Pancakes!

Okay, so not to toot my own horn, but I made the best pancakes I've ever had the other day. I know the pancake in the picture may look a little overdone, but it was amazing delicious. The other day I was snowed in (okay, it snowed and I elected to stay home all day), so I decided to make pancakes.  It was the perfect kind of day to stay inside and eat a filling breakfast.

 

I looked up pancake recipes on Martha's website and found one by Neil Kleinberg, the man who owns Clinton Street Baking Company, which won best pancakes in NYC for both 2007 & 2008. I've never been to the Big Apple, but I've always wanted to go because it's known for killer food and shopping, two of my favorite things.

So here's Neil's recipe:

Ingredients:

4 cups all-purpose flour

1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon baking powder

3/4 cup sugar

1 teaspoon coarse salt

6 large eggs, separated

3 cups whole milk

3/4 cup (12 tablespoons) unsalted butter, melted, plus 2 teaspoons unmelted for cooking

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

2 1/2 cups blueberries or sliced bananas and 1 cup chopped walnuts (optional)

1/2 cup confectioners' sugar or cinnamon sugar for dusting (optional)

Directions:

1. Sift flour, baking powder, sugar, and salt into a large bowl.
2. In medium bowl, whisk together yolks, milk, melted butter, and vanilla until combined. Whisk yolk mixture into flour mixture until just combined; batter will be slightly lumpy.
3. Place egg white in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, or whisk by hand, until medium peaks form. Gently mix half the egg whites into batter with a rubber spatula. Gently fold in remaining whites. The egg whites should not be fully incorporated into the batter.
4. Heat a griddle until hot, about 350 to 375 degrees. Add remaining unmelted butter to hot griddle. Add 1/4 cup pancake batter and let set. Sprinkle 1 tablespoon blueberries or sliced bananas and 1 teaspoon chopped walnuts, if using, over pancakes. When bubbles begin to form, lift pancake; if golden brown, turn. Cook until golden brown on remaining side.
5. Transfer cooked pancake to a plate and keep warm. Repeat process with remaining batter, fruit, and nuts. Garnish with confectioners' sugar for blueberry pancakes and cinnamon sugar for banana-walnut. Serve warm with maple butter.



This looks so pretty!

 

 

 

Maple Butter

1 cup pure maple syrup, preferably grade-B organic

1 cup (2 sticks) cold unsalted butter, cut into cubes

Directions:

Heat maple syrup in a small saucepan over medium heat. Add cold butter to warm syrup, whisking until sauce is smooth and all of the butter is incorporated. Remove from heat and keep warm until ready to use. Maple Butter can also be kept refrigerated, in an airtight container, for up to two months. Reheat before using, but never bring to a boil.

 

Everything about these pancakes were perfect. The eggwhites made the pancakes fluffier than any pancakes I've ever had before, yet they were so filling. I couldn't finish my second one. The maple butter was excellent. I actually made it with artificial maple syrup, and it was still pretty good. Do not change a thing in this recipe. These pancakes cannot get any better. I hope to meet Neil Kleinberg one day and eat his delicious pancakes. Props to Martha for finding him.