I have always been entranced by Japanese recipes. There's so much perfection and finesse in that style of cooking, I'm always a little nervious to dip my toes in. Cole found a really simple Japanese pancake recipe on Reddit not too long ago and sent it to me, asking if we could make it one weekend soon. He held me to it and we embarked on the fluffy pancake adventure together. Luckily it came with a video so the tutorial was incredibly easy to follow. The first few pancakes weren't as pretty as the last few, as it took us a few tries to find our footing and find the right temperature to cook it, how long to cook them on each side, and how to properly flip it without making a mess, but by golly, we mastered it. The recipe also calls for a ring mold like these, but we didn't have any, so we just used a giant heart cookie cutter. The taller the mold or cookie cutter you're using, the more batter you'll need. This also means you'll have keep the pancakes on the stove a little longer so the insides are cooked through.
These pancakes look tall and heavy, but they are actually incredibly light and airy. They hold their own against any butter, powdered sugar, or syrup you can throw at it, and they simply melt in your mouth. We were suprised at how much fun they were to eat and make. I will caveat by saying, however, they take a lot longer to make than regular pancakes, as each pancake will take about 5-7 minutes to cook. But if you have the time and want to try something new, I highly recommend this change up to your weekend morning!
Servings: 4-6
Prep Time: 15 min
Total Time: 45 min
INGREDIENTS:
1 1/2 cups flour
3 Tbsp powdered sugar
2 tsp baking powder
Pinch of salt
1 1/4 cup milk
4 Tbsp butter, melted, but cooled for 5 minutes
1/2 tsp vanilla
1 egg yolk
3 egg whites
1/4 tsp cream of tartar
DIRECTIONS:
Whisk together milk, butter, vanilla, and egg yolk in a medium bowl.
Stir flour, powdered sugar, baking powder, and salt into milk mixture.
Using an electric or stand mixer, beat egg whites and cream of tartar in another bowl on medium high for about 2 minutes or until stiff peaks form.
Stir about 1/3 of the whipped egg whites into the rest of the batter. Then gently fold in the rest of the whipped egg whites, taking care to not over mix.
Lightly spray the inside of a ring mold or other large metal cookie cutter with non-stick cooking spray. Also spray the inside of a large non-stick skillet.
Place skillet over medium low heat - this is important because the pancakes will be thick, so they have to cook low and slow.
Put the prepared molds in the middle of the skillet and fill the molds halfway with batter. Cover the skillet with a lid and cook for about 5 minutes.
At this point, the batter should have risen to the top of the mold and should be able to hold itself up without the mold. If that's not the case, let cook for another minute.
Carefully remove the mold with a pair of tongs, then flip the pancake. Cover and cook for another 5 minutes.
Transfer to a plate, dust with powdered sugar, and serve with butter and syrup!
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