Answer: They come up with a little idea about a very little product and decide to have a crack at turning it all into something big.
And things don’t come much smaller in any catering exercise than poffertjes.
Which to the uninitiated might seem a little bit finicky, but they are fair dinkum fabulous little things to eat.
Poffertjes are traditional Dutch batter cakes, and with a magnifying glass in hand look, for all the world, like small fluffy pancakes.
One of the best things about them, though, is you can scoff an even dozen and:
- Not feel bloated.
- Not feel greedy.
- Have plenty of room for a dozen more and then refer yourself to points a and b.
Truth be told, however, Tongala based Liam Tyrrell and his wife Annelies sort of had a head start when it comes to plying poffertjes.
Her parents (also Dutch, surprise, surprise) already had their own poffertjes enterprise, and on behalf of their daughter and son-in-law, had made all the unexpected mistakes when establishing their business.
So our Echuca Farmers’ Market makers had a cheat sheet to fast track them to a successful launch of Poffertjes Lane, as they have dubbed their travelling kitchen.
“We have been doing this for a bit more than a year, and so far, so good,” Liam said.
“We are doing two markets most weekends, and the in-laws run their business in Melbourne, which, as I said, is where we got the idea.
“It is pretty easy to set up – and we really did learn a lot in advance from their mistakes – which was a big help.
“There is a fair bit of prep going into a market weekend because on a good day, we will put through 200 serves (at 12 itty bitty poffertjes per serve).
“We have the standard maple syrup, cream, sugar and lemon, but we also have a Biscoff and an Oreo/cream combination and are looking at bringing in a savoury option or two as well.”
If you want to be that little bit different to all your mates, and stage something special for your own special occasion, Poffertjes Lane can also be booked for events.
A quick glance at its Facebook shows one wedding couple, for example, were over the moon with their decision to go for poffertjes instead of the old bog standard cake and a cuppa.
Here’s what the happy couple posted: “We booked Poffertjes Lane for our wedding dessert and they were an absolute hit; we have continued to get comments about how nice they were. Definitely recommend them as a different option than the usual cake. Such a pleasure to deal with and they went above and beyond for our special day.”
Can’t say more than that. And you still have room for one more serve.
24°C