Lefse

The story

Soft and thin, lefse is a potato flatbread rolled out until it is nearly see-through and baked briefly on a hot, dry griddle, so that it stays white with only a freckling of gold. It is spread with butter and sugar (or cinnamon), rolled up, and eaten out of hand, like a kind of Norwegian pancake. Making it takes skill, a special grooved rolling pin, and a long, thin turning stick, tools that in Norwegian American families are often handed down from grandmother to granddaughter as true family heirlooms. In many Midwestern communities, “lefse-making day” before Christmas is practically a social event in its own right, with several generations gathered around the same griddle. The thickness and makeup of the dough vary by region: some areas add cream, while others insist on nothing but potatoes, milk, and flour. For the diaspora, lefse may convey the feeling of shared work in the kitchen better than any other dish. It is rarely made by one person alone and is almost always a family undertaking, with everyone assigned a role around the griddle.