pancakes are a special recipe coming from brittany, a region in north-west france, which became famous and appreciated very fast across the entire world. they can be both sweet ("crepes") and salty ("gallettes") and the fillings vary from very simple (sugar, jam, honey, chocolate) to spectacular and exciting combinations. originally, the pancakes were served with cider (apple based drink). only after a while a new and spectacular serving method appeared: "crepes suzette" (flaming pancakes with liquor and orange juice).
in france there is an actual holiday when traditionally pancakes are served. it's called "la chandeleur" (on the 2nd of february). this day has become known as the pancakes day because it's customary to offer pancakes. the legend says that somebody who, on this day, can throw a pancake in the air and catch in the pan with his left hand while holding a golden coin in his right hand will be rich and prosperous for the rest of the year.
in great britain there is also a pancakes holiday - "shrove tuesday" or the "pancake tuesday".
the following recipe is very fast and will guarantee an amazing result: you'll get some of the smoothest pancakes you've ever tried!
their secret is in using sparking mineral water at the end of the cooking.
ingredients:
- 5 eggs (you can use as many eggs as you like, depending on how many pancakes you want to cook)
- white flour
- milk
- sparkling mineral water
- sunflower oil
- butter
- salt powder
- orange peel and vanilla sugar
- vanilla essence
whisk the eggs with the salt powder. the add a big glass of flour (about 300 gr).
mix with a spoon until the composition is homogeneous. add 2 spoons of oil. add the essence, the vanilla sugar and the grated orange peel.
the composition must be thick, homogeneous and glossy.
add a glass of cold milk and mix until the composition is again homogeneous.
in the end, add the sparkling mineral water, continuously mixing until you get the consistency of thin sour cream.
put the a bit of butter in the pancakes pan, melt it and pour it in the composition.
pour half a ladle of dough in the heated pan, tilt rapidly the pan in the air so that the composition is uniformly distributed over it's entire surface in a very thin layer.
the baking is very important: keep an intense fire until it starts to bloat and to detach from the pan on the edges.
then reduce the fire to medium, and detach the pancake from the pan with e plastic blade. then turn it over on the other side (in the air if you have the right dexterity, otherwise using the plastic blade).
the pancake is almost ready, therefore, you need to keep it on the other side for no more than 1 minute (so that it doesn't dry too much).
then, take it out on a flat plate and repeat the procedure until you finish all the pancake composition.
the pancakes will be very smooth and airy, both warm and cold.
you can either roll or fold them in various shapes, based on how you like them.
enjoy!