Hjertevafler
Norwegian Heart-Shaped Waffles- Yield
- About 8 to 10 waffle rounds (40 to 50 small hearts)
- Active
- 30 minutes
- Total
- About 1 hour, including resting
- Difficulty
- Easy
The story
Heart-shaped waffles are so ordinary in Norway that the shape hardly gets noticed, yet museum records show it is old. Long-handled waffle irons for the open hearth, made by local smiths in the 1600s and 1700s, came in rectangular and heart shapes, and the oldest known Norwegian iron dates from 1685. Waffles appear in written sources from the 1700s, first as a plain batter of water and barley flour; eggs, cream, sour cream and butter came later and made them a finer treat. Cast-iron models for the kitchen stove became round, with five hearts to a plate, and in 1937 the first electric waffle iron was approved for production. No courtship or wedding custom is recorded for the hearts. The nearest thing to a waffle holiday is Vaffeldagen on March 25, which began as Vårfrudagen, the feast of the Annunciation; in Swedish, a slurred Vårfrudagen became Våffeldagen. Norwegians eat waffles with sour cream and jam, with butter and brown cheese, or, in parts of Nordland and Trøndelag, with egg and salted meat. For dessert, bake them just before serving, while the coffee brews.
Ingredients
- For the batter:
- 1 2/3 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/3 cup plus 1 tablespoon sugar
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon ground cardamom
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 2/3 cups whole milk
- 3 large eggs
- 7 tablespoons butter, melted and cooled, plus a little for the iron
- For the topping:
- 1 cup sour cream
- 1/2 cup strawberry or raspberry jam
- Fresh berries (optional)
Method
- Whisk the flour, sugar, baking powder, cardamom and salt in a large bowl.
- Whisk in about half of the milk until the batter is thick and smooth, then add the rest of the milk a little at a time, whisking well between additions so no lumps form.
- Whisk in the eggs one at a time, then the melted butter. Let the batter rest at room temperature for 30 minutes. If it has thickened beyond the consistency of heavy cream, thin it with 1 to 2 tablespoons water or milk.
- Heat a heart-shaped waffle iron, or any thin waffle iron, and brush it lightly with butter for the first waffle. Pour about 1/3 cup batter into the center, close the lid and bake until golden brown and the steam has almost stopped, 2 1/2 to 3 minutes.
- Lay each waffle on a wire rack in a single layer so the underside does not steam and turn soggy; for softer waffles, stack them loosely once they have cooled slightly. Repeat with the remaining batter.
- Serve warm, broken into hearts, with a spoonful of sour cream and jam on each heart, and berries if you like.
Note: Norwegian waffles are thin and soft, not crisp like Belgian waffles; a standard American iron works but makes thicker waffles that need a minute or two longer. Unlike the Christmas krumkake, which is baked on a flat patterned iron and rolled while hot into a crisp cone, these are eaten warm and soft.