The smell of melted butter and sweets always found a way into my room, waking me up. Now I associate it with important events throughout my life and feelings of love and comfort. This sweet treat pays homage to my Finnish heritage by being a simple breakfast, and was one of the very first things I learned to cook in the kitchen.

I remember climbing onto a tall stool to reach the stove, my mom hovering in the background, worried, of course, but also knowing that even from a young age, she wanted an independent daughter and was determined to let me learn.

Through the years, as I grew, I went from barely being able to pour the batter into the pan to making them all on my own. In my family, we use a divoted cast-iron pancake pan, though a regular pan will work just fine. With much love from many generations of my family, a recipe we cherish and one that I hope can lead to memories for you and your family.

Recipe:

1 ½ cups flour

1 ¼ cups milk

2 eggs

1 tsp of vanilla

1 tsp of salt

3 Tbsp of butter

Syrup (optional)

Directions:

1 – In a bowl, combine all of the ingredients in any order.

2 – Whisk all of the ingredients together.

3 – Put your pan of choice on the stovetop and butter the pan.

4 – Once the pan is hot, pour ¼ of a cup of batter into the pan, aiming for a circle two nickels wide. Let it sit until bubbles form on the surface. Flip it over and let the other side brown. Finally, transfer them to a plate once done.