Entree: Buttermilk Pancakes

 

http://www.ourbestbites.com/2010/01/buttermilk-pancakes.html

Buttermilk Pancakes

Recipe from Allrecipes, via Our Best Bites

3 c. all-purpose flour

3 Tbsp. sugar

1 Tbsp. baking powder

1 1/2 tsp. baking soda

3/4 tsp. salt

3 c. buttermilk

1/2 c. milk

3 eggs, separated

1/3 c. (5 1/3 Tbsp.) butter, melted

In a large pitcher, combine flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. In another container, whisk together buttermilk, milk, and the egg yolks. With an electric mixer, beat the egg whites until stiff peaks form.

Whisking constantly, add melted butter to the milk mixture. Pour this mixture into the pitcher and stir until just combined. This is kind of a pain, but it DOES have a purpose--you don't want to over mix your pancake batter, and when you do it in the pitcher, it becomes very difficult to over mix it. Plus, you can pour the batter straight onto the skillet without dirtying any MORE dishes.

When the flour has been combined but the batter is still a little lumpy, heat a non-stick skillet or griddle to medium-low heat. While the skillet is heating, gently (but completely) fold beaten egg whites into the batter. When the skillet is hot, spray it with a little non-stick cooking spray and then just pour the batter from the pitcher straight onto the hot skillet.

It takes a little adjusting to figure out where the temperature setting should be. If it's too hot, the bottoms will cook too fast and the insides will be raw, but if it's not hot enough, the outsides will get hard and dry and you'll be spending all Saturday morning in front of your stove instead of buying bras in bulk at Costco. So the first round or two of pancakes might not be perfect, but just keep adjusting the temperature until you find the setting on your stove that works best for you.

Now...after you've poured the batter onto the skillet, keep an eye on the pancakes. When you start seeing bubbles, you're almost there. When the bubbles pop and leave a hole, it's time to flip. Gently slide a spatula/pancake turner/flipper (whatever you call it) under the pancake and quickly flip it to the other side. The other side won't take quite as long as the first side--just check here and there and when the pancakes are golden brown on both sides, you're good to go.

If you have a bunch of eaters ready to go, you can just serve them straight from the skillet. But it really irks me to be flipping pancakes and have my family/friends/pets eating while I'm cooking and then by the time I'm done making pancakes, everyone ELSE is done eating and I have to eat MY pancakes in the dirty kitchen all by myself. Okay, who am I kidding, I'd probably take them into the living room and watch the inevitable Saturday morning Teen Mom marathon, but still...So what I usually do is turn my oven as low as it can go, put an oven-safe plate in there, and pop the cooked pancakes onto the plate so they're still warm when everyone's ready to eat.

Wanna know my favorite thing to do with these? Add some banana slices and drizzle with Buttermilk Syrup. You could throw some chopped pecans on there, too, and I'm sure it would be de-lish.

Feel free to toss in some blueberries or chocolate chips right before you fold in the egg whites. For some reason, though, I just like mine plain and then I can top 'em off however I want. Mmmm...light...delicately crispy on the outside, soft and fluffy on the inside. Perfect kitchen-trashing pancakes...