Fluffy pancakes

Instructions

1. Step 1

   Melt 30 g unsalted butter in a small saucepan over low heat, then set it aside to cool slightly. Butter that's too hot would scramble the eggs when you add it to the wet ingredients. The butter is ready when it's completely liquid and just barely warm.

   Low heat.

   Mark step 1 as done

2. Step 2

   Put 190 g all-purpose flour, 25 g granulated sugar, 8 g baking powder and a pinch salt in a large bowl and whisk for about thirty seconds. Whisking the dry ingredients well spreads the baking powder evenly, so the pancakes rise tall without bitter spots. The mixture is ready when it's evenly light and free of lumps.

   Mark step 2 as done

3. Step 3

   In a jug or another bowl, whisk 50 g eggs with 300 g whole milk and 4 g vanilla extract, then pour in the cooled butter while whisking. Pouring the butter in slowly while whisking blends it into the milk instead of letting it firm up into clumps. The wet mixture is ready when it's an even color with no strands of egg white.

   Mark step 3 as done

4. Step 4

   Pour the wet mixture into the center of the dry ingredients and fold gently with a spatula about ten times, just until the dry flour disappears. Pancake batter should still have a few small lumps, and overmixing makes pancakes tough and flat. The batter is ready when it's thick and falls slowly from the spoon in a heavy ribbon.

   Mark step 4 as done

5. Step 5

   Let the batter rest at room temperature for about ten minutes without stirring it again. While it rests, the baking powder starts making air bubbles and the flour absorbs the liquid more evenly. The batter is ready when lots of tiny bubbles appear on the surface and it looks puffier than before.

   Suggested time: about 10 minutes.

   Mark step 5 as done

6. Step 6

   Heat a nonstick pan over medium heat for about two minutes, rub in a thin layer of to taste unsalted butter, then wipe off the excess with a paper towel. An evenly hot pan with just a thin film of butter gives the pancakes beautiful golden tops without blotches. The pan is ready when a drop of water dances and sizzles before evaporating.

   Medium heat.

   Mark step 6 as done

7. Step 7

   Scoop about a quarter cup of batter into the center of the pan and let it spread on its own into a round about 10 cm across, without spreading it out. The pancake needs to sit undisturbed so the air bubbles can rise and create a fluffy texture. The bottom is cooked when lots of bubbles on top have popped and the edges look dry, which usually takes about two minutes.

   Medium heat.

   Mark step 7 as done

8. Step 8

   Slide a thin spatula under the pancake and flip it quickly, just once, then cook the other side for about a minute more. Flip only once and don't press down with the spatula, so the air bubbles inside stay intact. The pancake is done when both sides are golden brown and the center springs back when gently pressed.

   Medium heat.

   Mark step 8 as done

9. Step 9

   Stack the pancakes on a warm plate, drizzle with 80 g maple syrup and add fresh fruit if you like. Serving them right away while they're hot keeps them at their softest and fluffiest. Your stack is finished when the syrup runs down the sides and soaks lightly into the top pancake.

   Mark step 9 as done