Oregonian Haruspex > wrote:
> On 2014-06-26 23:39:40 +0000, jinx the minx said:
>
>> Oregonian Haruspex > wrote:
>>> On 2014-06-25 20:59:53 +0000, sf said:
>>>>>> On Wed, 25 Jun 2014 19:44:27 +0000 (UTC), jinx the minx
>>>> > wrote:
>>>>>> sf > wrote:
>>>>>> On Wed, 25 Jun 2014 15:31:10 +0000 (UTC), jinx the minx
>>>>>> > wrote:
>>>>>>>>>> Second to that, lefse.
>>>>>>>>> I've seen that word before but never looked it up to see what it was.
>>>>>> Seems very tasty, I think I'll try making it someday. In modern
>>>>>> times, do most people start with leftover mashed potatoes?
>>>>>>>>> No, it is not made with leftover mashed potatoes ever. I'm sure there are
>>>>> recipes out there on the net using them or, god forbid instant potatoes,
>>>>> but that's heresy. In order for the dough to work, there can't be any
>>>>> lumps in it, which is why they use a potato ricer and not a masher. It's
>>>>> extremely time consuming to make, so I wouldn't recommend doing it by
>>>>> yourself. Imagine rolling out dozens of pie crusts and cooking them all
>>>>> one at a time. It takes forever. And if you aren't good at rolling out
>>>>> pastry paper thin without it ripping, forget it. It doesn't turn out well
>>>>> if you overwork the dough, so you can't just re-ball and re-roll it. My
>>>>> mom, one of my sisters and I make it every year before Christmas. There is
>>>>> definitely an art to it, despite it having only 3 ingredients. That said,
>>>>> I would not ever consider buying a mass produced version of it from the
>>>>> store.
>>>>> I found a recipe that uses only one pound of potatoes, so I'll give it
>>>> a shot someday. I'm pretty good at rolling round dough and getting it
>>>> thin, so that part won't be a problem. Thanks!
>>>>> It's generally not consumed except around Christmas-time along with the
>>> traditional lutefisk meal, as it's such a pain to make. When lefse are
>>> perfectly made, they are somewhat difficult to distinguish from a garden
>>> variety flour tortilla.
>>> What?! Other than you can roll them with stuff inside, I would never
>> compare lefse to a tortilla. Number 1, lefse is paper thin. Number 2, they
>> taste nothing alike unless you've never had proper lefse. You are
>> absolutely right though about it being a pain to make.
>
> To my palatte they both have a sort of plain, bland, starchy flavor. I
> have had a LOT of lefse and all of it was home made (I didn't even know
> that they manufactured it!) so I guess maybe what I had was not up to
> snuff. I never really cared for it anyway so maybe that explains my lack of enthusiasm.

Well, in terms of bland, plain and starchy I guess you're right, but I
don't want anyone confused that the actual flavor is the same. Don't ever
waste a cent buying it from the grocery store to relive old memories. It's
just gross--even the "best" brands.
--
jinx the minx