Guilt-free popcorn snacks to make movie nights more fun
Popcorn Topped Soufflé Pancakes
We’re not gonna lie. Pretty much as soon as we saw those tall, jiggly Japanese soufflé pancakes all over social media, we got out our mixer and started separating eggs. Sure, we love a trend but, apart from that, they just looked so dang good. It took a while to master making these babies. It wasn’t so much the recipe, which is pretty straightforward, but the technique that took a bit of practice. But they went from novelty trend to staple pretty quickly once we got the hang of it. And since you all know we love a crunch, it should come as no surprise that we now make popcorn topped soufflé pancakes on the regular.
Normal pancakes get their fluff from some baking powder and buttermilk. They’re easy to make, come together quickly and are perfectly tasty. The Japanese version gets its extra tall volume from the fact that the eggs are separated and the whites are beaten to stiff peaks, the way one would to make a sponge cake. And extra step, to be sure. Actually two extra steps because you need to separate the eggs and beat the whites separately. Cooking them also requires some extra work. If you just ladle some batter into a hot pan or griddle, they will spread like regular pancakes. And while the consistency will be fluffier than normal, they won’t have that mile high look to them. Achieving that requires some kind of mold.
But don’t worry because no fancy equipment was needed. We just dug out our set of 3″ round metal cookie cutters and they did the trick perfectly. We cook the pancakes in the mold so as to maintain the rise, similar to the way you add tall parchment paper to the side of a ramekin to make a soufflé. But this is way easier and they won’t deflate after cooking. You’ll just have extra tall, extra fluffy and really delicious pancakes. And their soft texture is a great match to some crunchy popcorn. Please pass the maple syrup.
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