Lefse: A Nordic tradition of the season

Whether you are a traditionalist, eating your lefse plain, or like it with sugar and butter or even with sandwich fixings, one thing is for sure, you can find lefse at just about every family celebration during the holiday season.

While here in NW Minnesota we generally always make lefse with potatoes, this is not necessarily the case in Norway. When one uses the term “lefse” in the United States, it more than often refers to what Norwegians call potato lefse. Norwegians, however, also make Hardanger lefse with egg yolks and buttermilk. The tradition of making lefse was brought over by Norwegian Americans, and potato lefse itself was made when their potato crop was successful. Due to this, it became more prevalently made than other types in the United States. When lefse was able to be made, it was stored in small storage buildings called bryggehaus. When Norwegian immigrants first arrived in America, they did not have the usual foods they were used to back home, including milk and porridge, dried meat, and lefse. 

During World War I, Americans were encouraged to eat potatoes to be patriotic, as the front lines needed the wheat grown at home. Lefse, a staple for Norwegian Americans, was eaten with gusto during this time.

Variations

There are significant regional variations in Norway in the way lefse is made and eaten, but it generally resembles a flatbread, although in many parts of Norway, especially Valdres, it is far thinner.

Tynnlefse (thin lefse) is a variation made in central Norway. Tynnlefse is rolled up with butter, sugar and cinnamon (or with butter and brown sugar).

Tjukklefse or tykklefse is thicker and often served with coffee as a cake.

Potetlefse (potato lefse) is similar to and used as tynnlefse, but made with potatoes.

Potetkake or Lompe being the "smaller-cousin" of the potato lefse, is often used in place of a hotdog bun and can be used to roll up sausages. This is also known as pølse med lompe in Norway.

Møsbrømlefse is a variation common to Salten district in Nordland in North Norway. Møsbrømmen consists of half water and half the cheese smoothed with flour or corn flour to a half thick sauce that greased the cooled lefse. Lefse is ready when møsbrømmen is warm and the butter is melted.

Nordlandslefse is a chunky small lefse, made of butter, syrup, sugar, eggs and flour. Originally created in western Norway as a treat to fishermen who were on the Lofoten Fishery.

Anislefse is made on the coast of Hordaland. It resembles thin lefse but is slightly thicker, and it is stained by large amounts of whole aniseed.

Another variety, the Hardangerlefse (from Hardanger in Norway), is made from yeast-risen Graham flour or a fine ground whole wheat flour (krotekake). Additionally, it is often made with egg yolks and buttermilk instead of potatoes. The dough is rolled with a conventional rolling pin (and much more flour) until it is thin and does not stick to the surface. It is then cut with a grooved rolling pin in perpendicular directions, cutting a grid into the dough which prevents it from creating air pockets as it cooks. The grid cut can also aid in thinner rolling of the lefse, as the ridges help preserve structural integrity. The lefse is cooked at high temperature (400 °F or 205 °C) until browned, and then left to dry. It can also be freeze dried by repeatedly freezing and thawing.

Dried Hardangerlefse can be stored without refrigeration for six months or more, so long as it is kept dry. It is customarily thought that the bread (along with solefisk) was a staple on the seagoing voyages as far back as Viking times.

The wet lefse is dipped in water, and then placed within a towel which has also been dipped in water and wrung out. Many people maintain that dipping in salted or seawater enhances the flavor. The dry lefse regains its bread-like texture in about 60 minutes. Often that time is used to prepare such ingredients as eggs or herring which are wrapped in the lefse once it has softened.