Now is the perfect time to start practicing your Kaiserschmarren to be ready for the Kaiser’s birthday celebration on August 18th.
Kaiserschmarren – literally, “Kaiser’s nonsense”, is famously argued over in terms of its origin. One story tells that it was dinnertime at the palace and there wasn’t much left in the way of food supplies in the kitchen. An ingenious chef threw together what there was – milk, eggs,, flour, raisins, and rum to create this omelette pancake hybrid. Another legend, is that the dish was created for Empress Elisabeth, the Kaiser’s wife. Elisabeth, known as “Sisi”, had eating disorders. There are two camps – one claims this was something she would actually consume while the other maintains she refused to eat it and so the Kaiser said “Let’s see what Schmarren (nonsense) the chef has cooked up” and devoured it all himself.
Regardless of historical exactitude, fact is that the beauty of Kaiserschmarren (besides how incredibly easy and delicious it is), is you can make it with ingredients you would typically have on hand, and it can be served either for dessert or for breakfast, lunch or even supper. (Breakfast for dinner!). I like it in the morning with a strong cup of coffee supporting just a touch of schlag (whipped cream), the ultimate Viennese delight.
The recipe below is a riff on the Kaiserschmarren served at one of the most famous and beautiful cafes in Vienna, Café Central, where my great uncle Carl was a regular (and possibly edited his newspaper at one of the marble tables while sipping coffee). The Central was also home to many aspiring and ultimately famous artists, playwrights and philosophers at their heyday in the turn of the century – Fin de Siecle Vienna – as well as notables such as Freud, Lenin, and Trotsky.
Kaiserschmarren serves 3-4 (based on how hungry you are and how much self-control you have)
Plum jam (Zwetschgenröster) is traditional to serve alongside but any berry jam, apricot preserve, or applesauce is lovely with the Schmarrn.
Ingredients
1/3 cup raisins
2 Tbsp rum or apple juice to soften the raisins
4 whole eggs plus an extra egg white (4 yolks, 5 whites). Note- it’s best to separate eggs when cold, but whites beat best at room temperature.
3 Tbsp sugar
1 cup milk (room temperature or gently warmed to room temperature)
Zest of half a lemon (optional)
1 cup all purpose flour or cake flour, for a more delicate texture
2 Tbsp butter or margarine
Have all your ingredients measured and ready to use.
Place raisins in a bowl with rum or juice to cover. Microwave 10-20 seconds until warm. Set aside
Separate the eggs, placing the whites in a medium-sized, very clean, dry bowl and the yolks in a large bowl.
Drain the raisins, reserving the rum or juice. (You can throw away the rum or juice at this point, but I like to add the rum to the batter. Juice… well…not so critical to add!)
In the large bowl, beat the egg yolks with the sugar until the mixture is thick and light in color. Add the milk, reserved rum if desired, and the lemon zest. Beat until combined. Add the flour and mix until incorporated.
With clean beaters from a hand mixer, or whisk attachment of a KitchenAid, (or a handheld whisk if you have strong arms) beat the whites with a pinch of salt until they are stiff, holding firm peaks.
Now gently fold about a third of the egg whites into the yolk mixture. Once incorporated, fold in the remaining beaten egg whites just until they are fully mixed in.
On medium-high heat, melt 2 Tbsp butter in a large (14-15”) frying pan or split into two smaller pans. When the butter sizzles, pour the batter into the pan(s) and distribute raisins evenly on top. Cook for 3-5 minutes until the bottom and sides of the Schmarrn are set and golden brown. The top will still look uncooked. Don’t worry!
Using a spatula (I prefer the rounded edge, silicone type), cut the pancake(s) into 4-6 pieces (while still in the pan.) Flip them over onto their uncooked side, don’t worry if they don’t go perfectly back into their original slot, just push them back there. Then cut each quarter into large bite-size pieces. Cook about 2 minutes more, turning occasionally to ensure they are cooked throughout.
Now you have a choice!
The easy and traditional option is to slide your Kaiserschmarren pieces onto a plate and dust with confectioner’s sugar and serve with jam or applesauce. Or Zwetschgenröster, if you’re lucky enough to have some on your shelf.
The advanced manuever, which I maintain makes All The Difference consists of removing the Kaiserschmarren from the pan(s) and setting aside on a large plate or in a bowl. Cover with foil or a lid to keep warm.
In the recently-emptied pan(s), add 1/3-2/3 cup sugar and let cook on medium high heat, undisturbed, until the sugar caramelizes. If it looks like it’s beginning to clump, just swirl the pan around so that the sugar liquid melts the clumps (you may also need to raise the heat a bit, but watch carefully that it doesn’t burn). When the sugar is liquefied and light brown, add the pancake pieces back into the skillet, stir and coat with this caramel sauce.
Remove and put on plates. Yes, you can still add confectioner’s sugar, I won’t tell!
Guten Appetit!
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