Once you have a jar with sourdough starter hanging around, you think of all kinds of ways to use it. Today I didn’t want to wait a day for a loaf of bread but wanted immediate results. The beghrir or thousand hole pancake is a Moroccan recipe and it is often served for breakfast. It is my favorite pancake because it is so light and airy. The combination of yeast and baking powder makes this pancake super light and creates all the tiny little holes.
This time I made the batter with some of my active starter and it worked out really well. The starter gives the sourdough beghrir or thousand hole pancakes an extra tangy taste and they rise beautifully!
The trick for a super light result is to start baking in a cold pan every time. So rinse your pan under cold water after every batch. I always use a non-stick pan so I am sure my sourdough beghrir or thousand holes pancakes come out of the pan easily and I don’t need any oil.
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Sourdough beghrir or thousand hole pancakes
For 4 large pancakes or 10 smaller ones
100 g active sourdough starter*
50 g / ⅓ cup flour
150 g / ¾ cup fine semolina
2 tsp baking powder
zest of 1 (organic) orange
Mix the starter with the flour, semolina and 250 ml / 1 cup water. The consistency should be that of thick custard. Add some extra flour if the batter is still very thin or mix in some water if the batter is very thick. Leave covered in a warm place for ± 1 hour.
Add the baking powder, ¾ of the orange zest and a good pinch of salt and let stand for another 30 minutes.
Pour batter into a cold non-stick pan and turn the heat to high until the edges of the sourdough beghrir or thousand holes pancakesbecome dry and bubbles appear. Reduce the heat to low and cook until the top is completely dry.
Serve with maple syrup, agave syrup or honey (if you are not vegan) and the rest of the orange zest.
*You don’t have a starter and still feel like making these pancakes? Mix ½ sachet of dry yeast with 350 ml lukewarm water and 1 tsp sugar and let stand for ± 10 minutes or until frothy. Add 75 g flour, 75 g semolina, 1½ sachet of baking powder, a pinch of salt and the zest of ½ an orange. Leave to stand covered in a warm spot for ± 50 min. or until approximately doubled in volume. Stir carefully and add just as much water to make it into a thick pancake batter. Follow the rest of the recipe above.
