Norwegian Lefse

This is the real deal. It is important to make sure the potatoes are cold before adding the flour and other ingredients and be sure to keep the uncooked lefsa cold before rolling out. I also use bread flour - the lefse turns out much more tender. Lefse can also be frozen too.

This is the closest to my mom's recipe that I have seen. One suggestion I would make is if you are not eating it right away (we make 20 lbs. of potatos at a time and freeze it) cool your lefse between two towels, inside a plastic garbage bag. It will be moist and even the lefse that come off the grill a little crispy and dry will be soft and moist.

I have been looking for a lefse recipe for over a year. Well no more this is the one I will use forever. My 81 year old father in-law said it was just like his mother used to make. And I found it very easy to do.

This is an authentic recipe for lefse, very similar to my Norwegen Mother in Law's. The flour amount is correct, it is scant because it takes into account that quite a bit of extra flour is needed for rolling out the lefsa. My MIL's tip was not to add the flour all at once. Divide the potato mixture into enough for 10 lefsa per batch and add the proportionate flour to mix in just before you roll the dough. You won't have to add as much flour to the rolling surface and will have more tender lefse. Also..if your potatos are very moist, either dry them in the oven or cut back on the amount of cream you add to the dough. You don't want to develop too much of the gluten in the flour which makes the lefsa rubbery or tough. Lefsa it easiest to bake with two people; one to roll out the lefsa and one to mind the griddle!

I made this recipe last year for my family at Christmas. My grandpa was 100% Norwegian. He has passed away, but my grandma tried the lefse from this recipe and said it tasted just like the lefse my grandpa's mother used to make. One thing I found with the recipe, is that the amount of butter, cream, salt, sugar and flour is enough for 5 pounds of potatoes (not 10). If you want to do 10 pounds, you will need twice the amount of other ingredients. Excellent recipe! Thank you!!!!!

This recipe was terrific! I love making lefse and this was one of the best I have tried, in fact I have decided that in the future this is the only recipe I will use. I am all Norwegian so it's in my blood. I also like that Allrecipes makes it possible for me to select the amount of servings. I made this recipe for 45 servings - 90 lefse - that will be enough for all the holidays. Thanks D. Brockman!!!!!!!

I grew up in a Norwegian family where we ate lefse 3 times a day for the whole Christmas season! My mom & I make lefse every year. We're always frustrated with our recipe not rolling out properly. This is the best recipe we have used to date! Here are some tips we've learned through the years...hope this helps other's trying to make this yummy treat!!! - The flour amount is perfect!! But use LOTS of flour in a sifter to sprinkle on your pastry board, rolling pin and dough to prevent sticking. That extra flour used for rolling probably doubles the flour amount used. Too much flour makes the lefse rubbery. - Divide dough up into several logs rolled in wax paper and keep the extra's in the fridge. Cold dough is easier to work with. - Use a kitchen scale and weigh each hunk of dough before rolling. - Use a cloth cover over your pastry board and rolling pin to prevent dough from sticking.(can be purchased or make your own with unbleached cotton) Keep extra's on hand to swap if they get too moist (hand wash them...or use mild detergent & no fabric softener) - Have lots of patience, a friend to work with and cushy slippers to stand on! This full recipe with 2 people will take about 6 hrs & yield about 80-100 8" pieces if rolled 1/16" thin. (1/8" is too thick) - Practice! Your first few may not turn out so well. - BTW...A pizza stone makes a great lefse rolling board! - If you want to make lefse often...invest in a good corrogated rolling pin - it does make a difference! - Enjoy!

Perfect lefse! I've been looking for a good lefse recipe for a long time, and this one has the most traditional taste and texture. Wonderful!

I am wondering if Saraphine is my cousin? Because that sounds just like my story! Our grandma was a 5th-generation immigrant from Norway who settled in WA, she brought this family recipe with her. Interestingly, we ate it the same way as you do: Rolled up with butter and sugar! According to Wikipedia, this is a variation called tynnlefse, or "thin lefse", and rolling it up with butter and sugar is called "lefse-klining". The lefse griddle I purchased also came with a similar recipe, but it called for 4 cups of flour! I believe I ended up splitting the difference and using about 3 cups: When it had the consistency of Play-Dough, that was the time to stop adding flour. It does want to stick to EVERYTHING: I found that to get it really thin like Grandma's, you have to spread flour over it GENEROUSLY, both on your work surface and on the top which contacts your rolling pin. Which is fine, because I remember the lightly floury texture the lefse always had. Thank you so much. The picture looked JUST like my grandma used to make! I'm afraid I cried into my lefse, it brought back so many wonderful family memories!

