Oatmeal Cookie Pancakes with Marshmallow Honey Butter

 You're dying, right?  I know!  These pankies are pretty outrageously good.  And I'm picky about raisins.  But in these, they shine...without outshining. 

If you've paid any attention to my sources, you might be saying, wow, she's really cooking a lot from Joy the Baker.  It's true, I'm in love with her cookbook, and we're still having a good honeymoon.  But this week especially, because her first chapter is called pancakes pancakes pancakes...and lesser breakfast items.  How could that not show heavily during Pancake Week?

Then there's the butter.  Dessert Club member Sheri made some killer Marshmallow Honey Butter to fill her winning Russian Rose Bread, and I just had to try it.  What better palate than pancakes?

Also.  My 6-year-old has really terrible allergies in the spring.  Someone told me if you eat local honey it helps reduce allergic reactions to pollen, so I bought some at the market where we got our Halloween pumpkins.  Couldn't hurt, I figured.  Turns out, she doesn't even like honey.  But we've been having a good time using it up anyway, and if she happens to ingest any, well, we'll take any help we can get.  She did like this honey butter, at least. 

 Oatmeal Cookie Pancakes (print recipe)

Makes about 3 dozen small pancakes

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup old-fashioned oats
2 T packed brown sugar
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
3/4 tsp ground cinnamon
Big pinch freshly ground nutmeg
2 large eggs
2 cups buttermilk
1 T pure maple syrup
1/4 cup butter, melted and cooled plus more for the griddle
1/3 cup golden raisins

1.  Place a rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 200 degrees F.  This will help keep the cooked pancakes warm while you finish the entire batch.

2.  In a large bowl, whisk together flour, oats, brown sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and spices.  Set aside.

3.  In a medium bowl, whisk together eggs, buttermilk, maple syrup, and melted butter.  Add the buttermilk mixture, all at once, to the flour mixture and fold together with a spatula until all of the flour is incorporated.  Fold in the raisins.  Let stand for 5 minutes.

4.  Heat griddle over medium heat and add a touch of butter to melt.  Spoon or pour batter onto the hot griddle.  Heat until the bottom is browned and the top is bubbly.  Flip and cook through, about 2 minutes on each side.  Place on a heatproof plate in the oven to rest until ready to serve. 

Recipe from Joy the Baker by Joy Wilson

 Marshmallow Honey Butter
Makes 1 cup

1/2 cup butter (I used salted), softened
1/4 c honey
1/4 c marshmallow fluff

In an electric mixer on medium speed, whip ingredients until fluffy and well-combined.  Serve with pancakes or pretty much anything in the world. 

Recipe from Dessert Club member Sheri Wadman

Blueberry Orange and Almond Pancakes with Orange Maple Glaze

 Hello there and welcome to pancake week.  Let's start off with a twist on a classic: who doesn't love blueberry pancakes (besides my 6-year-old)?  Orange zest, orange juice, orange-maple glaze, and a smidge of almond take these just a teensy bit over the top.  All in a good way.

 Blueberry Orange and Almond Pancakes (print recipe)
Makes 12 to 16 small pancakes

1 cup all-purpose flour
1 T granulated sugar
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 large egg
3/4 cup buttermilk
1/4 cup fresh orange juice
2 tsp orange zest
Scant 1/4 tsp almond extract
1/2 to 3/4 cup fresh blueberries
3 to 4 T butter, for griddle

1.  Place rack in the upper third of oven and preheat oven to 200 degrees.  The oven will keep the pancakes warm as you cook them in batches.

2.  In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.  In a small bowl, whisk together egg, buttermilk, orange juice, zest, and almond extract.  Whisk the buttermilk mixture into the flour mixture until just combined.  Fold in the blueberries.  Let batter rest for 5 minutes while the griddle heats.

3.  Over medium heat, melt 1 T of the butter in a cast-iron skillet or griddle.  Spoon 2 T batter into the hot pan and cool until golden brown on both sides, about 2 minutes per side.  Place pancakes on ovenproof plate and store in the oven to keep warm while you cook the rest of the batter, adding butter to the pan as needed.

