The Best Pancakes
To accompany the Marzipan Ice Cream, I thought we should publish the best pancake recipe ever! I’m not talking crêpes. These are big, fluffy American-style pancakes. My mom gave me this recipe in her wonderful little book titled “Mother’s Recipes for Peter”. I’m not sure where she got it, but it is worth repeating here. It works best with good quality buttermilk.
Best Pancakes Ever
The best-ever deliciously fluffy American-style pancakes.
Ingredients
- 1 egg beaten
- 1 US cup buttermilk (or live natural yogurt thinned with a little milk) (236 ml)
- 2 tablespoons melted butter (unsalted)
- 1 US cup flour (236 ml)
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 pint blueberries (optional, but recommended!)
- butter, maple syrup and ice cream (toppings)
Instructions
-
Put the oven on very low heat and put your serving plates in to keep them warm. Put a pan with a little water on a back-burner and put your jar of maple syrup in to heat it up. Maple syrup is always best served hot!
-
Melt the butter in a non-stick pan over a medium burner. Heat just until melted. Make sure you don't burn the butter.
-
While the butter melts, beat the egg and whisk in the buttermilk in a large bowl.
-
In a separate bowl, combine the dry ingredients (flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt).
-
Use a rubber spatula to put all the butter into the egg and buttermilk mix and mix thoroughly.
-
Add the dry ingredients to the wet mix and whisk just until you've got most of the lumps out. Don't over-mix or you'll start breaking down precious bubbles.
-
If you're adding blueberries, wash them and then fold them into the pancake mix, again being careful not to over-mix.
-
Wipe out the pan with a paper towel and heat on medium-high. It's hot enough when a drop of water fizzes and dances all over the surface. Now dollop big spoonfuls of batter into the pan. Cook until just before the bubbles start to break on the surface and then flip and cook the other side. Cook each pancake until it is golden and cooked all the way through. They should fluff up nicely.
Recipe Notes
Baking Powder is usually sold in large containers, despite the fact that it loses its potency fairly quickly after being opened. I make my own baking powder every time I make pancakes. It's easy - combine 2 parts cream of tartar with 1 part baking soda.
You can put the pancakes in a low-temperature oven to keep them warm or just eat them straight away. The fresher the better. Serve on hot plates with plenty of butter, maple syrup and your favourite ice cream!
Peter forgot the main ingredient: a CD of Woody Guthrie playing while you’re eating. You’ll enjoy them much more!
(Tip of the day: You can possibly replace it by any other old American folk recording. Johnny Cash and Hank Williams work quite well, we’ve tested them both).