GialloZafferano's Recipe of the Day: Mini Monster Pancakes

To celebrate Halloween with something sweet and fun, the second recipe of the day for Saturday, October 31 is mini monster pancakes! Small, fluffy, and filled with mixed berry jam, these little treats turn into cute little monsters thanks to a very simple decoration: two candy eyes and a wide-open mouth with the filling peeking out. An original idea to make with kids, too, for a truly special Halloween snack!

• Type 00 flour 2 cups (250 g)
• Whole milk 1.7 cups (400 g)
• Butter 3 ½ tbsp (50 g)
• Powdered sugar 0.34 cup (30 g)
• Baking powder 1.1 tbsp (16 g)
• Eggs 4
• Fine salt 1 pinch

TO FILL AND GARNISH:

• Berry jam 1 cup (250 g)
• Sprinkles shaped like little eyes 72

1. Separate the egg whites from the yolks and place the yolks in a bowl. Add the melted butter, cooled until lukewarm, the milk, and a pinch of salt, then mix with a whisk.
2. Incorporate the sifted flour and baking powder, continuing to mix to combine the ingredients.
3. In another bowl, add the powdered sugar to the egg whites and beat them to stiff peaks with clean electric beaters. Fold them into the mixture in 3 additions, mixing gently from top to bottom to obtain a smooth, airy batter.
4. Grease a nonstick skillet with a little butter and pour in small amounts of batter, forming pancakes about 2 inches (5 cm) in diameter.
5. Cook the pancakes until bubbles appear on the surface, then flip them and finish cooking on the other side. Transfer them gradually to a tray lined with parchment paper.
6. Spread a heaping teaspoon of jam on each pancake to be filled and cover with a second pancake, pressing only on one side so the other stays slightly lifted, like an open mouth.
7. Apply the eye-shaped sugar decorations to the most open part, and your mini monster pancakes are ready to celebrate Halloween!

If you can’t find eye-shaped sugar decorations, you can make them with white and black fondant, shaping two small white balls and adding a black dot in the center. To make your little monsters even more fun, you can position the pupils in different directions and give each one a silly expression!