Krospu- Finnish Pancake Recipe
3eggs
2 C milk
½ C sugar
1/3 tsp salt
1 1/4 C flour
½ C butter
– Mix all ingredients except butter together.
– Melt butter in 4 9 glass pie pans in 375 degree oven.
– Pour batter over hot butter and bake approximately 30 minutes
– Serve warm with powdered sugar and syrup.
Analysis:
This recipe was passed down by Natalies great grandmother, Faye Joki McLean, who is full Finnish. She passed away, but would be around 90 years old if she were still alive. She was a single mom who raised her large extended Finnish family in Couer dAlene, Idaho, which has a large Finnish population. She spoke Finnish growing up, but as she got older, had fewer opportunities to speak to other people (outside of her family) in her native tongue.
Her great grandmother always made an effort to preserve their family heritage. Natalie has known about this recipe since childhood. She says they are a staple in Finnish food, sort of like American pancakes, but not as sweet. Her great grandmother passed it down to Natalies mother. Every now and then, her family eats Kropsu for breakfast. Also, they will eat them with a special Finnish meatball dish during large family gatherings.
There is no better way to preserve a culture than to preserve its food and pass down traditional recipes. Most often, the preparation of the food makes the dish unique to the culture. After all, the ingredients for Kropsu do not seem any different from the ingredients of a generic, American pancake. In my family, most of the recipes that have been passed down are relatively easy to make. The one that comes to mind is the Brazilian dessert, brigadeiro, which requires only condensed milk and Nesquick. However, it is the process and timing that make it distinct from other desserts that may require the same ingredients. If you cook it under time, it will not solidify into a concrete ball. If you cook it over time, it will be too hard and lose its smooth texture. The same idea probably applies to the Kropsu.