Sons of Norway Autumn Fest highlights kids making lefse

VIRGINIA—A highlight of Sons of Norway’s Autumn Fest will be lefse-making by the youngest members of Haarfager Lodge, the great-grandchildren of member Jan Dzwonkowski.

The annual event will be Saturday, October 19, 11 a.m.-3 p.m. at Our Savior’s Lutheran Church, 1111 8th Street South.

A demonstration on making krumkake will also be featured. Krumkake is a Norwegian crispy wafer-like cookie that’s rolled into a cone. Plus, there will be a bake sale, gift baskets, a new and next-to-new sale and coffee an’.

Dzwonkowski said in an email, “I’m the oldest member (of the lodge) and Drew is the youngest—he just turned 7 in March and has been helping make lefse since he could hold a rolling pin.” Dzwonkowski’s granddaughters are Ella, 9; Elaine, 11; and Emily, 13.

Dzwonkowski said, “The kids are grandkids of members Laurie and Dave Olson. Ella and Drew’s parents are Andrew and Jenny Olson of Hermantown and Elaine and Emily’s parents are Kari and Stan Townsdin of Walker. Kari also is a member of the lodge and their great aunt Karen Lindquist is a lodge member so it’s really a family thing.”

—

Lefse information from Wikipedia: Lefse is a traditional soft Norwegian flatbread. It is made with riced potatoes, can include flour and includes butter, and milk, cream or lard. It is cooked on a large, flat griddle. Special tools are used to prepare lefse, including a potato ricer, long wooden turning sticks and special rolling pins with deep grooves.

There are many ways of flavoring lefse. The most common is adding butter and sugar to the lefse and rolling it up. 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 butter and salt, or with ham and eggs. Lefse is a traditional accompaniment to lutefisk, and the fish is often rolled up in the lefse.

Lefse is celebrated in cities and towns with large Scandinavian populations. Fargo, North Dakota, hosts the Lutefisk and Lefse Festival. Fosston, Minnesota, has its Lefse Fest in November. In Mankato, people of Scandinavian descent celebrate lefse day, a day for cooking lefse, on the Sunday after Thanksgiving.