Grandma Nomie's Lefse

This is my Grandma Nomie's recipe for lefse. It was the first thing I took pictures of after being added as a contributor, and then I wasn't going to post it because it seemed un-fit for the blog (requires so many things that most people don't have) but then I was at dinner with Diane and she mentioned it so... here it is. In case you happen to have all these things. It's also a process that works best with a bunch of people, so if anyone is interested, I think it would be fun to have people over to make lefse! Just a thought. Anyway here goes.


I didn't get an ingredient shot... I fail. But here is the ingredient list:

5 cups riced potatoes (peel, dice, and cook them like you're making mashed potatoes, then put them through a ricer, cool - we generally leave it in the refrigerator overnight - with a towel over the top to soak up extra moisture)
1 stick margarine or butter, melted
1/2 cup half and half
1 cup flour
1 tsp salt
2 tsp sugar

Necessary equipment: rolling pin (either with rivets or grooves), lefse griddle, round pastry board, lefse stick


Preheat the lefse griddle to 400 degrees.

Mix the ingredients in a large bowl with your hands, add flour until "un-sticky" (that's the technical term).




Form into fist-sized balls.




Add flour (liberally!) to both the rolling pin and the pastry board - you wouldn't want the lefse to stick and tear!




With the rolling pin, roll the dough from the center out to the edges until very thin. Keep sprinkling flour on the lefse/rolling pin as necessary to avoid sticking.




Slowly edge the lefse stick under the rolled out lefse dough, make sure it's not sticking to the pastry board. Lift it up, then pat the stick to tap off any excess flour.




Roll the lefse dough out onto the griddle, turning the lefse stick over and over as you move across the griddle (it's hard to explain this on a blog, but if you think about it, it makes a lot of sense how you do it; it's kind of a no-brainer).




Cook until bubbles start to form, then flip it over (with the lefse stick). Grandma says to be careful not to let it get crunchy, but I secretly think it's delicious that way. So if it gets crunchy... just eat it right away and nobody has to know. :-)




Remove from the griddle and place in between towels (lefse "cozy"!) to cool.




Then fold into quarters and store in ziploc bags. If you're not going to eat it right away, it can be frozen. Pretty much the worst thing ever is having lefse go bad, which it will do even in the refrigerator, if it's not eaten within a few days.

Then all you have left is going to be a pretty significant clean-up!




Serving suggestions: with margarine and brown sugar (my favorite) or as a "Norwegian Burrito" (with turkey, mashed potatoes, stuffing, gravy, etc, all wrapped up in lefse - my second favorite and so delicious)!



Grandma Nomie teaching me how to make lefse... again. I always forget from year to year.


With the help of the rolling pin, she keeps us in line... sometimes. See below for exceptions.


Sometimes it's necessary to be immature and have a little duel with rolling pins and lefse sticks!