Issue Date: February 25, 2007
One perfect pancake recipe and nine intriguing variations
Use regular all-purpose flour, not unbleached, to make a tender pancake.
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Start your day off right with the zing of ginger, spices, chocolate and even hearty corn cakes.
Pancakes are rare at our house during the week. On slower-paced weekends, however, we fry up bacon and eggs and make a batch of pancakes. Over the years, I've perfected my recipe and technique. Here's what I've learned:
Pancake batter should pour, not glug. On the other hand, runny batter makes thin, oddly shaped pancakes that frequently collide on the griddle. Stir a touch more flour into thin batter (which, because of the buttermilk in this recipe, should not be a problem). For batter that's too thick, whisk in water, one teaspoon at a time.
For nutrition, go to usaweekend.com.
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The pan or griddle temperature is important. Too hot, and the pancakes are dark and raw. Too cool, and they're blond and hard. For tender, golden brown pancakes, heat the pan or griddle on low while you make the batter. Then increase the heat to medium and generously brush the pan or griddle with oil. It's ready when the oil starts to shimmer and, in any skillet or griddle other than non-stick, sends out tendrils that resemble an octopus or spider. But if the pan starts to smoke, set it down off the burner until the smoking subsides and the oil cools a bit.
Make the original Light, Fluffy Pancakes or one of the nine variations. All you need is a smear of soft butter and a drizzle of your favorite syrup.
Pam Anderson is the author of four cookbooks. Her latest is "Perfect Recipes for Having People Over" (Houghton Mifflin, $35).
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Light, Fluffy Pancakes
1 cup all-purpose bleached flour (which is softer than unbleached flour)
2 tsps. sugar
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. baking soda
3/4 cup buttermilk
1/4 cup milk
1 large egg
2 Tbs. unsalted butter, melted
1 tsp. vanilla extract
Vegetable oil for brushing the griddle
Makes eight 4-inch pancakes
Serves 4
Per serving: 203 calories, 26g carbohydrates, 7g protein, 7g fat (4g saturated), 70mg cholesterol, 1g fiber, 492mg sodium
Note: This recipe easily doubles for a larger crowd.
Heat a large non-stick skillet or griddle over low heat while preparing ingredients. Mix flour, sugar, salt (if using salted butter, reduce salt to 1/4 tsp.), baking powder and baking soda in a medium bowl.
Microwave buttermilk and milk in a 2-cup Pyrex measuring cup to room temperature, 20 to 30 seconds. Whisk in egg, butter and vanilla. Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients and whisk until just mixed.
Return batter to measuring cup, stirring in a teaspoon or so of water, if necessary, to make a thick but pourable batter.
Increase heat to medium and generously brush skillet or griddle with oil. When oil starts to spider, but before it starts to smoke, pour batter, about 1/4 cup at a time. Work in batches, if necessary, to avoid overcrowding. When pancake bottoms are golden brown and tops start to bubble, 2 to 3 minutes, flip pancakes; cook until golden brown on remaining side. Repeat, brushing skillet or griddle with oil. Serve hot.
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Try these options
Lemon Poppy Seed Pancakes: Follow pancake recipe, whisking 1 tsp. of finely grated lemon zest and 1 tsp. of poppy seeds into the dry ingredients.
Orange Cardamom Pancakes: Follow pancake recipe, whisking 1 tsp. of finely grated orange zest and 1/4 tsp. ground cardamom into the dry ingredients.
Gingerbread Pancakes: Follow pancake recipe, substituting 4 tsps. of molasses for the sugar and adding it to the wet ingredients, then whisking 1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon, 1 1/2 tsps. ground ginger and 1/8 tsp. ground cloves into the dry ingredients.
Chocolate Chip Pancakes: Follow pancake recipe, sprinkling 1 Tb. of miniature chocolate chips over the uncooked side of each pancake as it cooks.
Banana Nutmeg Pancakes: Follow pancake recipe, whisking 1/2 tsp. nutmeg into the dry ingredients and dropping 5 or 6 thin slices of banana (you'll need 2 small bananas total) over the uncooked side of each pancake as it cooks.
Ginger Pancakes: Follow pancake recipe, whisking 1 tsp. ginger into the dry ingredients and sprinkling 1 Tb. of finely chopped crystallized ginger (about 1/2 cup total) over the uncooked side of each pancake as it cooks.
Lemon Blueberry Pancakes: Follow pancake recipe, whisking 1 tsp. finely grated lemon zest into the dry ingredients and sprinkling about 2 Tbs. frozen blueberries (you'll need about 1 cup total) over the uncooked side of each pancake as it cooks.
Almond Pancakes: Follow pancake recipe, substituting 1 tsp. almond extract for the vanilla extract.
Corn Pancakes: Follow pancake recipe, reducing flour to 3/4 cup and whisking 1/2 cup fine yellow cornmeal into dry ingredients, and sprinkling 2 Tbs. of frozen corn (about 1 cup total) over the uncooked side of each pancake as it cooks.
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