Thursday, May 22, 2008

Pancake Puff Review!

As I mentioned earlier this week I was suckered into buying the Pancake Puffs kit. It all started when I went to Walgreens with one thing on my mind. I wanted to purchase another As Seen on TV product that had been recommended to me by a friend, the Ped Egg. I did find the Ped Egg but right next to it was the Pancake Puffs kit.

If you have a child who watches Nickelodeon you've probably heard about the Pancake Puffs. "They're finger food pancakes, mommy!" "You can make a birthday cake puff!" These exclamations and more have come from the mouths of my little darlings over the past couple of months since Nickelodeon has been running the ad every 5 minutes.

Heck, even I was a bit taken with the ad.

(I would even embed the ad here if there were a way to make it not play AUTOMATICALLY upon you loading my page. Geesh.)

"It's Pantastic!"

So... sucker that I am, I dished out my $19.95 and arrived home with my Pancake Puffs kit.

My children saw it immediately with their xray vision through the bags. The reaction was somewhat like this:



After the children were calmed down a bit with small doses of narcotics my soothing words and gentle ways, we opened the box.

Our kit came with the unique pancake puff pan (which I later learned is really something called a monk pan which has been used forEVER in Denmark to produce Aebleskivers - aka pancake puffs), a small paintbrush - that's right - a paintbrush, a shaker for confectioner's sugar, a injector device to inject things into our puffs, a oven mitt type sleeve for the handle of the pan, and a package of sharp pokey sticks.

Oh, and it came with a recipe book. The recipe book was quite a disappointment actually because I assumed it would give me detailed instructions on how to make all of the yummy delights that I had been promised in the commercial. It really only gives a few recipes for pancake batter, one for cornbread batter, and one for brownie batter and one for crabcake puffs. I think there were a few other recipes but I was not impressed. This is when I began googling Pancake Puff recipes and found out about the Aebleskivers. I felt a little bit snookered when I realized these puffs have been around for years and are not some newfangled thing. Oh well.

We decided to try to make Brownie Puffs first because I already had brownie mix in the house. I mixed up a batch and preheated our pan (which is actually a good solid heavy cast iron pan and probably worth the $20 in itself). We sprayed some cooking spray on there and poured in our dough. We waited. I periodically poked at them to see if they were ready to turn and it seemed to take FOREVER to get them ready to turn. In actuality it was probably something like 7 to 10 minutes per side. This was an eternity, however, with three anxious brownie puff awaiting children over my shoulder. In a few I was ambitious enough to deposit a blackberry in the center of them.

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They were a bit sloppy on the turnover but overall turned out some tasty little brownie puffs. The blackberry ones were delicious, though The Man did not care for them. I sprinkled them with confectioners sugar (from my own shaker - the one they included really is crap) and the kids devoured them. They were good, yes, but if you're just looking for brownies it is far easier to bake them in a pan like normal.

This morning I decided I'd actually try the pancake version of the puffs. I mixed up a traditional Bisquick batch and filled my cups up. I sliced up some strawberries and put them in the center of some of the puffs and some I left alone. They turned quite nicely (though I don't think they were easier to turn than an actual pancake like the commercial states) and were yummy with the strawberries inside. The big advantage to the puffs was that they were super easy for Goober to eat and I didn't have to cut pancakes. He just dipped them in the syrup. Maybe someone should send a box to the Gosselins for their weekly pancake day! Then Jon wouldn't have to use a pizza cutter to cut all those pancakes. They would need a few pans, I think.

I didn't stop after pancakes, though. I was ambitious enough to make tiny little omelet puffs! These were impressive and again, Goober ate them like finger food. A few of them didn't cook all the way through though so I had to watch for that. The ones that did go all the way through were so good though!

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Overall, I'm happy that I was suckered (and so are the kids). I haven't tried injecting our puffs with anything yet but I'll probably try that next. Jam, pudding, whipped cream? The possibilities really are endless!

**I've noticed a lot of searches for RECIPES that are pulling up this entry. The thing with the pancake puff pan is that you don't really need a separate recipe for pancakes or brownies or anything that I've tried to make so far. I just use the same simple recipe for pancakes or brownies to make them. My son really wants me to make him a pancake puff birthday cake which I will try to do with regular cake mix and frosting and just stack them all together.**


12 comments:

Laura said...[Reply to comment]

I'm of Danish descent and I remember my great grandmother making Abelskeebers when I was little. I have been meaning to get one someday to continue the tradition, but it's one of those things that can always wait for another time. I may have to look into this.

Kate said...[Reply to comment]

Oh we have seen that commercial so many times and I was wondering about it too. All 6 of us want to try it (yes, I know my youngest can't talk yet, but trust me, if she could, she would say she wanted it too!)

After your review, I think we'll have to get it, but only if you promise to keep me updated on any recipes that you try in it!

Unknown said...[Reply to comment]

This weekend I filled them with strawberry jam and they worked out great! The kids loved them.

Bobbi West said...[Reply to comment]

So glad I found this! I just got this pan and the little ones can't wait to use it!!!!!!! I read a ton of reviews on commercial sites, but I'm glad to see one that is a real person!

Eternal Learner said...[Reply to comment]

I just got this, and I love it; however, the brownie puffs keep burning, even on low heat. How did you keep yours from burning?

E Mama said...[Reply to comment]
This comment has been removed by the author.
E Mama said...[Reply to comment]

I am trying the brownies tonight!! Yummy!!

Anonymous said...[Reply to comment]

I just bought this pan this weekend but it didn't come with any kind of directions or recipes. Please help with any advice on how ro uae this pan. I googled it and in ordered to get a book I have to order a whole new pan set which I don't need. Thanks, Debbie

Unknown said...[Reply to comment]

Happy to help Anonymous! I really don't use any type of recipe other than a good old fashioned pancake recipe. Mix up your standard batch of pancakes and spray the pan down with cooking spray. I cook them on medium-high heat and they turn out just fine, flipping them when they start to bubble, just like regular pancakes.

The brownies were made with a standard brownie mix and I cooked them a little lower heat. For them, I needed to just try to flip one and as soon as they flipped easily I flipped them.

The eggs were done the same way.

Auntie_Bear said...[Reply to comment]

I just got the pan for Christmas and by far it was my best gift. My nieces and I have been cooking everything we can think of and the cake puffs filled with chocolate pudding and sprinkled with powdered sugar have been the biggest hit. and yes i am planning to get a second pan.

Unknown said...[Reply to comment]

I got my pan when I watched a friend make crabcakes in it. Umm they were delicious! My set came with the "recipe book", sticks, and pot holder - but not with the injector or shaker. If I want to inject pudding, etc., when do you inject it? After they have cooked a little and are fairly firm? Or while the batter is still liquid? Or after you turn them over? There is just not enough directions in the book!

Unknown said...[Reply to comment]

Crab cakes! That sounds wonderful!

I injected pudding in when they were done and out of the pan. I'm not sure how it would turn out if the batter was still runny, I can't imagine it would work out right. :)