Crêpes (Finish Lettu)

Lettu, lätty, plätty, ohukainen and räiskäle. What are these Finnish words? They all mean the same thing: the incredibly delicious, thin, Finnish pancake. It's a must to try when in Finland. At their best, Finnish crêpes combine crispness and soft texture with the flavour of open-fire cooking. They are insanely tasty. I would even say that they are addictive. Finnish pancakes are ridiculously easy to make. They can be made on your kitchen stove or an open fire. In Finland, crêpes are such a food staple that many cabins and houses have an open fireplace and a big flat frying pan perfect for Finnish pancakes which are larger than the average crêpe. Start the batter a minimum of 30 minutes ahead, preferably 1 hour before you want to fry these up. They taste best when the batter has a chance to sit awhile so the flours can soak up the liquids and the texture can become what it needs to be for frying up the perfect crêpe.

5 eggs
3½ cups milk (7 dL)
1 tsp. kosher salt
2 Tbsp. sugar
1¼ cup plain baking flour (2½ dL)
¾ cup barley (ohra) flour (1½ dL)

To Serve:
sugar
strawberry jam
freshly whipped cream
vanilla ice cream

Beat the eggs in a large bowl. Add the milk, salt and sugar, and beat until smooth. Add the flours and beat with a whisk until completely smooth.

Allow the batter to sit for at least 30 minutes or up to 1 hour.

Heat a large flat frying pan or grilling pan over the stove or open fire (these taste best, somehow, fried and eaten outside). Melt a ½ teaspoon or so of butter onto the hot pan and spread it out evenly and pour ¼ cup (½ dL) batter in a dinner plate size circle - quickly - around and around until you’ve filled it all in.

Wait briefly, then spread the batter evenly across the pan into a thin, even layer. Allow it to cook until the bottom is a dark golden brown; flip, brown again. Using the thin edge of a metal spatula, dent the middle of the pancake and fold it in half. Dent the center of the half to fold into quarters.

Serve up on a plate and eat hot with sugar and strawberry jam for a traditional spin and a little fresh whipped cream or vanilla ice cream if you have it.

Makes 10 servings.