Feel like an emperor with this sweet Kaiserschmarrn. This fluffy and light pancake is served in bite-sized chunks with cranberry-cinnamon jam and sprinkled with plenty of icing sugar. It is very simple to make any time any day.
Kaiserschmarrn is a traditional Austrian dessert, originally prepared with rum and raisins and served with apple sauce. As a little girl, I had this treat many times. Yeah, my mom used to make it for me and my brother. Of course, she made it without rum. But, sometimes she added a scoop of ice cream on top. Wonderful!
Instead of making it the traditional way, I skipped rum and added orange juice. I also swapped the apple sauce with red wine cranberry-cinnamon jam. Woohoo. But I kept the white icing sugar peaks. Wink.
How to describe a Kaiserschmarrn
Kaiserschmarrn is a puffy, fluffy and light pancake, which has been shredded into bite-sized chunks. But wait, there’s also a legend. According to it, Austrian emperor Franz Joseph liked pancakes for dessert. Since not every pancake turned out perfect or it was too thick (and so not perfect for the emperor), they shredded it and gave it to the people working at the castle (I suppose). Wink. More, Kaiser means emperor and Schmarrn is simply a mess. Or in other words, a pancake mess on a plate. Wink.
Kaiserschmarrn is more fluffy and puffy than a normal pancake thanks to the glossy whisked egg whites. Another trick I learned, is to start with the pan on the stove, until the bottom side is set, and then, without any awkward flipping, finish in the oven.
Oh, you’ll love this dessert recipe. It looks gorgeous and it’s very versatile as well. Besides enjoying it as a dessert, it also makes a lovely breakfast, lunch, dinner or brunch. More, like sauces, you can use any fruit jam or sauces, vanilla sauce or cinnamon sauce. Of course, you can add fresh berries or compote, too.
For more holiday desserts, you might like these: cherry Charlotte, a gorgeous apple-cinnamon no-bake cheesecake, a glass of Slovenian Bled cream cake, a bowl of spiced baked milk rice pudding or this Christmas fruit cake.
This recipe couldn’t be easier. And it is loved by everyone. I am telling you, this is a portion of great comfort food. It tastes amazing after a long cold day outside or when watching a Christmas movie tucked under a blanket.
Ingredients for two portions of Kaiserschmarrn:
- 100 g flour
- 15 g brown sugar
- pinch of salt
- 2 egg yolks
- 100 ml milk
- 50 ml fresh orange juice
- 2 egg whites
- 20 g butter
- 2-3 Tbsp of red wine cranberry-cinnamon jam or sauce
- icing sugar (garnish)
To begin, preheat the oven to 180º C and separate the eggs. Place the egg whites in a bowl and beat them until stiff peaks.
Then, in another bowl, combine flour, sugar, salt, milk, orange juice and egg yolks. Using a hand mixer, mix until well combined and smooth.
At this point, gently fold the egg whites into the batter until well combined. Let the batter rest for 5 minutes.
Afterwards, in an oven-proof skillet or frying pan with a higher edge, melt some butter. Once the butter is bubbly and darker, pour in the Kaiserschmarrn batter and keep it on the stove for 2-3 minutes or until the bottom is set.
Then, remove the pan from the stove and place it in the oven for 4 minutes. At this point, take the pan out of the oven and tear the Kaiserschmarrn into bite-sized pieces (keeping it in the pan) using two forks or spoons. Give the pan a quick shake and place it back in the oven for about 8-10 minutes or until golden brown and puffy.
Finally, divide the Kaiserschmarrn between the plates, generously sprinkle it with icing sugar and add a big spoon of jam.
Enjoy.
