Finnish Pancake Recipe.

This recipe has been in my family for years. I remember my mother making them for my sisters and I when we were little. They are a little bit tricky (easy to overcook!), but they are a yummy change from plain old pancakes! Finnish pancakes are thin and buttery. I've never had a proper crepe, but I feel as though these pancakes are similar to crepes. My kids call them roll-up pancakes because we forgo silverware to roll them up and eat them with our hands.

My great-grandmother was a first generation American. Her parents immigrated here from Finland. This recipe came over with them and has been passed down through the ladies of the family as we make them for our own families.


FINNISH PANCAKES.

INGREDIENTS.

3/4 cup flour
3/4 cup milk
4 eggs

Put all of the ingredients into a blender and mix well. The sides of the blender will probably need to be scraped to ensure that there are no lumps left in the batter.

Pre-heat the griddle on medium heat. The batter is very thin, so it is best to pour it onto a hot pan so it begins to cook right away. Pour the batter slowly into rounds that are about palm-sized. Watch as the color darkens slightly as the batter dries, starting at the outside of the pancake and moving toward the middle. Flip the pancakes as soon as only the middle still shows the wet soft yellow color of the uncooked batter. It will only be a few seconds before the edges start to lift ever so slightly from the pan. Remove from the griddle. The pancake should be pale yellow all over, with no browning. Be sure to butter the griddle in between each batch.

You really want to catch the pancakes before they brown at all. Once they brown they lose some of their uniqueness and become difficult to roll up.  I've been making these for years, and I still get distracted by the kids and let them cook too long! They cook extremely quickly.

This recipe makes about 30 palm-sized pancakes. Serve warm with syrup and jam! These are extra-special fun because, as I mentioned, they don't require any silverware. Just roll them up and dip! Or alternately, put jam in the center and then roll them up. Of course, if manners are required, forks are welcome to the party. Depending on how thin and buttery yours turn out, it may be difficult to coax them onto the fork. Finnish pancakes are wonderfully kid friendly due to their mild taste and the whole eating-with-the-hands experience! 

From my family to yours, Happy Eating!

Butternut Squash + Bartlett Pear Soup Recipe.

I love comfort food. When the days cool down and the nights are crisp, there's just something about a mug of hot soup. Following is my original recipe for Butternut Squash and Bartlett Pear Soup.

INGREDIENTS. 

large butternut squash (mine was about 6 pounds)
1-2 bartlett pears
2 onions
clove of garlic
1/2 cup of milk or cream (plus extra for pureeing squash)
4 cups chicken or vegetable stock
1/4 tsp. ginger
1/4 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. nutmeg
2 Tbs. parmesan cheese

Preheat the oven to 375. Wash and cut the squash into quarters. Remove the seeds. Place on a baking sheet or bar pan skin side up and bake for 30 minutes. Flip squash, cover with foil, and bake for another 20 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool until it is cool enough to be handled.

Meanwhile, wash and peel the pear(s) and the onions, and then chop. Mince the garlic. In a large soup pot, saute the pear, onion, and garlic in 1 Tbs. of butter until soft. Turn off the heat. Remove from pot and place in a blender. Blend until pureed. (It may need more fluid to be able to blend smoothly; if so add a bit of milk.) Return to pot.

When the squash is cool enough to be handled, cut away the skin. Chop the squash and put it in the blender to be pureed. Due to the size of the squash it will likely need to be pureed in batches and not all at once. Add a little bit of milk as needed to the blender to help it process the squash.

Add the pureed squash to the pot with the pear and onion. Also add the stock, milk, seasoning, and cheese. Salt and pepper to taste.  

Cook over medium heat until warmed through and the flavors meld. Serve hot! I'm not sure, but my best guess is that this recipe should serve 6-8.

This soup pairs well with crusty bread and apple cider. Happy Autumn!

Pinwheel Party Sandwich Recipe.

Did you know that the first of my sisters is due to have a wee one in March? I'm super excited although it makes me sad that she and her husband live a few hours away. Her baby shower was this past weekend and I put together some pinwheel sandwiches for the festivities! I also ate quite a few. They're so yummy! A favorite past-time of mine is creating my own recipes, and while I can't say what the cookbook instructs about these delightful little treats, I thought I'd share my own recipe with you.

The following recipe is great for parties, as it makes 80-90 pinwheels sandwiches. If you choose to use multiple types of lunch meat, I prefer not to mix them into the same sandwich as it can overpower the taste of the spreads.

You will need:

• 3.5 ounce bag sun-dried tomatoes

• extra virgin olive oil

• salt & pepper

• 12 ounces cream cheese

• 3-4 scallions (green onions)

• 12-14  tortillas (10")

• 2 pounds lunch meat

• romaine lettuce

Tomato Spread (can be done ahead)

Pulse the sun dried tomatoes in a blender with a good drizzle of olive oil. Add salt and pepper to taste. Pulse until no large chunks of the tomato remains. It won't be smooth, but should be even in appearance with very crumbly, small tomato pieces.

Cream Cheese Spread (can be made ahead)

Be sure to let the cream cheese soften just a little so that it will be easier to mix. Dice scallions and mix in well with the cream cheese. (Pretty easy, huh?)

Pinwheel Sandwiches 

To build sandwich, cover a tortilla with a thin later of cream cheese mixture. Then place slices of lunch meat (turkey is always a favorite) in a thin layer, leaving about 1" of cream cheese exposed at the far edge. (This cream cheese kind of glues the tortilla closed when rolled.) Place leaf lettuce across the center of the tortilla (from left to right, or right to left), and spread some of the tomato mixture along the lettuce. You are now ready to roll! Starting at the edge closest to you, roll away from yourself. Press firmly as you roll the far edge, making sure that the cream cheese seals the edge. Before you slice the actual sandwiches you'll have to cut away either end to prevent from getting two misshapen and half-empty sandwiches. I always put these scraps in a bowl to munch on: waste not, want not! Now cut the log into approximately 1" slices. You should get 6-7 pinwheels out of each tortilla.

Please enjoy! The sandwiches are best when served the same day they are made. You can also trim away the left and right edge of the tortilla before assembling instead of during the assembly process, but I like the little snack it provides when trimmed after the tortilla is filled and rolled. 

Happy Monday!

Molasses Cake Recipe.

It's that time of year when baking cakes in a non-air-conditioned house becomes enjoyable again. Yay for Fall! One of my favorite cakes is Molasses Cake. It's moist and rich, and it's a nice change from chocolate (although I like that too). Topped with crumbs, it doesn't need any too-sweet icing and it goes great with tea, hot apple cider, or coffee!

Molasses Cake.

Ingredients. 

4 cups flour

1 cup brown sugar

1 cup granulated sugar

1/2 pound butter

2 cups boiling water

2 tsp baking soda

1 cup molasses 

Preheat oven to 350. Grease and flour a 13" x 9" cake pan, set aside.

Mix flour, brown sugar, and granulated sugar in a large bowl. Cut in the butter. Set aside 1 cup of mixture for topping.

In another bowl, stir together boiling water, baking soda, and molasses. Add this to the dry mixture, stirring well. Note that the hot water and baking soda will fizz a bit, so make sure your bowl is big enough that it won't overflow.

Pour cake batter into the greased and floured 13" x 9" pan. Sprinkle the 1 cup of topping that was set aside evenly over the top. Bake for 40-45 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

Cheers! I hope you enjoy this cake as much as I do!