Aebleskiver History & Recipe

Enjoy authentic aebleskiver (pronounced aye-bill-ski-ver, singular and plural) year-round in Solvang.

Aebleskiver Background

Enjoy authentic aebleskiver (pronounced aye-bill-ski-ver, singular and plural) year-round in Solvang—however these Danish “pancake balls” are especially popular during the annual Taste of Solvang—held in March every year as well as the annual Danish Days Celebration every September. Enjoy!

Aebleskiver Recipe

Photo & Recipe Courtesy of The Solvang Restaurant (


2 cups buttermilk 2 cups flour
2 eggs 2 t baking powder
1/2 t salt 1/2 t soda
2 T sugar 4 T melted butter

Recipe Instructions

Separate the eggs. Mix egg yolks and all the other ingredients together at one time and beat until smooth. Allow batter to set for 30 minutes to let baking powder work. Beat the whites stiff and fold in last. Heat aebleskiver pan. Put 1 tsp. salad oil in each hole and fill completely with batter. Let bake until slightly crusty on bottom. Turn slightly with a knitting needle or skewer. Continue cooking, turning the ball to keep it from burning, until the knitting needle comes out clean when stuck in the center. Serve aebleskiver hot with powdered sugar, jam, and jelly.

Aebleskiver History

(Courtesy of former Solvang Restaurant owner Arne Hansen)

Aebleskiver! Thank heavens you don't have to pronounce it to eat it. What is it? This is probably the most asked question. There are probably hundreds of explanations and I dare say, none of them are correct, including mine. Aebleskiver are a delicacy, supposedly invented by some Dane back in history. They are like a waffle or a pancake formed like a tennis ball. The name makes a person believe that there are slices of apples inside, which is correct---if you put apple slices inside! You see, everybody, including me, has their own favorite recipe and way of serving them, all depending from where in Denmark the recipe came from. You can find them served several different ways in Solvang, California. The most common way is with powdered sugar sprinkled over them and then topped with raspberry jam. Sometimes people have ventured to ask me how aebleskiver were invented and here I am always at a loss, because it is a very old invention. One theory was Karl Jorgensen’s. It went something like this: Back in the good old days, when the Vikings were roaming up and down the coasts of Europe and the waters of the Atlantic, one band of these Vikings had been particularly hard hit in battle, so, when they got back on their ship with their horn helmets and shields all dented and banged up, they decided to have one of their favorite dishes to help them regain their strength ----pancakes!!In those days they did not have modern conveniences such as frying pans, so, they greased their shields and poured the pancake batter on them over the fire but, guess what! Aebleskiver!
The Solvang Conference & Visitors Bureau is a not-for-profit organization formed in 1986 to promote the City of Solvang, its Northern European culture, cuisine, arts and attractions of the village known as “California’s Little Denmark.”

Solvang History & Recipe Aebleskiver .pdf