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Császármorzsa – Kaiserschmarrn
Kaiserschmarrn (Emperor’s Mess) is a specialty pancake, lightly sweetened with sugar and served with jam. The name of this dessert comes from the Austrian emperor Franz Joseph, who was very fond of this kind of fluffy shredded pancake.
The Austro-Hungarian Compromise of 1867 created the Dual Monarchy of Austria-Hungary. It lasted until the end of the 1st world war. That time Franz Joseph was the emperor of Austria (1848–1916) and the king of Hungary (1867–1916).
According to the legend the emperor and his wife were traveling the Alps and stopped by a farmer’s home for lunch. The farmer was so nervous that he threw all the fanciest ingredients he had into a pan to make a delicious pancake; worse yet, due to his nervousness and shaky hands he scrambled the pancake. Hoping to cover up the mess he then covered it with jam. Luckily, the Kaiser thought it was just delicious.
This dessert was a popular dish of the Habsburg monarchy, which over the years spread into not just the Austrian, but the Bavarian, Slovenian and Hungarian households as well.
Source: Wikipedia
How to make Hungarian császármorzsa (Kaiserschmarrn)?
The Hungarian name of Kaiserschmarrn is Császármorzsa, or better known as „smarni”and can be prepared in different ways. The basic ingredients are sugar, flour, eggs, milk and salt. in Hungary we often add semolina as well, however I prefer making it without semolina. Also, many recipe calls for raisins and rum, which I skipped this time because I do not like raisins in desserts. The recipe below is written with the raisins and rum.
What makes this pancake so fluffy? We separate the egg yolk from the white and beat the white until stiff peaks form, then gently fold it into the batter. Baking powder is NOT added to it.
The pan you use makes a big difference in how the Császármorzsa will fry and how easily you will be able to flip it. You must use a non-stick pan for best results.
Császármorzsa is broken up into smaller pieces with a spatula or wooden spoon while frying. It is done in 15 minutes, serve it with your favorite jam.
Császármorzsa - Kaiserschmarrn
Equipment
- Mixing bowls
- Electric handmixer or whisk
- Spatula
- Nonstick frying pan
- Measuring cups
- 1 lid
Ingredients
- 2 eggs
- 2/3 cup whole milk
- 2/3 cup all purpose flour
- 4 tbsp powdered sugar
- 2 tbsp butter
- 1 pinch salt
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 handful raisins
- 1 teaspoon rum extract
- jam
Instructions
- Soak the raisins in water mixed with the rum extract. The liquid barely covers the raisins. (skip it if you do not like raisins.)
- Separate the egg whites from the yolks, put them into 2 bowls.
- Beat the egg whites with an electric handmixer or whisk until stiff peaks form.
- Mix the egg yolks with 2 tablespoons of powdered sugar, 2/3 cup of flour, 2/3 cup of milk, 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract and a pinch of salt. First add only the half ofthe milk, stir until no lumps, and then add the rest of the milk. Gently fold in the beaten egg white, make sure you do not break it and it stays aery.
- Heat 1 tablespoon of butter in a non-stick pan. When the butter is hot, pour in the half of the batter. Sprinkle over the soaked raisins.
- Cover with a lid and fry it over medium heat.
- Using a spatula gently go underneath after 2 minutes and check the color of the pancake. It is time to flip using the spatula when it is golden brown. Fry this side too until golden brown.
- Cut up into bigger chunks using your spatula.
- Sprinkle with powdered and serve it with your favorite jam.
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Love this recipe
I love Hungarian cooking and these are exceptional.
Sounds like a wonderful recipe, I will make it❤️
Sound great, Catherine. Please let mw know how it turned out. :)
Hi, I would love some clarification on Step#5: Heat 1 tablespoon of butter in a non-stick pan. When the butter is hot, pour in the half of the batter. Sprinkle over the soaked raisins.
My question is – when the butter is hot, pour in HALF of the batter – what happens to the other half of the batter? do I just fry it as a second batch or something I missed?