Polish Apple Pancakes (with yeast)
User Reviews
5
Polish Apple Pancakes (with yeast)
Description
These Polish Apple Pancakes rely on fresh or active dry yeast to ferment the batter, yielding a light and airy texture uncommon in typical pancakes. Warm milk activates the yeast, which blooms to ensure proper leavening. The batter includes a blend of flour, eggs, sugar, cinnamon, vanilla, and salt, enriched further with diced soft apples folded in before cooking.
Cooking the pancakes yields a tender exterior and fluffy inside, with pockets of softened apple pieces offering a natural sweetness and moist bite. The cinnamon adds warmth, while vanilla contributes aromatic depth.
Serving dusted with powdered sugar enhances their sweetness and presentation. The recipe allows prep of batter in advance, which benefits the yeast development and makes for a convenient morning cooking session.
Measuring flour correctly using the spoon and level method avoids dense or dry pancakes, ensuring the batter has the right consistency. The yeast proofing step confirms active yeast, critical for rise and texture.
Ingredients
for the pancake batter:
- 20 g fresh yeast or 1 packet/7g active dry yeast or instant yeast
- 1 cup milk 240g
- 2 cups flour spooned and leveled, not scooped, 250 grams
- 2 egg large
- 1/4 cup sugar divided
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract or 1 Tbsp vanilla sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon salt fine sea salt
- 5 apple soft variety, small/medium
additionally:
- cooking oil for frying
- powdered sugar for dusting
Instructions
- Heat the milk until pleasantly warm to the touch (it's best to check its temperature with a thermometer, it should be 100-110°F (38-43°C)). The milk can't be too cold or too hot or the yeast won't work.
- STEP 2: Add milk to a medium bowl and add yeast, 1 Tbsp of sugar, and stir together. Set aside for 10 minutes for the yeast to bloom (they will become foamy). If there is no foam, you need to start over. Although it is not necessary for the instant yeast to be proofed (you can add it directly to the flour) I've found that this way the dough rises quicker and you can be sure that your yeast is working.
- Add the milk-yeast mixture and all the other ingredients except apples to a large bowl (flour, eggs, vanilla, 3 Tbsp of sugar, cinnamon, salt). Mix with an electric mixer for about 1 minute, until well combined (don't worry about overmixing the mixture, it will have time to rest).
- Cover the bowl with a piece of plastic foil or kitchen towel and set aside in a warm place until doubled in volume, this should take 45-70 minutes (I'm putting it in a turned-off oven with a light on). The batter will rise quicker when using fresh yeast, a little bit slower when using active dry yeast or fast-acting dry yeast, and the slowest when using instant yeast).
- If you want to make the batter the day before and cook the pancakes in the morning, you can put the batter in the fridge at this point. 9 hours of raising time will be enough for the batter to double its size.
- Peel and core the apples and cut them into very small cubes (small cubes are important otherwise the apples will not have enough time to cook and will be too crunchy, we want them soft).
- Add the apples to the dough and stir until evenly distributed. Set aside for 10 minutes. If your batter was in the fridge overnight, set aside the batter for 20-30 minutes.
- Heat about 3 tablespoons of oil in a non-stick frying pan over medium heat (you can add more or less oil, sadly, more oil = better-tasting pancakes, these pancakes are known for their crispy edges, so you need to use much more cooking fat than when cooking regular pancakes). The oil should be well-heated otherwise the pancakes will soak up fat, you should hear sizzling while adding batter to the pan.
- Spoon about 1-2 heaped tablespoons of batter (1/4 cup) per pancake. Cook on both sides until puffy and golden. Transfer to a cooling rack lined with paper towels. Cut one pancake in half to make sure it's cooked through in the middle (there is no raw batter). Don't put anything on the pancakes or they won't remain crispy. Repeat with the remaining dough.
- Dust the pancakes generously with powdered sugar and serve.
- Enjoy!
Notes
- Measure flour by spooning and leveling for accurate and consistent batter consistency.
- Batter can be made the day before; add apples and cook the next morning after resting the batter for 20-30 minutes.
- Warm milk between 100-110°F (38-43°C) activates yeast without killing it for best rise and texture.
- Use soft apple varieties for better integration and sweetness within the pancakes.
Nutrition Information
Show DetailsNutrition Facts
Serving: 4servings
Amount Per Serving
Calories 588 kcal
% Daily Value*
| Calories | 588kcal | 29% |
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet.
User Reviews
Overall Rating
5
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