day's incident, and she said she had made it that morning!!!!  It was a sign!!  I logged into my Facebook...my friend R mentioned that her daughter enjoyed it soooo much at a Danish friend's place!!!  Now that was an even bigger sign!  I could not ignore the beckoning to making one!  I read the ingredients some place and decided to make my own version, of course,  my simplified version of the same!!!  Now I stuffed it with strawberry preserves, ideally, apple pie filling will be great!!!  So give the recipe a try, you will be pleasantly surprised!!!  But...but.... you will need this pan!  You could also try making these Danish roundels with an ice cream scoop, I suppose, but is a breeze with this pan!
My Trust worthy Appa kaaral!!!
 This is called "Appa Kaaral"  in Tamil.  I have a non stick variety as you can see and is even more convenient....no seasoning, pre conditioning, sticking to the pan business, no mess!!  Get yourself one!  Life can't get easier than that!!   You do get Aebleskiver pans at Target and Walmart here, in the US! That said...on to the recipe..... so simple...will be ready in minutes...by the time, your pan is ready and greeting hot....your batter is ready!
On with the recipe....
You will need .... 1 cup of Bisquick, 1/2 cup of milk (I used 1%), a pinch of salt (for the dessert version) or 1/2 tsp of salt (for the savory version), 1 egg, 1/4 cup strawberry preserves and powdered sugar for dusting for the dessert version or 1/4 cup Mexican cheese blend for the savory version.
Whisk all the ingredients together with the milk and make a batter, slightly thicker than a cake batter.  




Prepare the pan by heating it on medium high heat and drizzle a teaspoon of canola oil in each socket!
Drop 1/2 a tablespoon of the batter into one socket, fill it with a teaspoon of strawberry preserves or apple pie filling or cheese for the savory kind, and pour the remaining half a tablespoon of the batter to cover. 
Cook for couple minutes on the first side, till the edges are crisp.  Use a pair of wooden skewers to flip the Aebleskivers and cook for another couple minutes till nice and brown!
This is how a perfect one looks like and is even more perfect when served dusted with powdered suggahhhh!!
Aebleskiver's humble sister from across the globe ... Mor Appam!  meaning Buttermilk dumplings.  My mother would treat us with this for Sunday snack sessions called "Tiffin"!!!  How we would look forward to these sessions .... rare treats like Sevai (noodle hoppers), Bajji (vegetable tempura), Pakodas, Mor appams would make their appearances.  Awesome with coconut chutney!!  
My adaptation of Mor Appam for the American kitchen.....
You will need... 1 cup of Bisquick, 1/2 cup beaten yogurt/buttermilk, 1/2 tsp lemon juice, salt to taste, tempering of 1/2 tsp mustard, 1/2 tsp urad dal. 1/2 tsp cumin seeds, couple split red chillies, Curry leaves and hing (asefotida) in 2 tsp of canola oil!  
Mix the tempered seasonings and the batter together like above.it is ready to be deep fried....  Fry them by the tablespoon into the prepared pan and fry them up on both sides just like above!


Mor Appams!




These light fluffy tangy morsels of shallow fried batter are heavenly with spicy mint chutney or coconut chutney!!!  
Verdict:   Hubby tasted them with delight and immediately asked for chatini....in his Tirunalveli lingo!!!  So....my friend...you make them now and enjoy Aebleskivers...the Danish and the Indian way!!!

10 comments:

  1. Anu...just when I think you are done you amaze me even MORE!!!!
    Thanks
    R

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  2. thanks a ton R..... you are "that" R who is mentioned in this post..... ........I hope you like them!!!

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  3. Now that's an idea for this weekend! MB

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  4. hahahahah! have fun whipping it up this weekend and let me know .... have fun in the kitchen...hey that could be my new logo!!:))))))

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  5. This is soooo awesome!!! I am gonna try it this weekend Anu:) Keep them coming....can't wait to try out ur recipes. Love ya!!! Uma

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  6. thanks Uma!!! is it really??? ok...will churn up some more...now on to making momos next week...stay tuned!

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  7. Hey! We do this without the buttermilk, kuzhi paniyaram na? I add onions, a little bit of ginger grated and green chillies to the batter. ---

    Sumathi

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  8. True!! But, the batter is different...not instant! made with grinding rice etc! This was the closest to Aebleskiver!!! Kuzhi P is very yum too...my favorite!!!

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