BEGHRIR
moroccan pancakes
Whereas American pancakes are soft and fluffy, these are soft and chewy—basically a larger, thinner version of English muffins, though made with milk. For a lighter version, you can replace 3/4 cup [180 ml] of the milk with water. In Morocco, the pancakes are sold on the street as a morning snack or made at home, usually for breakfast, served with butter and honey. I often replace the butter with thick yogurt. They reheat well, so you can easily prepare them the night before and keep them covered until the morning to reheat in a medium oven before serving. They also freeze well; all you have to do is put them frozen into a hot oven to defrost and heat in one go.
MAKES ABOUT 6 PANCAKES
11/3 cups [200 g] fine semolina
1/3 cup [50 g] unbleached all-purpose flour
1 tsp fast-acting (instant) yeast
1/2 tsp fine sea salt
1 large egg
13/4 cups [420 ml] whole milk
Sunflower oil for frying
Unsalted butter for serving
Honey for serving
Mix the semolina, flour, yeast, and salt in a large mixing bowl. Beat the egg and stir it into the milk. Gradually add the milk mixture to the semolina and whisk for about 10 minutes, until you have a creamy batter. Cover with plastic wrap and let sit in a warm place for 2 hours.
When the batter is bubbly, lightly oil a nonstick frying pan and place over medium heat. When the pan is hot, pour in a ladleful of batter to make a pancake measuring 7 to 8 in [18 to 20 cm] in diameter. Cook on one side for 2 minutes, or until the top has become completely pockmarked and dry. The pancake will be smooth and golden on the cooked side. Transfer to a clean kitchen towel and finish making the rest of the pancakes. Oil the pan again after making the second pancake and again after the fourth. Don’t pile the pancakes on top of each other until they have cooled completely. You can make these smaller by dropping into the pan by the tablespoonful. Serve the pancakes with butter and honey.