Lefse

Lefse (Norwegian Potato Flatbread)

A traditional Norwegian Christmas flatbread made from a potato-and-flour dough rolled paper-thin and cooked on a hot griddle, then filled with butter and cinnamon-sugar.

Prep

45 min

Cook

30 min

Total

75 min

Serves

12 rounds

Difficulty

Medium

Recipe ingredients

• •500 g (1.1 lb) russet potatoes, or other starchy/medium-starchy potatoes; peeled
• •125 g (1 cup / 4⅖ oz) all-purpose flour, plus extra for rolling
• •30 g (2 Tbsp) unsalted butter, softened, plus more for serving
• •1 tsp fine salt
• •60 ml (¼ cup) milk or cream, warmed slightly, only if dough is too dry
• •100 g (⅓ cup / 3½ oz) unsalted butter, for serving, softened
• •75 g (⅓ cup / 2⅔ oz) granulated sugar, for serving
• •2 tsp ground cinnamon, for serving

Steps

1. 1 Boil the peeled potatoes in salted water until fork-tender, about 18–22 minutes. Drain well and rice or mash them while still hot (do not use a food processor; it makes the dough gummy). Spread on a tray and let cool completely, uncovered, or chill briefly — cold dough is easier to handle.
2. 2 For each 250 g (≈ 1 cup) of cooled potato, mix in 60 g (½ cup) flour, 15 g (1 Tbsp) softened butter, and a pinch of salt. Knead gently just until smooth and cool to the touch; do not overwork. The dough should be soft and non-sticky. If it feels dry, work in warm milk 5 ml (1 tsp) at a time. Cover and rest 20 minutes.
3. 3 Set up a rolling station: a well-floured cloth or pastry mat, a rolling pin (a special grooved lefse rolling pin is traditional but not required), a long flat spatula, and a large dry skillet or griddle heated to about 200 °C / 400 °F.
4. 4 Divide dough into 12 balls of about 55 g each. Roll each ball on a heavily floured surface — flip and reflour frequently — into a round as thin as you can, roughly 30–35 cm (12–14 in) across. The dough should be almost translucent; thicker than about 3 mm (⅛ in) and it will be bready rather than tender.
5. 5 Slide the rolled round onto the hot dry griddle. Cook 1–2 minutes on the first side until small brown speckles appear, then flip carefully with the long spatula and cook 30–60 seconds more. Do not let it color deeply or dry out — it should stay pliable. (Note: a true traditional lefse griddle is ungreased; a non-stick skillet is the closest home-kitchen substitute.)
6. 6 Stack cooked lefse between clean kitchen towels as you go so they steam-soften. Once all are cooked and cooled, stack with parchment between rounds and store in a sealed bag in the fridge up to 1 week, or freeze for longer storage.
7. 7 To serve: mix the cinnamon with the sugar. Spread each warm lefse with softened butter, sprinkle generously with cinnamon-sugar, roll up like a cigar, and cut into bites, or fold into triangles. Eat warm.
8. 8 Doneness cues: the dough is fully cooked when it is no longer raw-looking on the surface and the underside shows scattered light-brown spots; it should still bend without cracking. If it snaps, it is overbaked or under-rolled.