Apple fritter rings (Aebleskiver)
An 'Aebleskive' (apple slice) is a pan baked spherical puffy cake that the Danes have (a lot) at Yule. It all began with the apple fritter rings, which we have known in DK since the Middle Ages. It's slices of apple dipped in batter and pan fried in butter or lard. The apple fritter developed into a ball-shaped cake baked in a special pan. At first, there was some apple sauce or a piece of apple inside the cake. Today, there is usually no trace of apple. We just have the cake and yet we still call it an 'Aebleskive'. In the 1800s the spherical Aebleskive was regarded a delicacy and became associated with Yule. Aebleskiver and biscuits made a typical Yule present given to the farm servants.
Try this recipe and find out how the original Aebleskive tasted.
Recipe for 2-3 people
2 cups rye flour
½ cup wheat flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup buttermilk
1 cup beer
1 large teaspoon honey (or some modern sugar)
2 eggs
2 tart apples
100 g lard (or vegetable fat or butter)
Video: How to make apple fritter rings (Aebleskiver)
Combine the two types of flour and salt. Add most of the buttermilk and the beer and whisk. Then add the honey and whisk in the eggs to form a batter. If it's too thick, you can adjust with more buttermilk. Leave the batter to rest while you prepare the apples.
Cut the apples crosswise into ½ cm thick slices and remove the middle core. Dap the slices with a towel or paper if too wet. Dip the apples into the batter.
Heat the lard in a heavy skillet and shallow fry the apple rings for about 3-4 minutes on each side until golden and crisp. If you prefer, you can deep fry the apple rings.
Serve the warm apple fritters with honey, marmalade or sugar.
Enjoy!
1 cup = 200 ml.