Äggakaka — Sweden

Äggakaka, literally egg cake, is a thick, oven-baked batter cake from the Scania region of southern Sweden. Closer in texture to a firm egg custard than to a thin fried pancake, it is served as a savoury dish rather than a dessert, cut into squares once it comes out of the oven. The dish is reported from Scania, where it sits alongside related batter bakes such as kolbullar and the oven pancake known as ugnspannkaka. All three share a base of eggs, flour and milk baked rather than fried in a pan, though the proportions and the accompaniments set each one apart. To prepare it, eggs are whisked with flour and salt into a smooth base, then thinned with milk to a pourable batter. This is poured into a well-buttered dish and baked until it puffs up and turns golden, a matter of roughly twenty-five minutes in a hot oven. While it bakes, thin slices of pork belly are fried separately until crisp. What distinguishes this version is its pairing with crisp fried pork belly and a spoonful of lingonberries rather than with jam alone: it is said to have served as a filling farm meal, easy to wrap and carry out to the fields, which explains a savoury, protein-rich plate rather than the sweeter pancake usually eaten for dessert.