Ebelskivers with Spiced Apple Filling

Ebel-what??? I know. It's OK. I didn't know what they were either, much less how to spell or pronounce them, until a few years ago when my sister-in-law Michelle made them for Christmas breakfast. I give you the blurb from the inside flap of Kevin Craft's book Ebelskivers:

Originally from Denmark, ebelskivers (pronouned "able-skeevers") are snacks or desserts traditionally served during holidays and at celebrations. Today, cooks offer these puffy, sphere-shaped pancakes with a wide range of sweet and savory toppings and fillings, varying them in countless creative ways.

You need a special pan first of all, but luckily my Mom got one for Christmas so I borrowed it along with Craft's book. Ebelskivers are like a cross between doughnuts and pancakes. They can be filled or not. Michelle usually puts apples or jelly inside. For this, my first attempt, I did a traditional spiced apple filling. But the sky is seriously the limit. Mom might not be getting her pan back right away.

Ebelskivers with Spiced Apple Filling
Filling:
1/4 cup unsalted butter
3 T granulated sugar
1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp freshly grated nutmeg
Pinch of salt
2 tart green apples such as Granny Smith, peeled, cored and diced

Batter:
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 1/2 tsp sugar
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
2 large eggs, separated
1 cup whole milk
2 T unsalted butter, melted and slightly cooled
1/2 tsp vanilla extract

Finishing Touches:
1 T unsalted butter, melted and slightly cooled
Confectioners' sugar for dusting

1. To make the filling, in a saucepan over medium heat, melt the butter. Add the sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt and cook, stirring to dissolve the sugar, just until bubbly, 3 to 5 minutes. Add the apples, reduce the heat to medium-to-medium-low, an cook, stirring often, until the apples are tender, about 10 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside.2. Preheat the oven to 200F.

3. To make the batter, in a large bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. In a small bowl, lightly whisk the egg yolks, then whisk in the milk, melted butter, and vanilla extract. Add the yolk mixture to the flour mixture and, using a wooden spoon, stir until well blended. The batter will be lumpy.

4. In a clean bowl, using an electric mixer on high speed, beat the egg whites until stiff, but not dry, peaks form. Using a rubber spatula, fold about one-third of the egg whites into the batter to lighten it, then fold in the rest just until no white streaks remain. Use the batter right away.

5. Brush the wells of the ebelskiver pan with some of the melted butter and place over medium heat. When the butter starts to bubble, add about 1 T batter to each well. Working quickly, carefully spoon about 1 tsp of the apple filling into the center of each pancake. Top each with another 1 T batter.
6. Cook until the bottoms of the pancakes are lightly browned and crisp, 3 to 5 minutes. Use 2 short wooden skewers to turn all the pancakes and cook until lightly browned on the second side, about 3 minutes longer.
7. Transfer the finished pancakes to a platter and keep warm in the oven while you repeat to make 2 or 3 more batches. Dust the warm ebelskivers with confectioners' sugar and serve right away. Makes about 21 pancakes, 4 to 7 servings