Fluffy Austrian Pancake

Preparation

Kaiserschmarrn is a traditional Austrian dessert that is sometimes served as a main course for lunch. It's a thick, sweet pancake that is torn into bite-sized pieces while cooking, then dusted with powdered sugar before serving. Kaiserschmarrn is often served with stewed damson plums, but it also goes well with apple compote or, as in our version, with cherry compote. Its name, which loosely translates to "Emperor's Mess," is said to honor Emperor Franz Joseph I, who was particularly fond of this dish.

SOAK THE RAISINS 

1. Combine the raisins and rum in a HexClad 2QT Hybrid Saucepan and place over medium heat until almost boiling. Scrape the raisins and juices into a small heatproof bowl. Set them aside to soak while preparing the rest of the recipe.

COOK THE CHERRY COMPOTE

1. Reserving 5 tablespoons of the cherry juice in a separate bowl, combine the cherries and their remaining juice in the same saucepan used for the raisins. Add sugar, vanilla sugar and lemon peel and bring to a boil over high heat.
2. Whisk the reserved juices with the cornstarch and pour into the boiling cherry mixture, stirring until thickened, about 2 minutes. Remove pan from heat, discard lemon peel, and let cool.

PREPARE THE BATTER

1. Meanwhile, separate the eggs. Put the egg yolks in a large bowl and the egg whites into a medium bowl. Whisk the egg whites with a pinch of salt until firm peaks form.
2. Add the sugar and vanilla sugar to the egg yolks and whisk until well combined. Add a few tablespoons of the flour, followed by a bit of milk while whisking – alternating until everything is used up. Then whisk in the sparkling water.
3. Fold the beaten egg whites into the egg yolk mixture until combined, the batter will be fluffy and a bit runny. Fold in the soaked raisins.

COOK THE PANCAKE

1. Melt the butter in a HexClad 12" Hybrid Fry Pan over medium heat. Pour in the batter and cook, undisturbed, until the bottom is golden (the top will still be very runny), about 5 minutes. Cut the pancake crosswise in 4 quadrants and flip each quarter over so that it can cook on the other side. Don’t worry if it looks messy.
2. Let cook, undisturbed for 2 minutes, then use two spatulas to cut the batter into bite-sized pieces. Continue to cook, tossing occasionally, until the chunks are cooked through, about 2 minutes more.
3. Dust the Kaiserschmarrn generously with powdered sugar and serve with cherry compote on the side.