How do you keep ebelskivers from sticking?

Question

My sister bought me a cast iron ebelskiver pan, and I've not had much luck with each of the batches I've tried. They always burn or stick.

I'm hopeful someone might have a tried-and-true technique for making them, and possibly a family recipe :)

Answer 1

Regarding recipies, try throwing this one through Google Translate and pick any of the recipies you like: http://www.dk-kogebogen.dk/opskrifter/retter-3.php?id=482

These are Danish recipies, and I believe ebelskivers (æbleskiver) to be a Danish thing.

Have fun :)

Answer 2

Just to add on to the above answer (which is spot on):

Add an oil coating after your pan has heated to cooking temperature completely, just before you add batter. The heat tends to allow the oil to coat more evenly and you'll need less oil overall to create a completely non-stick surface.

Other than that, the more you use that pan, the better it will be as a cooking surface. Don't begrudge it a screw up every now and then, even the things it burns makes it better.

Good luck!

Answer 3

There are a number of things that you may or may not be doing that is causing the problem, so any of the following "solutions" may fix it for you. I am basing this on "burn" and "stick".

1. Make sure you've seasoned your cast iron. Oil it, bake it in the oven, let it cool. It will improve over a period of time.
2. Oil the pan every time you use it.
3. If your recipe doesn't have any added oil or butter in it, try adding some oil (Tablespoon or so) to the mix. This would be the difference between pancakes and waffles...it will result in a little crispier exterior and less of a tendency to stick.
4. Turn down the heat. If you are burning your ebelskiver you have the pan too hot. You want the pan to reach and hold 350-375 F. Again, think pancakes. A drop of water on a cast iron griddle should dance for pancakes not spit and immediately evaporate. You want the same setup.
5. Don't use soap and water to clean the pan. I am assuming you know this, but for the sake of completeness I include it. You don't want to remove the seasoning layer on the pan.
6. Oil the pan when you finish, before you put it away.

4 is probably the most important, since burning will mess up the oily patina you are trying to build up on your pan. The others will all help. As I noted in 1, your pan will improve over a period of time as the surface seasoning improves.