3 Norwegian-Inspired Fair Foods You’ll Love: Cloudberries, Lefse & More

Minnesota is now in full state fair mode; the county fairs are quickly wrapping up and sights are now set on the state fair. One of the things Minnesotans anticipate most are the fair foods. Often those fair foods are deep fried. In this blog you will find two deep fried fair foods with a Norwegian influence that feature cloudberry preserves as well as some tasty Norwegian meatballs rolled up in lefse wraps!

Cloudberry preserves are favorites in Scandinavian culture. Cloudberries when ripe are golden yellow berries with segments similar to raspberries. The complex flavor of cloudberries is both tart and sweet with hints of raspberry, mango and apricot. Cloudberries grow in Nordic countries as well as Alaska, Canada, Greenland, Northern Minnesota, New Hampshire and New York. They have a rich nutrient and antioxidant content. Cloudberries are picky about soil, humidity and moisture; since they are scarce, they are fairly expensive and are considered a bit of a delicacy.

Below you will find recipes and step-by-step pictures for both Cloudberry Filled Donut Holes and Funnel Cakes topped with Cloudberry Drizzle as well as Lefse Wraps filled with Norwegian Meatballs. Get ready to enjoy some more tasty fair food!

Cloudberry Filled Donut Holes

Ingredients:
2 cups canola or vegetable oil
2 cups all purpose flour
¼ cup granulated sugar
1 ½ tablespoon baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon nutmeg
¼ teaspoon cardamom (optional)
1 large egg
1 cup milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
¼ cup melted butter
Cloudberry preserves for filling (lingonberry or other preserves could be substituted)
Additional ½ cup granulated sugar and 1 tablespoon cinnamon to roll donut holes in

Instructions:

1. Line a baking sheet or 9” by 13” pan with a few layers of paper towels and top with a wire cooling rack.
2. Pour oil into a heavy bottomed pan, a Fry Daddy or other deep fryer and heat over medium heat (if using a pan on a stove top) to 350-375 degrees.
3. While oil is heating, whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, nutmeg and cardamom in a large bowl.
4. In a medium bowl, whisk together milk, egg and vanilla extract.
5. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredient bowl and stir together with a wooden spoon for a few seconds.
6. Mix in melted butter and stir until mixture forms a stiff batter.
7. Use a cookie scoop to carefully drop batter into the hot oil. (Do it just above the oil to prevent splattering the oil.)
8. If using a Fry Daddy, fry about 4 donut holes at a time. Fry about two minutes per side until golden brown.
9. Drain on the wire rack over the paper towels. Once you have fried all the donut holes, cool completely before filling.
10. Prepare a piping bag using a large round tip so the cloudberry preserves will be able to go through. Add cloudberry preserves to the bag.
11. Poke the tip into the donut hole being careful not to go completely through the donut hole.
12. Squeeze the piping bag as you remove the bag to fill the donut hole with the preserves.
13. Mix granulated sugar and cinnamon using ½ cup sugar and a tablespoon of cinnamon; toss the donut holes in the mixture.
14. Serve your tasty donut holes by placing them in tagboard boats to keep the county fair feel.

Cloudberry Funnel Cakes

Ingredients:
2 cups canola or vegetable oil
1 large egg
⅔ cup milk
1 ¼ cups all purpose flour
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
¼ teaspoon salt
Powdered sugar for dusting
Cloudberry preserves to thin for drizzling

Instructions:

1. Heat oil in a large skillet until it reaches 375 degrees or use a Fry Daddy or other deep fryer.
2. In a medium mixing bowl whisk together flour, granulated sugar, baking powder, and salt.
3. In another medium bowl, whisk the egg and milk.
4. Whisk the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients, making sure it's well mixed with no lumps. Pour some batter into a funnel (with one finger over the end of the funnel) or pour the batter into a squeeze bottle with a small opening. I personally use a recycled pancake syrup squeeze bottle; you could also use a Ziploc bag with the corner snipped off.
5. Drizzle batter into the hot oil beginning at the center of the pan, making a “squiggly” design.
6. Fry for about two minutes; then flip over and fry again for another 2 minutes.
7. Remove with a slotted spoon when golden and place on a wire rack over paper towels to cool.
8. Sift powdered sugar over the funnel cakes.
9. Thin some cloudberry preserves by adding a little water and warming in the microwave until it’s a “drizzable” consistency. I used about ¼ cup of preserves and a teaspoon of water to start.
10. Drizzle the thinned cloudberry preserves over the funnel cakes in either tagboard boats or paper plates and serve.

Lefse Wrapped Norwegian Meatballs

Meatball Ingredients:
½ pound ground beef
½ pound ground pork
½ cup bread crumbs or panko
¼ cup milk
1 small onion, finely chopped
1 egg
½ teaspoon ground allspice
½ teaspoon nutmeg
salt and pepper to taste

Brown Gravy Ingredients:
2 tablespoon butter (plus additional for sautéing meatballs)
4 tablespoons of flour
2 cups beef broth
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
salt and pepper to taste

Serving Ingredients:
Lefse rounds (one per person)
chopped green onions

Instructions:

1. Prepare meatball mixture by mixing the ground beef and pork with bread crumbs, finely chopped onions, milk and egg. Season with salt and pepper. Mix until completely combined.
2. Shape the mixture into meatballs using a cookie scoop. Heat some butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Brown meatballs on all sides until golden brown and cooked thoroughly (165 degrees). Remove meatballs and set aside.
3. In the same skillet, melt 2 tablespoons of butter and whisk in flour to create a roux. Cook until it turns a deep golden brown; gradually whisk in beef broth and Worcestershire sauce, stirring constantly until the gravy thickens smoothly.
4. Return the meatballs to the skillet, coating them in the gravy. Reduce the heat and simmer gently for 10-15 minutes to allow the flavors to meld.
5. Adjust salt and pepper to taste.
6. Cut lefse rounds in half and place three meatballs in the middle of a half. Roll the lefse around the meatballs; repeat with the other lefse half and place in a tagboard boat.
7. Garnish with chopped green onions and serve.

When I made this batch of Norwegian meatballs, I actually doubled the recipe to serve my guests for the meal. Some of the pictures such as the gravy pictures will show the double batch.

I hope you’ve enjoyed the Norwegian influenced fair foods and will make your own. I guarantee you’ll enjoy them! If you missed our previous roundup of Norwegian fair food recipes, be sure to check it out.

Even though we could keep going with more fair foods, I promise a different focus for the next blog. Here’s a little tease — you’ll be able to make use of some plentiful produce and create a popular treat that can be used in many ways with a variety of foods!

Hungry for more? Visit Norsland Lefse to order traditional Norwegian treats, explore more recipes, and bring a bit of Scandinavia into your home!