Orange Maple Glaze
1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
3 T fresh orange juice
1 T pure maple syrup

Whisk together powdered sugar, orange juice, and maple syrup.  Serve alongside warm pancakes. 

Recipe from Joy the Baker by Joy Wilson

Classic 100% Whole Wheat Bread

I should start a new tag/label called "Classics" - the important basics everyone needs at least one good recipe for.  Lemon Bars.  Chocolate Cake.  Cinnamon Rolls.  Whole Wheat Bread - that's what kind of recipe this is.  Homemade wheat bread is comforting beyond description.  Ed tells stories of coming home from school as a teenager on baking day:

"Mom baked bread twice a month - she made 6 to 8 white, the same number of wheat.  My brothers and I would come home and there'd be fresh, hot bread - we'd slice it, slather with butter and jelly - the four of us easily demolished two loaves in one sitting.  Mom had to shoo us out to save some for the rest of the week."

That's what kind of bread this is.  I like to eat some warm, then toast it for breakfast the next few days.  I also like to pretend I'm a pioneer woman, turning out fresh bread for my kinsfolk, with creamy butter from the churn, and a pitcher of milk to dip it in.

Many "classic" bread recipes make 2 to 3 loaves, so please note: this makes one.  Obviously simple to multiply - might as well, if you're making one anyway.  And if you've got anyone like Ed in your family, you'll need to, just to get a slice, yourself.

Whole Wheat Bread (print recipe)

Makes 1 loaf

1 to 1 1/4 cups lukewarm water*
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1/4 cup honey, molasses, or maple syrup**
3 1/2 cups (14 ounces) King Arthur Whole Wheat Flour
2 1/2 tsp instant yeast, or 1 packet active dry yeast dissolved in 2 T of the water of the recipe
1/4 cup nonfat dried milk
1 1/4 tsp salt

*Use the greater amount in winter or in a dry climate; the lesser amount in summer or a humid climate

**I recommend honey or maple syrup, unless you really love molasses

1.  Mix and knead all of the ingredients together to make a soft, supple dough.  Adjust the dough's consistency with additional water or flour, if necessary.

2.  Transfer the dough to a lightly greased bowl or large measuring cup, cover it, and allow it to rise until it's puffy though not necessarily doubled in bulk, about 1 to 2 hours.

3.  Shape the dough into an 8" log.  Place the log in a lightly greased 8 1/2" x 4 1/2" loaf pan, cover the pan loosely, and allow the bread to rise for about 1 to 2 hours, or until the center ahs crowned about 1" above the rim of the pan.

4.  Bake the break in a preheated 350 degree oven for 35 to 40 minutes, tenting it lightly with aluminum foil after 20 minutes to prevent over-browning.  The finished loaf will register 190 degrees on an instant-read thermometer inserted into the center.

5.  Remove the bread from the oven, and turn it out of the pan onto a rack to cool.  If desired, rube the crust with a stick of butter; this will yield a soft, flavorful crust.  Hello.

Recipe from King Arthur Flour

1 year ago:  Parker-Parker House Rolls
2 years ago:  Pound Cake Cupcakes with Lemon-Lime Glaze
3 years ago:  Texas Sheet Cake

Blueberry Pull-Apart Bread

 This was one of the many, many delicious-sounding blueberry recipes I collected for my study in blue challenge.  Finally got around to making it this week, and wow!  Pull-apart bread rocks!  Plus this one has flax seed and wheat flour, so you know what that means.  Healthy-ish!

I made this one afternoon when we had friends over, and us two adults and six kids devoured it up in one sitting.  The middle part was unfortunately still doughy or else we would have eaten even more, but don't worry.  I've fixed the original recipe so that won't happen to you.  Blueberries are so sweet this time of year - go bake some into pull-apart bread!

Blueberry Pull-Apart Bread (print recipe)

Makes 1 loaf

Dough:
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour, divided
1 cup whole wheat flour
2 T ground flax seed
1/4 cup sugar
2 1/4 tsp active dry yeast
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 cup unsalted butter
1/3 cup whole or 2% milk
1/4 cup water
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 large eggs, room temperature, lightly beaten
1/4 cup maple syrup

Filling:
1 cup light brown sugar
6 oz. fresh blueberries, rinsed and picked over
2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
1/4 cup unsalted butter, melted until browned

1.  In a large bowl of a stand mixer, with the whisk attachment, whisk together 1 cup all-purpose flour, the whole wheat flour, flax seed, sugar, yeast, and salt.  Set aside.

