Poffert with whipped cream

Description

Poffert (in the Groningen dialect: ""Povvert"") is a bread-like dish from the province of Groningen. In other parts of the Netherlands, nearly the same recipe exists but is called differently: ketelkoek or broeder in cake form. The tulband (bundt cake) is also related but is more cake-like.

Poffert was, and still is, primarily eaten as a main course and sometimes as a dessert, usually in the winter since it is quite a heavy dish. The poffert batter contains self-raising flour (or regular wheat flour, buckwheat flour, and yeast), currants, raisins, milk, eggs, and a pinch of salt; sometimes candied citron peel is also added.

The poffert is cooked au bain-marie in a special poffert tin. To prevent sticking, the inside is sometimes lined with slices of bacon. Nowadays, poffert is often baked in the oven in a bundt pan. Poffert is traditionally served with melted butter and syrup or sugar. There are also recipes that incorporate various fruits and savory versions of the dish.
""Jan-in-de-zak"" or meelklont uses the same batter. However, the dough is not cooked in a tin using au bain-marie, but placed in a clean nettle cloth, which is tied closed with a string—hence the name. It is then boiled in water or milk.

The hamlet ""De Poffert,"" located between Hoogkerk and Enumatil, is named after this dish.

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Recipe

Instructions:
• First, mix the milk with flour, baking soda, salt, vanilla sugar, and eggs to make a smooth batter.
• Butter the poffert pan with a thin layer of butter and optionally sprinkle a little bit of breadcrumbs.
• This is to prevent sticking, which will help you release the poffert from the pan nicely.
• You can easily brush off the breadcrumbs from the poffert once it's done.
• Next, pour the batter into the poffert pan and add the currants and raisins.
• Let it sit for about 10 minutes, so the currants and raisins sink evenly through the batter.
• Meanwhile, prepare a large pot on the stove with boiling water.
• Measure the water by filling the pot while pressing the poffert pan against the bottom of the pot.
• The water should cover about 80% of the poffert pan.
• Once ready, lower the poffert pan into the water and let it simmer for about two hours. The cooking time may vary slightly depending on the size.