Norwegian Crepe Pancakes

These were inspired by my going to NetCost, a super store in NE Philly specializing in Russian and Eastern European foods. They had a huge section of "preserves", many from Israel with Hebrew and Russian. They are a genre of fruit somewhere between what we call jam and pie filling. I brought some cherry preserves and then tried to figure out what to do with them. Rolling them up in a crepe is perfect. Three or four make a very nice meal.

These remind David of the thin pancakes his Aunt Ruth made in Salt Lake, rolled up with fruits. Happily so!

It's from How to Feed a Loon, two guys with a blog and lots of YouTubes. I have modified it, using more whole wheat, natch.

3 eggs
1½ c whole milk (up to 1/3 can be buttermilk)
1 c all-purpose flour (half white, half whole wheat)
¼ t salt
1 t sugar
¼ t cardamom ground, optional
1 t vanilla 
2 T butter melted, plus more for the pan
Preserves or jam, for spreading and rolling. Optional: ricotta cheese.
For a savory crepe: chop an onion, saute, and throw in a lot of fresh spinach. Add a little grated cheese. Yum!

Use a blender, mixing the eggs and milk til smooth. It’s easier to pour the batter from the blender.

[or, easier: use a pancake dispenser. It has measures on it, so put in the milks and add eggs, and use a whisk to beat. Add the dry ingredients. You can put the top on and shake it. Lumps will not be gone, but disappear when you cook them.] 

Add the flour, salt, sugar, cardamom, vanilla extract, and melted butter, and continue mixing until most of the lumps are gone.

Heat a large griddle/skillet , and a second smaller fry pan ( perfect for kid sized crepes) over medium heat and coat with a small amount of butter (about 1 tsp). Swirl the pan until the pan is fully coated. Let it heat - it takes longer than you expect, in my experience.

Scoop about ⅓ cup of the batter and then pour into the center of the skillet, immediately swirling the pan until most of the batter has been distributed along the bottom of the pan. You can do this with the bottom of a 1/3 c measure. [or pull the handle of the dispenser.]

Cook until the edges begin to curl up slightly and some bubbles begin to appear, usually about 2 minutes. Carefully slip a rubber (or silicone) spatula under the side of the pancake and flip.
Cook for another minute and then transfer the pancake to a serving plate. I put the tray in the Breville, without heat, closed - the steam keeps them warm.

This makes about 8-12, depending on size. Serve with fruit preserve, jam, or fresh fruits and yogurt.

 They go pretty fast!

If desired, roll the pancakes, or serve flat with toppings on the side.

Almond Horns - Mandelhörnchen

For Zeke's bar mitzvah, I wanted to bake something primarily for Zeke. I told him he didn't have to share his goodies with anyone. (For Ezra's, since we were a small group and we hung out at their house, I baked more generic things.) Zeke did share them, but received his own private stash and was quite pleased about it.

Since the Hausmanns are yekkehs on both sides, and indeed the boys already have German citizenship, I picked this treat, mandelhörnchen. I read about them in Smitten Kitchen, but ultimately went with the German version, video linked above. It uses marzipan, which I had in the house and wanted to try. 

There are many discussions of the merits of almond paste vs. marzipan. I took the sprinkles idea from Smitten Kitchen. These are not something Eric ever mentioned, but they are German classics.

This is a European metric recipe translated into American measures, so a little odd. 

7.05 oz marzipan
0.89 cups almond meal or almond flour
1 egg white for the dough
0.83 cups confectioners sugar (= powdered sugar)
2 t lemon juice
1 egg-white for dipping
4 oz sliced almonds
1 cup dark chocolate (more or less)


Put the marzipan, almond flour, confectioners sugar, egg white, and lemon juice into a bowl and mix it all together.
With wet fingers, shape 6 Crescents from the dough. (these would be huge. I did 9 and would go smaller still).
Dip each crescent first into the egg white and then turn it in the almond slices until it's well covered.
Set on a baking sheet covered with parchment paper.
Preheat the oven to 350°F and bake the almond crescents for 10 to 15 minutes or a little longer if you want them more crisp.

Let them cool and in the meantime, melt the chocolate on the induction Melt setting in a frying pan.
Once the almond horns have cooled completely, dip the ends of the horns into the chocolate. [Sprinkle on the jimmies!]
Let the chocolate set and then enjoy.

Not bad for a first try, and they were well-received!

Bunny's Yekkeh Style Savoy Cabbage

Here she dictated "grated" cabbage - she probably used the food processor. I just chop it thinly in strips.

Savoy Cabbage

I cook the cabbage in a little oil in a large covered frying pan. It takes quite awhile for the liquid to start accumulating. I saute the onion in a little oil in a separate pan, add the flour to thicken it a bit, and then add it to the lightly cooked cabbage,stir, and turn off the heat.

It would probably be really good with butter. The trick here is to not overcook it or you will have what Uncle Steven refers to as "the wurst dish ever." (I presume Bunny served it with wurst, sausage?) This is  pleasant and super nutritious.  The flour and nutmeg make it quite delectable. IMHO.

There is now a German Jewish Cookbook out.


I bought it, looked it over, and sold it to a happy purchaser on Amazon. Blech. But, I have always liked Bunny's very simple prep for shredded Savoy cabbage. It is around in the fall.