Thank you for sharing such a wonderful recipe. I had lost my recipe for Lefse when my mother past away. Now I will be able to carry on the tradition. Thank you!!!!

Um, you need at least 2 more cups of flour for this recipe. My dough turned out wetter than cookies dough. Stuck to my fingers like mad. Tasted good...once I added 2 more cups of flour.

This is the real deal, just like grandma used to make. Any recipe without real potatoes or butter won't taste like the Norwegian pioneers used to make! Here are a few tricks I've learned to make it easier. Use a griddle-style pizza oven for cooking it (no need to flip). Also, a food processor can be used instead of a ricer, as long as you puree all the clumps out. Cake flour (Silk brand) helps give it a smooth texture too.

This was the best lefse I have ever tried to make. The recipe was easy to work with. Thank you for putting this on here. I plan on using this recipe from now on.

These turned out great. I did have to add quite a bit of flour to keep them from sticking as I rolled them out but I think that is pretty typical for lefse. Thank you for the recipe.

Recipe is great. My only suggestion is to make them much thinner than 1/8th inch in the directions. In my family, we laugh at lefse that thick and call them tortillas. Lefse should be thin enough that you can read though them :)

make sure to use mealy potatoes (bakers)

It just doesn't get any better than this. Jenn A. don't give up so easy. It takes some work to get good, but it is worth the time. D. Brockman you are the best!! This is by far the best lefse recipe around. THANKS SO MUCH *********

Cont: Though we ALWAYS drove down to Decorah, Iowa, for their annual Nordic Fest, and the highlight was watching the ladies dressed in traditional Norwegian clothing (of course during the hottest weekend of the year!) making lefse for purchase. There's nothing like fresh, warm, slightly crispy on the edges lefse, toppings or none! The homemade scent of lefse that filled our condo this week brought back so many great family memories! It didn't matter the holiday, there was never enough lefse to go around. We'd end up getting one each, and the rest we'd have to split with all my cousins and aunts and uncles! What a treat!

This recipe was entered incorrectly. It is suppose to be 5 lbs of potatoes. Making lefse is not an easy chore. It does take some work. Don't give up. This is a wonderful recipe and will work for you!! Enjoy!!!

My husband said that this is pretty authentic. His grandmother's was a lot thinner, though. I was unable to make it thinner because the dough kept sticking to the pastry cloth. I will add more flour and hope they don't get too dry next time! It was a fun recipe to try.

After reading several reviews, I was somewhat nervous about trying the recipe without adding additional flour. I decided to attempt it as written, given the reviews by people who profess Norwegian heritage, and I was successful. Following are some thoughts based on my experience that I hope will be helpful to others. First, this recipe takes MUCH LONGER than one hour to prepare. I cut the recipe in half (in case it didn't turn out), and even using only 5 lbs of potatoes, it took me a total of about 5 hours from start to finish (including peeling the potatoes, boiling, ricing, waiting for them to cool and rolling and cooking them by myself). If you are making them for a particular occasion, plan your time accordingly. Second, listen to the experience of the Norwegians. Use a lefse rolling pin. It is a ribbed pin, and the dough does not stick as much as it does on a smooth pin. You can order them on-line or find them in cooking boutiques, and they aren't very expensive. Also, use a ricer to mash the potatoes. It is worth the small investment. You really CAN make this recipe as written, and they turn out. Like some have posted, you WILL end up using about twice as much flour by sprinkling it on the table and the dough before rolling it out. Finally, roll out the dough on a pastry cloth. The dough is VERY delicate, and tears easily if you try to pick it up and move it. This way, you can pick up the cloth and turn the dough in your hand to flip it on the skillet.

This lefse was impossible to roll out! It was way to wet. Here is a suggestion: Follow the recipe exactly, but at least double the flour.

