Gundel Pancakes (Hungarian Gundel Palacsinta)

Gundel Pancakes (aka Gundel Palacsinta) is a classic Hungarian dessert. It consists of crepe-like thin pancakes (Palacsinta) filled with a sweet walnut filling. They are doused in chocolate rum sauce.

Gundel Pancakes
A real feast for the palate!

I love Gundel Pancakes. They are one of the best desserts I have ever tasted. They have a perfect combination of fillings and toppings. They are a real feast for the palate. So fantastically good!

Here’s an easy-to-follow step-by-step guide with helpful info plus tips. Do try them out and let me know how it went in the comment section below!

Don’t be intimidated by the long list of ingredients. You can divide the process into simple steps to make it easier. You just need to allow yourself some extra minutes in the kitchen for a special treat. It’s worth it.

What is Gundel Pancakes?

Gundel Pancakes or Gundel Palacsinta is one of the most famous desserts in Hungarian cuisine. According to Wikipedia and other online sources, the recipe was invented by the famous chef Károly Gundel. He was the owner of the Gundel restaurant in Budapest.

Palacsinta is a crêpe-like Hungarian-style thin pancake. Palacsinta is stuffed with a filling made with ground walnuts, raisins, orange peel, and cream. It is served doused in a chocolate sauce made with chocolate, egg yolks, heavy cream, and cocoa. Both the walnut filling and sauce are flavored with rum and go so well with this sweet treat.

About the Recipe

The original recipe is secret; only the Gundel restaurant knows it. But, luckily you can easily find copycat recipes online. So, you can make an incredible dessert at home. It will also be a fun culinary challenge.

You can change the recipe to your liking by adjusting the ingredients to suit your taste preferences. There is no harm little experimenting with the ingredients of your choice or available.

Steps to Make

1. Prepare the Walnut Filling
2. Prepare the Chocolate Rum Sauce
3. Make the Pancakes
4. Assemble

the Walnut Filling

Toast the walnuts in a dry fry pan on medium heat until fragrant before you grind it. If walnuts are not available, you can try it with other kinds of nuts. Use cashew nuts, almonds, hazelnuts, or a mixture of them.

I used rum-soaked raisins and candied orange peel. You can replace them with raisins or lemon peels. Adding dried fruits other than raisins and orange peels would also be a nice touch.

Rum-Soaked Raisins

the Chocolate Sauce

The sauce is made with dark chocolate, milk, sugar, cocoa, butter and egg yolks. You can use heavy cream instead of milk to make a richer version. Adjust the sweetness to your preferences.

It is flavored with rum. I used leftover rum that I used to soak the raisins. Make sure to add rum to the sauce after the pan is removed from the heat.

You can make the sauce ahead of time. Refrigerate it for one week or so. This includes leftover sauce. It is also freezable.

the Pancakes (Palacsinta)

Palacsinta would probably be called “Crepes” outside of Hungaria. So, in this recipe, I used my basic crepe recipe to make the pancakes (Palacsinta) with some minor changes. You can use my crepe recipe or a recipe of your choice. Make the batter in a blender or a bowl with a wire whisk.

EASY Crepe Recipe for Beginners (Frying Pan)
Crazy Easy Blender Crepe Recipe

You can use the batter straight away or make it ahead of time and refrigerate. Make sure to allow the batter to come to room temperature if you keep it in the fridge.

Assembling the Pancakes

Gundel Pancakes are served rolled or folded into triangles with walnut fillings, and chocolate sauce. So, you can fold the pancakes either way (quarters or into rolls) as you like.

Make sure to bring the walnut filling to room temperature if you have stored it in the fridge. Otherwise, it can tear the pancakes when you spread it.

After spreading the walnut filling, place two of them on a plate. Pour the chocolate sauce over the top. You can also sprinkle it with icing sugar if you want. I love to serve them with some ice cream.

A Note About Using Rum

In this recipe, rum plays an important role and I love the flavor of rum. When used in moderation, rum provides a hint of flavor, without being overpowering.

However, if you don’t like using liqueur in your desserts, just omit it. You can still taste this delicious dessert even without liqueur.

What Does Tempering?

When making the chocolate sauce, you need to “temper” the beaten egg yolks. Do this by adding a small amount of the hot sauce to the eggs while constantly whisking. This tempers the eggs and lets you add egg yolks to the hot sauce without curdling.

