Lefse … what can you say about lefse? Well you could say this:
Lefse … it’s as Norwegian as, well, Ingebretsen’s!!! And we are the place for all things lefse.
We have:
Lefse Books ♦ Lefse Starter-Kits ♦ Lefse
Grills ♦ Lefse Rolling Pins ♦ Lefse Turning
Sticks ♦ Lefse Paraphernalia ♦ Lefse
Toppings ♦ Lefse Itself
If you are into lefse, Ingebretsen’s is where you want to be.
So how do you make lefse. Here is a video that may help you:
But if you’d rather have some hands on help, Ingebretsen’s is offering lefse classes with Heidi Eger … in fact we are offering 11 classes because they are so popular and fill up quickly. You can find out about the classes and how to register here. Heidi learned to make lefse with her grandmother and mother. In her class, she shares her great-grandmother’s time-tested recipe and a lot of good information on how to make lefse that you’ll be proud to share with your friends and family. Heidi believes that lefse is good regardless of shape. While she will show you techniques for rolling and frying a classic round lefse, she reminds students that even lefse in the shape of the state of Texas tastes good. $40
And just in case you don’t want to make lefse from scratch, we have lefse ready to go year round.
According to Wikipedia (and who would know better):
In Norway today, most families tend to purchase their lefse rather than making it. While today’s Norwegian Americans consider making lefse at Christmas a tradition, more families are turning to purchase it from the store instead. For example, around $80,000 worth of lefse is generally sold around Christmas from Ingebretsen’s Scandinavian Gifts in Minneapolis, Minnesota, yearly.
Types and Toppings
As you can see there are different types of lefse. You can learn more about each of these types here: Types of Lefse
There are many ways of flavoring lefse. The most common is adding butter to the
lefse and rolling it up. In Norway, this is known as “lefse-klenning”. Other options include adding cinnamon and/or sugar, or spreading jelly, lingonberries or gomme on it. Scandinavian-American variations include rolling it with a thin layer of peanut butter and sugar, with butter and white or brown sugar, with butter and corn syrup, or with ham and eggs. Lefse is a traditional accompaniment to lutefisk, and the fish is often rolled up in the lefse.
And, of course, there is Ingebretsen’s original lefse dog.
World’s Largest Lefse
In Starbuck, Minnesota’s at their first Heritage Days in 1983 they made the world’s largest lefse. We just learned that Larry Kittelson, the last remaining man who undertook this project, died on September 15, 2018 at the age of 80. Gary Legwold, the author of “The Last Word on Lefse,” posted a nice tribute to Kittlson and story about the gigantic lefse on his blog.
History of Lefse
In case you don’t know, lefse, is often called Norwegian flatbread. Today it is made from potatoes, but it 
was originally made from flour that was cooked up like a cracker and could last through the winter. Stored in wooden boxes or stacked on shelves, when ready to eat some lefse it was dipped in water and soaked between damp cloths until softened. It was enjoyed with butter and maybe some sugar – just like today.
But, as mentioned above, today it is made with potatoes when the potato was introduced to Norway over 200 years ago. But when hit with the potato famine in the mid-1800s, much like Ireland, many Norwegians came to the United States and brought their lefse recipe, tools, and skills with them.
Minnesota and Lefse
TPT’s “Scandinavian Cooking: Lefse,” part of their Postcards series, is about lefse-making across Minnesota, from homemade to mass-made, and absolutely huge.