This is just the way my Norwegian grandmother taught me to make Lefse - but I just use 5 pounds of potatoes. Butter and sugar, for sure, and jelly! Lingonberry if you can find it.

Usually relatives make lefse for our holiday gatherings, but my daughter and I decided to try making lefse ourselves this year- it helps to have two pairs of hands! My son and daughter-in-law thought it was the best they have had. Reviewers' hints to use damp towels helped keep the lefse very tender. Rolling it very thin was key as well. We'll be making this every year- it tasted like my husband's Norwegian grandmother's lefse! Thanks!!

Awesome recipe. If you had problems with it, just keep working at it.. Even the most experienced lefse maker will have problems now and again. It is a special art to be able to make lefse and this is the best recipe I have ever found. LOTS of flour on the pastry cloth at all times will make a big difference for that sticking... Thanks with all my heart D. Brockman*****you must be Norwegian!

This recipe sent me back to our own family lefse recipe with my tail between my legs. And I had the highest hopes it would turn out pillowy soft lefse.

I have never heard of peeling the potatoes before boiling, makes them too watery and sure don't roll only a walnut-sized ball at a time...more like a 2 1/2 to 3" size which will fill the lefse plate...making the baking time quicker

This is a great recipe, just like my great grandma made it. We haven't had lefse since she passed away but this year I m bringing it for Easter. I cant wait to remember Easters past with my family over some hand made lefse. For the recipe, I made just 5 pounds of potatoes and adjusted the other ingredients accordingly. I also left some of the flour out as I floured the counter and the outside of each lefse ball before rolling it out. This made it a lot easier to prepare. I used a comal to cook it, which is a flat cast iron pan used to make tortillas. I also placed the balls in the fridge for about an hour before rolling them. They turned out great and everyone loved them.

Great recipe, wouldn't change a thing. I did refrigerate the dough before adding the flour the next day though. Very tender! Freezes well also. Thanks for the great recipe!

Ever since we found out that Great Aunt Ida had been using potato flakes to make her lefse, I've been looking for the real thing! By the way, try it with butter, sprinkled with cinnamon/sugar. Heaven!

Made a double batch with my mom yesterday. Good stuff!

Try microwaving or baking the potatoes. It reduces the moisture from boiling and needs less flour. Less flour, less chance of tough gluten formation.

Favorite thing my mom makes on the holidays

For 10 years, my husband has been asking for lefse. This was my third try and FINALLY, I had success. Thank you for an easy to follow recipe that my husband says is exactly what he remembers his mother making! I gave him a much-desired telescope as a gift, but all he can talk about is the lefse!

My grandmother used to make Lefse for the entire family each Christmas. When she passed away a couple of years ago, her special holiday recipe was lost. Now that we have found this recipe (which is so close to her's!), my cousin and I are able to keep on her with Holiday tradition and maintain her memory. Thanks so much for the recipe and many years of memories to come!

Tastes just like my Great Aunt Vera used to make. MUST add at least 2 more cups of flour. I only used half of the potato mixture and froze the other half. I added more cream also. Make sure you refridgerate the "dough" before rolling. It won't work warm. So worth all the work!!

Yummy! After tackling this recipe, I decided to leave it up to the professionals though! Too much work for this lady, but now I can say I have made Lefse. My brother appreciated the gift (I made this for his birthday). My 4 year old enjoyed helping me with the project as well.

This recipe is delicious! It tastes just like my grandma's that I have had every Christmas growing up. Now that I have my own family I wanted to start the tradition myself.

We usually use vegetable shortening or lard instead of butter, and milk instead of cream. That's how my Norwegian Nana always did it. We also use a 30" square, ±, of well washed cotton canvas and a grooved, flat topped rolling pin. BTW, store the canvas rolled rather than folded, you'll be glad you did next time you make flat bread or lefse. Generously flour the canvas, put your ball of dough down, and flatten it with your hand. Generously flour the top then roll out quite thin, turning as needed, and closer to 1/16" is better. When cooking them, keep brushing the flour off the griddle to stay away from burnt flour taste. Roll up your lutefisk or meatballs, mashed potatoes, and creamed peas, or maybe a hot dog, mustard, and catsup and enjoy authentic Norwegian fare.

