Central European pancakes are thin pancakes, comparable to the French crêpe. Palatschinken are made by creating a runny dough from eggs, wheat flour, milk and salt and frying it in a pan with butter or oil. Unlike the thick American pancake, Palatschinken are usually served with different types of fillings and eaten for lunch or dinner.

Palatschinken are traditionally rolled with apricot jam or strawberry jam and sprinkled with confectioners sugar. A variety of different fruit sauces, (like apple sauce) or thick fruit jams called lekvar, (plum, prune, raspberry, cherry or sour cherry jam), lemon juice and sugar, chocolate sauce, hazelnut-chocolate cream, almonds, dried or fresh fruits, sweet cottage or quark cheese and raisins, cocoa powder, poppy seed, or any combination thereof, may also be used. A well known Hungarian version of palatschinke is the Gundel pancake (Gundel palacsinta), made with ground walnuts, raisin, candied orange peel, cinnamon and rum filling, served flambéed in dark chocolate sauce made with egg yolks, heavy cream and cocoa.