2.  In a small saucepan over medium heat, melt together milk and butter until butter is just melted.  Remove from heat and mix in water and vanilla; wait until the temperature of the liquid is between 115-125 degrees F.

3.  Change to paddle attachment.  On low speed, pour the milk mixture into the dry ingredients.  After well combined, pour in eggs and maple syrup.  At this stage, the dough will fall apart and separate into pieces - just keep going.  Add in the final 3/4 cup all-purpose flour; mix until everything comes together again.  The dough will be sticky.

4.  Place the dough in a large greased bowl.  Cover with clean humid towel. Place in a warm place and let it rest until double in size, about an hour.  Or you can place it in the fridge overnight.  Remove from fridge 30 minutes before step 8.

5.  While waiting for the dough to rise, in a small bowl, combine filling brown sugar, cinnamon, and nutmeg.  Set aside.

6.  In a small saucepan, melt the 1/4 cup butter until browned.  The milk solids in the butter will turn medium to dark brown and it will all smell heavenly and nutty.  Do not burn.

7.  Grease a 9x5 or 10x5 loaf pan.

8.  Gently deflate the dough with your hand. Flour a work surface and roll the dough into a 20" by 12" rectangle. You should measure it and make it as accurate as possible. Use a pastry brush to spread the melted butter evenly and liberally over the dough. Sprinkle with all of the sugar-spice mixture.  Use a pizza cutter to cut the dough crosswise in five strips, each 12" by 4". Sprinkle about 1/5 of the blueberries (a small handful) over the first sugared rectangle. Top it with a second rectangle, sprinkling that one with 1/4 of the remaining blueberries. Continue to top with rectangles and blueberries, so you have a stack of five 12" by 4" rectangles, all buttered, sugared, and berried.

9.  Slice this new stack crosswise, through all five layers, into 5 equal rectangles, each about 4" long and 2 - 2 1/2" wide. Carefully transfer these strips of dough into the loaf pan, cut edges up, side by side. This is easier if you prop the loaf pan up on its end. There will be some extra room, but the bread will expand during the second rise and baking. 

10.  Cover with a clean humid towel and let rest again in a warm place for about 45 minutes.

11.  Preheat oven to 350 F.

12.  Place loaf on a parchment-lined baking sheet.  This keeps the bottom from burning but more importantly, catches the drips of juicy, bubbly goodness that may overflow.  You don't want your oven and kitchen filling with smoke like mine did!  Place in the oven and bake until the top is very golden brown, about 30-35 minutes.  Tent with foil if it is browning very quickly.  Bake for another 10-20 minutes, for a total of 45-55 minutes.  Remove from oven and rest for 20 minutes before serving.  

Recipe adapted (=fixed!) from http://sweetmakemesmile.blogspot.com/

1 year ago:  Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Cheesecake Bars
2 years ago:  Kiwi Pops
3 years ago:  Mrs. June's Heavenly Coconut Cake

Maple Bacon Brown Sugar Scones

Let me paint you a scene, and I hope my verbal weakness doesn't make it too blurry.  It's the setting in which these scones were made, and the mood I was in.  Humor me.

Two days before Christmas.  Ed took the girls on a surprise outing to the movies after dinner and I had the house to myself.  The dishwasher gently churned.  The Christmas tree lights burned bright.  I donned my apron and set my Christmas music to shuffle on iTunes.

I worked slowly, deliberately, making these scones for breakfast the next morning with the leftover bacon from dinner.  Grated my butter.  Measured sugar, flour, cinnamon, nutmeg.  Worked them together with my pastry cutter.  Folded in the buttermilk and bacon.  Letting my thoughts wander where they would, mostly touching on old friends I'd recently gotten Christmas cards from, and also those I hadn't.  Chris Benson.  Melanie Henrich.  Jake White.  Kat Young.  Flipping through good, and sometimes bittersweet, memories.  Drinking S. Pellegrino from the bottle.

