krumkake

krum·kake  (krmkäk, krmkk)

n. Upper Midwest

A large thin cookie made from batter poured into an embossed mold with hinged plates.

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[Norwegian : krum, curved, crooked (from Middle Low German, from Old High German krump) + kake, cake (from Old Norse kaka).]

Regional Note: Scandinavian immigrants in the 19th century flocked to the Upper Midwest. The English they learned was augmented by Scandinavian words for their native food and customs. Thus we have krumkake, a large, light, very thin Norwegian cookie made from an egg-based batter poured into an embossed hinged iron similar to a waffle iron. Peeled off the iron while warm and pliable, each krumkake is then rolled around a cone-shaped metal tube so that it hardens in that shape and is filled with sweetened whipped cream. Cookbooks have spread the popularity of krumkake beyond Wisconsin and Minnesota.