Berliner Pfannkuchen
Berliner: Berlin jam-filled yeast doughnuts for New Year's Eve and Carnival
In Berlin a Pfannkuchen is not a pancake but a round, sugar-dusted yeast doughnut with a pale ring around its middle and a squirt of jam inside; most of Germany calls them Berliner. Bakeries pile them up for New Year's Eve and for Carnival in February, and the old joke is to slip one filled with mustard into the batch. Good ones are light and springy, never greasy. A common mistake is frying in oil that is too hot, which browns the outside before the middle cooks; keep it at 170 °C. Chef's tip: let the shaped dough rise uncovered for the last 10 minutes so a thin skin forms; that is what gives the classic white band round the middle.
- Total time
- 70 min
- Difficulty
- medium
- Serves
- 12
Ingredients
For the dough
To fry and fill
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What you'll need
Spices & pantry
Fresh ingredients (5)
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Method
0/7 doneStep 1: Mix 1 ⅛ lb strong white flour, ¼ oz fast-action dried yeast, 2 ⅛ oz sugar, ½ tsp salt and 1 tsp lemon zest. Add ¾ cup milk, 2 eggs and 1 egg yolk and knead for 5 minutes, then knead in 2 ½ oz butter bit by bit for 5 minutes more, until the dough is silky and pulls away from the bowl.
10 minStep 2: Cover and leave somewhere warm for 1 hour, until doubled in size.
60 minStep 3: Divide into 12 pieces of about 75 g. Roll each under a cupped hand on the worktop into a tight, smooth ball. Set them on a floured tray, well apart.
15 minStep 4: Cover loosely and leave for 30 minutes, then uncover for the last 10 minutes so the surface dries slightly.
30 minStep 5: Heat 6 ¼ cups sunflower oil for deep-frying in a deep pan to 350°F. Fry 3–4 at a time, lid on, for 3 minutes, then turn and fry uncovered 3 minutes more, until deep golden with a pale band round the middle. Drain on kitchen paper. Keep checking the oil temperature between batches.
25 minStep 6: To test, break one open: the crumb should be fluffy and dry right through. Pipe 9 oz smooth raspberry or plum jam into the side of each warm doughnut with a piping bag fitted with a long nozzle.
10 minStep 7: Roll in or dust with 2 ⅛ oz icing sugar or caster sugar and eat the same day.
2 min
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 330 kcal
- Protein
- 6 g
- Carbs
- 48 g
- Fat
- 13 g
- Fibre
- 1 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does berliner Pfannkuchen take?
- About 70 minutes in total: 40 minutes to prepare and 30 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 12 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Is it vegetarian?
- Yes. It has no meat or fish.
- What can I use instead of fast-action dried yeast?
- Fresh yeast, three times the weight.
- What can I use instead of sugar?
- Caster sugar, same amount.
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