Pancakes and Waffles: What's the Difference?
I like to make pancakes. I used to have a (cheap) waffle iron, but it bit the dust. I never replaced it, thinking it was too specialized and not necessary.
Although pancake and waffle batters are very similar, each recipe is specifically "pancakes" or "waffles". But what makes this a pancake recipe and that a waffle recipe?
I found a thread online - Cooking Light forum November 2002 - that discussed this. A couple people thought that waffle recipes are oilier to keep them from sticking to the iron; but that with modern non-stick surfaces that difference was becoming moot.
So what do you erudite breadmakers think? Is that the only difference? Can I take a "waffle" recipe and use it for pancakes, maybe just cutting back a bit on oil? I'm tired of passing up waffle recipes because I don't have that appliance.
Rosalie
Traditionally, waffle batter is made with egg yolks and the whites are whipped separately and folded in just before cooking. This gives waffles a much airier texture than pancakes--the batter ends up being a foam.
Many people (even home cooks) have never had waffles done this way, but it is worth the extra effort. I would encourage you to try it.
Of course, you can always use pancake batter in a waffle iron, though Belgian waffles made that way are pretty bready.
So is the reverse also true? Can you make pancakes using a waffle batter? I'm curious, too.
is made that way, it puffs up to about an inch as a pancake. Then gets cut up and mixed with butter and soaked moist raisins and dusted with a blanket of powdered sugar! Yummmm!
Mini O
I just made sourdough pancakes for the first time with some of my leftover starter from replication I did last night. While i was making them i was thinking that sourdough kaiserschmarrn would probably be really good.
is very good using sourdough leftovers, but still add a pinch of baking powder and a little fresh flour.
Mini O
Since I make whole wheat pancakes, I've always whipped the whites and yolks before folding them into the recipe. I didn't know this was a waffle thing, but it makes whole grain pancakes a lot lighter - I wouldn't say an inch though!
It's true that waffles call for more fat than pancake batter, but the reason is not to make it stick less to the iron. Pancakes are generally more soft and spongy while waffles should be crispy. The extra fat in waffles makes it easier to crisp.
From personal experience, I think that waffle batter can make for a decent pancake batter, but pancake batter does not necessarily make for a good waffle batter. The extra fat has to be there to give waffles a crispy teture.
Kanin, thanks for that info. I'll have to give some waffle batter a spin on the ol' griddle. I always thought that not having a waffle iron put the waffle batter recipes off limits to me. I know, I really should be more adventurous and figure this stuff out on my own... :)
The pancake recipe I use produces really fluffy pancakes. The egg is beaten, whole, with a whisk until frothy, and I think that's the thing that makes them fluffier than any other pancake I've ever made. Makes me wonder if folding in the whites and yolks after they've been beaten separately will create one even fluffier! The inch-thick pancake mentioned above sure intrigues me.
kaiserschmarrn
I don't like the sugar in the batter though, maybe a scant teaspoon, (sugar makes it burn) I also think these are tiny eggs, I would use 3 and separate the eggs. I would also use a glass lid in the process to steam set the pancake before flipping it. If you don't break it up, it's a one inch high pancake. (so go for it wolf puppy!) :)
Mini O
The only way I know to crisp waffles is to put them into a low oven, right on the rack, after they come out of the iron. Stack them and they just droop. To me, the best thing about waffles is that you can stick a blueberry in every little hole, then pour on the maple syrup and the bloobers don't roll away!
So there's a recipe for gingerbread waffles that I'd like to try as pancakes. I don't remember how much flour it calls for (and I'll substitute home-milled soft wheat), but I do remember 6T butter. By how much do you think I should cut it?
Rosalie
BTW, if I succeed, I'll post pictures along with the recipe.
Edit: It takes 1.5 cups of flour and makes 6 waffles. Also 3 eggs.
And along this same line of thought... If you leave the higher fat content in when making pancakes, do you get a crispier pancake?
I promise I'll try all this stuff out on my own as soon as I can, but for this weekend, I'm baking a whole passle of bread for a party tomorrow afternoon.
Do you have a basic cookbook? I'd just look up a pancake recipe and see how much fat it uses, and use a proportional amount. You might want to try adding more milk in place of the butter. Pancake batter is usually a bit thinner than waffle batter to start with.
King Arthur has a recipe I use that is for either/or and it works very good. It's posted here somewhere. Search under pancakes and find jmonkeys post. weavershouse
This is a sourdough pancake recipe I used over 40 years ago when my family first moved to Fairbanks Alaska. The recipe came from the Fairbanks Cooperative Extension Service of the University of Alaska, Pub. #61, 1974. You may have heard that long time Alaskans refer to themselves as "sourdoughs." Before modern amenities were available, Alaskans relied on their sourdough starters to make all their bread. Back then, yeast starters were a necessity because transportation was iffy for most of the year and, if your yeast supplies ran out, you had no way to make bread. Ordinary yeast plants were sensitive to the extreme cold, but the wild yeast in the starter proved a reliable leavening agent. For hotcakes, to about 2 cups of your sponge, or leaven, add the following: 1 or 2 eggs, 1 T oil, 1 tsp. salt, 1 Tablespoon sugar. Beat with a fork to blend in all ingredients. At this point, you could also add several tablespoons of non-fat dry milk. Immediately before baking, add 1 tsp baking soda dissolved in 1 Tablespoon of water. Mix well. The baking soda reacts with the acidity of the batter causing it to rise and results in fluffy pancakes. Bake on a hot griddle. We've lived all over the world since our time in Al;aska and I have made these pancakes ever since my sons, who are now 42 and 38, were toddlers. They have always loved pancakes made this way and still request them when they are home. If you have any pancakes left over, cool and then slip them into ziplock baggies and pop them into the freezer. When you're ready to eat them, just put the frozen pancakes in a toaster and they will taste great. You can vary the flour to add more whole wheat flour, cornmeal, wheatgerm, or bran flakes. Just be sure to use two eggs for these variations to provide the extra liquid needed. To make waffles from this recipe, just add two extra tablespoons of oil, for a total of 3 tablespoons of oil. After adding the fat, add the same soda/water mixture and bake at once.