As a born-and-bred Afrikaans girl, Pancakes with Cinnamon Sugar is engrained into almost every child-hood memory I have of rainy days. My mom firmly believed that pancakes were to be made to soothe away the sadness of us not being able to play outside because of the rain. And to this day when it rains, I want pancakes with cinnamon sugar. I am now even carrying on this tradition with my kids.
As I mentioned in my Milk Tart Cake post, cinnamon has some strange comforting quality that Afrikaans people are just drawn to. Most of our sweet comfort foods contain it. From Milk tart and pancakes with cinnamon sugar to Melkkos. Even just smelling cinnamon makes me happy.
Back the actual pancakes (crêpes) though, I have to admit, I have actually blogged this recipe before. But this was more than two years ago and as you can see, my photography skills have improved considerably. I said the following in the original post and I thought I’d copy it here as I really do feel that this is the key to making successful pancakes/crêpes. I think the secret to successful pancakes is to have your pan constantly well-greased. I use cooking spray AND a teaspoon of oil every second or third time I add more batter to the pan. Also, you need to play around with your pans and see which one is the perfect pancake pan and you need to find the perfect heat setting on your stove. For me, the perfect amount of batter is just under a ladle full, about 3/4 of a ladle. Bring the pan to the bowl of batter and pour the batter in slowly while swirling the pan around to coat the base of the pan with a thin layer of batter. Once the surface of the pancake seems slightly matte and the batter has ‘settled’, you can flip the pancake. The sides of the pancake may also curl up slightly. Do this anyway you want, flip it like a pro or use any utensil you want. They might tear if they are very thin but that’s not a problem, flip them anyway, adjust them slightly and pour a tiny bit of batter over the tear and allow to cook. Stack the pancakes on a plate set over a pot of gently simmering water to keep them warm and only sprinkle with the cinnamon sugar when you’re ready to serve them.
Ingredients
- 1 litre water
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 1 cup oil
- 4 teaspoons white vinegar
- 8 eggs
- 4 cups flour
- 1 teaspoons baking powder mixed with 2 teaspoons luke warm water
Cinnamon Sugar
- 2 cups caster sugar
- 3 tablespoons ground cinnamon
Instructions
- Mix everything together, beating well to ensure there are no lumps. Allow to stand for 15-20 minutes covered.
- When you are ready to bake the pancakes, mix the batter again and if it’s too thick, add a bit more water. It needs to be quite thin, only a little thicker than pouring cream.You’ll see if you bake the first few if the batter is too thick, the pancakes need to be very thin and almost lace-like.
- Heat the pan and spray with cooking spray and add 1 teaspoon of oil.
- Add ladle-fulls of the batter to the pan and allow to cook before flipping. Keep the pancakes warm on a plate set over a pot of simmering water.
- When you're ready to serve, sprinkle some of the cinnamon sugar over the pancakes and roll up.
- Serve with fresh lemon wedges.
I think it is a universal thing, cinnamon crêpes are popular in many countries and amongst many cultures.
Hi Alida! My mom would make these for Sunday supper in winter sometimes. I remember sprinkling each pancake as they were laid on the stack. My American born daughter loves them now too. We would also enjoy souskluitjies and asyn, and bruin poeding. Aah childhood memories
Wonderful! I find myself doing all the things for my own kids that my mom used to do for me. There’s nothing greater than continuing family traditions! 🙂
Quick question: what sort of pan are you using? Generally, I have only seen crepes made on a round hot plate of some sort. Just found your website through Pinterest and am so excited to make some of your recipes!
Thanks in advance!
Victoria, I use a crepe pan designed for making them but you could use any medium-sized round, non-stick frying pan. Something you can pick up easily (not a heavy skillet) would be best.
Perfekte idee vir die Kaapstad weer!! Jou boek is wonderlik – ek kan nie wag om daaruit te begin kook nie!!
It was the same in our home, when it was rainy, it was pancake time! I think it is a South African thing! Just yesterday a friend and I attended a fall fair in Ontario. It had rained most of the day and as we passed all the food stalls, we looked at each other and almost simultaneously said “The only thing missing here is a pancake stand!”
Love your blog and recipes!Dankie!
Rouxline, thanks for the lovely comment!
Yummy! I know what I’m having for breakfast this weekend 😉
Such a great recipe. I use a milk free one too. It’s awesome and I don’t even have to re-grease the pan. Everyone should have a good flop proof pancake recipe that that they can depend on (and that doesn’t make something silly like 8 pancakes). I mean who feed a family of 4 with just 8 pancakes!!?
In all my mom’s old cookbooks the pancake recipes serve something ridiculous like 200 people. Then again, those are books written by ‘Tannies’ who cater church bazaars and the like. 🙂
And what do you mean flop-proof? Sometimes the flops are the best! I tip them into a bowl and sprinkle over cinnamon sugar and eat it with a spoon. 🙂
Nothing better than pancakes on a cloudy day, although if I’m feeling very sorry for myself I put nutella on my pancake instead of cinnamon and sugar 🙂
Shaina, nutella is SO good in a pancake. Another favourite is caramel and sliced bananas. Yum!