Vegan Buttermilk Pancakes with Cherry Compote
Welcome back to another episode of "Isa and Julia think of nice recipes for me that I haven't heard of before". I have to admit that (just as with the asparagus salad à la Niçoise) I had to research first, what "Plinsen" actually are. In the US, blintzes are filled, but according to Wikipedia, the German "Plinsen" are small pancakes made out of flour, milk, sugar, and eggs, and are especially popular in East Central Germany. Instead of milk, you can also use curd or buttermilk – I opted for the latter today. Since vegan buttermilk isn't available for purchase as far as I know, I made it myself which is quite easy. You only have to mix plant-based milk and lemon juice – yes, that's it! Pretty quickly you will notice that the consistency of the plant-based milk will change due to the acidity of the lemon – isn't that great? So you never have to miss out on delicious buttermilk pancakes ever again!
To accompany these sweet treats, we serve a homemade cherry compote on top. For this, you only need to let the cherries boil down and season them with lemon zest. Of course, if this isn't sweet enough for you, you can always add some sugar. Depending on the season, you could also use other fruits such as apple, rhubarb, or strawberries.
The salted caramel sauce is like an extra cherry on top of the cherries you already added to your pancakes because it perfectly rounds out the sweetness of the fruits and the pancakes. If you aren't a fan of the combination of salty and sweet, you can, of course, kick out the salt in your caramel.
If you're looking for more inspiration for your breakfast, brunch, or maybe for a snack in between, we have a huge vegan pancake selection on the blog. So how about vegan stracciatella pancakes, vegan banana pancakes with blueberry sauce or vegan savory spinach pancakes? I'm sure everyone will find something to their liking.
Vegan Buttermilk Pancakes with Cherry Compote
Ingredients
For the cherry compote:
- 350 g (12.33 oz) cherries
- 1 lemon (zest)
For the pancakes:
- 300 ml (1.33 cups) plant-based milk
- 35 ml (2.5 tbsp) lemon juice
- 150 g (1.25 cup) flour type 405
- 1.5 tbsp sugar
- 8 g (1.5 tsp) vanilla sugar
- 5 g (1 tsp) baking powder
- 3 g (0.5 tsp) baking soda
- 1 pinch of salt
- vegan butter for frying
For the salted caramel sauce:
- 50 g (0.25 cup) sugar
- 35 ml (1.5 cup) coconut milk
- approx. 15 ml (2 tbsp) water
- 1.5 tbsp butter
- salt
Instructions
Wash, pit, and quarter the cherries. Add them to a saucepan over medium heat and let them simmer for at least 20 minutes. Just before the end, add the lemon zest. Keep stirring to prevent the cherries from burning.
Meanwhile, prepare the vegan buttermilk. To do this, add plant-based milk and lemon juice to a bowl and let the mixture sit for at least 10 minutes until you see the plant-based milk curdle.
For the salted caramel sauce, heat sugar in a saucepan. Once it becomes liquid, slowly whisk in coconut milk and water. Add vegan butter and a pinch of salt. If the caramel gets too firm, whisk in some more plant-based milk or water. Let the caramel simmer over medium-low heat until it's amber-colored. Keep stirring constantly during this process to avoid any burning.
For the pancake batter, mix flour, sugar, vanilla sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a bowl. Add the vegan buttermilk and whisk until everything is combined.
Heat a non-stick frying pan over medium heat. Add vegan butter to the pan and fry the pancakes in batches, until they're golden brown from both sides.
Serve the pancakes with cherry compote and salted caramel on top.