More Crepe & Thin Pancake Recipes
from around the world

Gundel Pancakes (Hungarian Gundel Palacsinta) Step-by-Step Guide

(Check out the printable recipe at the end of the post)

Prep time 30 minutes
Cook time 40 minutes
Resting time 30 minutes
Servings 4

For Rum Raisins
50g raisins
2 tbsp rum

For Walnut Filling
100g walnuts, coarsely ground
100ml heavy cream (or milk)
50g rum raisins*, finely chopped (see the notes)
100g light brown sugar
1/2 tsp cinnamon powder
1 tbsp candied orange peel, finely chopped
1 tbsp rum

For Chocolate Sauce
200ml milk (or heavy cream)
50g dark chocolate
100g sugar
2 egg yolks, lightly beaten
20g unsalted butter, cold
1 tbsp cocoa powder
2 tbsp rum** (see the notes)

For Pancakes
120g all-purpose flour or plain flour
Pinch of salt
2 eggs, at room temperature
1 tbsp unsalted butter, melted and slightly cooled
1 tablespoon sugar
200ml milk, at room temperature
100ml sparkling water or water
Oil for greasing

NOTE
* You can use raisins instead of rum raisins
** Skip rum for a non-alcoholic version

Instructions

Make Rum Raisins

• You can make the rum raisins soaking the raisins in rum a day before making the filling.
• Combine raisins and rum in a small bowl and mix.
• Cover and set aside for at least 4 hours, or overnight until the raisins plump up.

Make the Walnut Filling

Gather the ingredients; walnuts, prepared rum raisins, light brown sugar, heavy cream, cinnamon powder, and rum.

Prepare the Walnuts

• Toast the walnuts in a dry fry pan on medium heat until start to brown and fragrant.
• OR roast the walnuts in an oven for about 5 minutes at 160C.
• Coarsely grind the toasted walnuts with a grinder.

• Heat heavy cream (or milk) and sugar in a small saucepan over medium-low, stirring until the sugar has dissolved.
• Add ground walnuts, raisins, cinnamon, and orange peel, and cook until thick and creamy, stirring once in a while. Remove from heat and stir in rum.

Set aside or refrigerate if you have made it ahead of time.

Make the Chocolate Rum Sauce

Gather the ingredients; dark chocolate, cocoa powder, egg yolks, milk, sugar, butter, and rum.

Heat the chocolate, sugar, and milk in a small saucepan over low heat. Don’t boil it.

• Stir until the chocolate has melted and the sauce is smooth.
• Remove from the heat.
• Let it slightly cool down.
• Place the egg yolks in a small bowl and whisk lightly.

• First, add 2 tablespoons of the warm chocolate sauce to the beaten egg yolks while constantly whisking the eggs.
• Next, add the egg yolk mixture to the sauce and whisk constantly until thickened.

• Add the cold butter and stir until the butter is melted.
• Mix in the cocoa and stir until you have a smooth sauce.

At the end, add rum and stir thoroughly.

Let it cool. The sauce should be a bit thicker but pourable.

Make the Pancakes

Gather the ingredients; plain flour, eggs, milk, sugar, salt, and butter.

• Whisk together flour, sugar, and salt in a large bowl.
• Make a well in the center and pour the eggs.
• Add about a quarter of the milk and whisk together with eggs.

• First, you need to make a thick paste.
• Add some more milk and whisk until forms a smooth thick paste.

Now, add the rest of the milk and whisk vigorously until you have a smooth batter.

• Add melted butter and mix well.
• Strain the batter if there are any lumps.
• Cover and rest the batter for about 30 minutes.
• If the batter is resting for more than 30 minutes, make sure to store it in the fridge.

• Heat a pan over medium-high heat. Grease the pan lightly with oil.
• Gently stir the batter and pour a ladleful of batter onto the center of the hot pan.
• Hold the pan by the handle. Tilt the pan promptly to swirl in a circular motion. This spreads the batter evenly and thinly over the entire surface.
• Cook for about 1 minute until the top is set and the edges become lightly golden brown.

• Loosen the edges with a palette knife.
• Flip and cook on the other side for another 20 seconds.
• Transfer to a plate and cover with plastic wrap.
• Repeat with the remaining batter adjusting heat as needed.

Assemble

• Gather the pancakes, walnut filling, and the chocolate sauce.
• Fold them either way; folding them in quarters or folding them into rolls

Folding in quarters

Spread one-quarter of a pancake with the walnut filling.

And fold it over into quarters.

• Place two pancakes on each plate.
• Sprinkle the pancakes with icing sugar if you like.
• Drizzle generously or pour over them with the chocolate rum sauce.
• Serve right away with some ice cream.

Folding into Rolls

Spread each pancake with the prepared walnut filling.

Roll it into a tube, as shown in the photo.

Cut off the edges on both sides so that it is smooth and beautiful and then cut in half. Place them on a serving plate. Pour over the chocolate sauce. Serve immediately with some ice cream.

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