Then a new song came on, "Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing" by Lisa Arrington (you can hear a sample here.)  My thoughts turned to Christmas, to my spiritual roots, to my faith in Jesus Christ.  I kneaded the dough and patted it into rounds. 

Jesus sought me when a stranger,

Wandering from the fold of God.

He, to rescue me from danger, 

Interposed his precious blood.

Brushed the dough with butter and sprinkled it with turbinado sugar.  Cut into wedges, slid the scones into the oven.  Let the house fill with tempting scents as I sat in the living room, staring at the lit tree, contemplating the birth, life, and death, that means so much, means everything, to me.  That made my life, my family, my friends, everything, possible. The only reason Christmas is important.

I know this is a baking blog, and spiritual sharing is a bit out of the ordinary.  But I had a special time making these, and I wanted to write it down. 

'Cause you don't really need me to say much about the scones themselves.  I mean, look at them.  Look at the title.  Look at the recipe.  Brown sugar, bacon, maple glaze, etc.  No more words are needed.

 Maple Bacon Brown Sugar Scones (print recipe)
3 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/3 cup brown sugar
2 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg
3/4 cups (12 T) cold butter
1 cup buttermilk
1 tsp vanilla
5 strips cooked bacon, crumbled (plain or Cinnamon Sugared Bacon, recipe below)
Coarse sugar for sprinkling

1.  Preheat oven to 425.  Grate the cold butter and replace into fridge and freezer while assembling the other ingredients.

2.  In a large bowl, combine dry ingredients.  Cut in butter with two knives or a pastry cutter until it forms coarse crumbs.  Stir in buttermilk and vanilla.  Fold in bacon crumbles.  Turn onto a lightly floured surface and knead gently.

3.  Divide in half and pat into 7-inch rounds.  Brush with melted butter and sprinkle with coarse sugar.  Cut into 6 or 8 wedges.

4.  Bake at 425 for 12-14 minutes.  Top with maple glaze.  Makes 12 to 16 scones.

Maple Glaze
1 1/2 T maple syrup
1/4 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup powdered sugar
2 to 4 T water

Combine syrup, vanilla and powdered sugar and stir until combined.  Add 1 T water and stir in.  Add more water, a teaspoon at a time, until you reach the desired consistency.  Pour over scones.

Cinnamon Sugared Bacon
5 to 8 slices bacon
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 tsp cinnamon

Preheat oven to 375.  Combine brown sugar and cinnamon in a shallow dish.  Dredge the bacon in the sugar, both sides, and lay on a wire rack set over a foil-covered baking sheet.  Bake the bacon fro 20-25 minutes or until crispy.  AMAZING!

 Recipe from HowSweetEats.com

Blueberry Cupcakes with Maple Brown Butter Frosting

Alrighty. Summer's official end is drawing nigh and it is time to CRANK the rest of my summer recipes out while the gettin' is still good at the farmer's market. (Speaking of, if you live in the DC area and can't get to your farmer's market when you want to, check out Local Market in Falls Church.)

Time for more blueberry magic. Delicious, sweet and tender yellow-blueberry cupcakes. I'm sure they would be delicious plain or with any number of toppings (lemon glaze, whippped cream, cream cheese, etc.) but you do NOT want to miss out on the revelation this Maple Brown Butter Frosting is. Do you see some little flecks in there? Browned butter solids. Making this icing with brown butter lends it a caramel/toffee essence you can't get any other way. And the maple flavor is perfectly balanced. And you are allowed to be impressed with my fancy piping job.

I made these cupcakes for a ladies' lunch of discriminating palates, and received praises all around. I can say that without bragging because like almost everything I post on here it's not my recipe. Got this one from A Bountiful Kitchen, which is worth serious browsing and may require a drool bib. A problem which can be partially remedied by making these cupcakes!Blueberry Cupcakes with Maple Brown Butter Frosting (print recipe)
Blueberry Cupcakes:
1 1/2 cups flour
3/4 cup sugar
1/4 tsp baking soda
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 stick butter, melted
1 egg
3/4 cup buttermilk
1/4 cup milk
1 cup blueberries

Mix flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. In a separate bowl, mix butter and egg lightly. Add buttermilk and milk. Add milk mixture to flour and mix just until blended. Toss blueberries in a tablespoon of flour and fold into batter. Spoon batter into 12 standard muffin cups, greased or lined with paper. Bake at 350 for 20 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean.