I ended up having to add quite a bit more flour so they would roll without sticking. Otherwise, they tasted exactly as I remember them from when I was a child! Thank you!

Still making it since 2010. 10 more pounds today. Can't get enough. Love it!!!

This is the first lefse recipe I have tried but everyone who ate it loved it- including my Norwegian grandmother! I only used about 6 lbs of potatoes. I served it rolled up with butter and cinnamon sugar- yum!

Fabulous! I couldn't find my grandmother's recipe (the one we have used every year since I was a kid), so I used this one... it was perfect! Everyone loved it.

My husband grew up eating these as a child, but he called them Monkey Blankets. He loved them...Thank you for the great recipe.

This is better than my moms recipe!! I halved it, but wished I made the full amount. I put a combination of butter, sugar and cinnamon between pieces of lefse. This is so good.

The taste was okay but I needed to add a 5 pound bag of flour and it still wasn't enough. I probably won't try again

A very authentic recipe--I needed to add more flour, though. Next time I will try to add a little wheat flour for health benefits.

WOW. I searched lefse not thinking I would find any results. This is fantastic. It's so close to my grandma's recipe and she came over from Norway. Of course her recipe was never written down. Only difference is we fill with butter and brown sugar then roll up. THANKS DEBBA and allrecipes.

Oh man, I am so glad I found this. Our family recipe doesn't call for sugar so I don't add it and it tastes fine. You can mash the potatoes if you don't have a ricer but it's MUCH easier with a ricer. Great recipe and freezes really well. You can also use half and half if you don't want to use heavy cream

I used 2.5 pounds of potatoes, halved everything else. For my first attempt this went amazingly well! Thanks!

just like what my great grandma made. Her filling of choice was whipped cream, sugar and cinnamon. It tastes amazing.

Delicious! I will surely be making these again next holiday season. It was just what I was looking for.

This was the most impressive recipe of Lefse that I have seen that was actually authentic-koodos

My grandma made & sold lefse for many years in her small western Minnesota town. My mom & I have made it, but this was my first solo venture. It really is the real thing!! Recipe proportions are pretty forgiving, just be sure not to over mix and to keep dough WELL chilled so rolling cloth doesn’t get oily & sticky. I found one 5lb bag of potatoes makes about 15 cups riced. My grandma even used to use leftover mashed potatoes or would throw in some instant (!) to supplement the amount she had. Roll very thin!

Best luck I've had making lefse (and I've made it seasonally for many years). Followed the recipe carefully and the results were excellent. Taste is good and consistency is right on.

This recipe was too wet. I usually use my moms recipe but i couldn't find it, so I thought Iwould try a new one. I even added some extra flour to the batch, and when rolling, and still too wet. It tasted okay, but not great. I would not reccomend this recipe, and definitely not reccomend for someone who is trying it for the first time.

I followed this recipe to a "T", and my dough was gooey, sticky and the lefse was soggy even after cooking it. Tried adding more flour, but just became even more gluey. Couldn't even roll it out. Just stuck on to the pin and cloth. Argh!

These were very tender lefse and I will use this recipe again . My family loved them better than my old recipe which used a lot more flour.

The main problem with this recipe is the cream is causing all of the sticky lefse and everyone reporting that they needed more flour.

This is good lefse, but it is way too sticky as the recipe is written. I had to refrigerate the dough and add nearly a cup of additional flour to get it to roll. It was still extremely soft and hard to work with, but I felt that adding more flour would make it tough. I had to use a lot of flour on my cloth and pin. The lefse does taste just right.

In comparing this recipe to others, I think there is a typo. It probably should only be "1 pound" of potatoes not "10". This recipe is unreasonably wet and ended up needing cups and cups of flour and made way too much quantity.

Tusen Takk! We're Norwegian from both sides and these were wonderful. Made with leftover mashed potatoes from Thanksgiving. Will make again!

This is the best lefse recipe!!!

Very tender and easy. I have made lefse before and thought I would try a new recipe, just out of curiosity. It is very tender, make it a little bit thicker than normal and chill well. Good luck!

The dough was too sticky to roll in balls even after 6 additional cups of flour. I DO NOT recommend using this recipe.