Maple Brown Butter Frosting:
1 stick butter
3 cups confectioners' sugar
1/4 cup milk
3 T maple syrup

In a sauce pan, melt butter at medium temperature until golden brown. In a bowl, add butter to sugar, then add milk and syrup. Beat until smooth. Top with a fresh blueberry immediately after frosting. Recipe from A Bountiful Kitchen

Maple-Blueberry Swirl Ice Cream (a.k.a. Breakfast Ice Cream!)

La la la la la la! I. Love. Maple. And of course I love ice cream. And in case you haven't noticed, I have a bit of a thing for blueberries. Delicious! I made this recipe twice to get it right, and I'm not really a R&D kind of girl, but this was important. Basically the first time through, the directions were crap and I ended up with a sweet scrambled egg soup. Disgusting. Luckily the blueberry compote part was good. So. I went back to my Mint Chocolate Chip ice cream, which was sooo amazing, and put those directions with these ingredients. And the results were super delicious.

And just a hint of pancakey. So go ahead, have some for breakfast. Or, oh my gosh, I just thought of this! - break up bits of waffle cone and stir them in at step 9 - totally Breakfast Ice Cream!

And, just in case you didn't know (as if!), today is National Ice Cream Day. My sister's family celebrates by having ice cream sundaes for dinner. For dinner. Today we are celebrating by having a little make-your-own-ice-cream-sandwich dessert party. Watch for a follow-up post on the ice cream sandwiches - with five kinds of homemade cookies, and five kinds of mostly-homemade ice creams, it promises to dazzle and thrill. And hey, now you can celebrate Ice Cream Day by making yourself some ice cream for breakfast!

Maple-Blueberry Swirl Ice Cream (print recipe)
Maple Ice Cream:
2 1/4 cups heavy cream
2 1/4 cups whole milk
1 vanilla bean, split in half lengthwise (or 2 tsp vanilla extract)
6 large egg yolks
1 cup maple syrup

Blueberry Compote:
Juice of 1 orange
1 tsp cornstarch
1 cup fresh blueberries
2 T extra-fine sugar

1. Place the 2 1/4 cups heavy cream in the freezer so it is thoroughly chilled by the time you need it later.

2. Put the milk and vanilla bean in a heavy-bottomed saucepan and heat until steaming, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat. Remove the vanilla bean and scrape out the seeds, adding them to the milk.

3. While the milk is heating, whisk the egg yolks in a large bowl. You can use the electric mixer but in this case I prefer hand-whisking; it is easier to control the delicate mixing. Add the maple syrup while whisking and stir to combine well.

4. Pour some of the milk in a 1- or 2-cup pouring measuring cup. Slowly pour the heated milk cream mixture into the egg yolks, whisking constantly so that the egg yolks are tempered by the warm mixture, but not cooked by it. Eventually whisk in all the milk. Scrape the warm mixture back into the saucepan. If necessary, skim foam off with a slotted spoon so you can see your custard.

5. Return the saucepan to the stove, stirring the mixture constantly over medium heat with a wooden spoon, scraping the bottom as you stir, until the mixture thickens and coats the spoon so that you can run your finger across the coating and have the coating not run. This can take about 5 to 10 minutes. If it cooks much longer than that, the eggs will cook into solid bits, which you don't want.6. Take the cold cream out of the freezer and quickly pour it into a large bowl (at least 8 cups); place a fine mesh strainer over it. Pour the hot custard through the strainer and stir into the cold cream to stop the cooking. (Have a little taste - it is delicious!) Chill thoroughly, several hours or overnight.

7. To make the blueberry compote, combine orange juice and cornstarch in a small bowl. Place this mixture, the blueberries, and the sugar in a small saucepan over low heat, cooking and occasionally stirring until the blueberries macerate and their juices run. Cook 30 seconds to 1 minute longer and remove from heat. Cool in refrigerator.

8. Once chilled, churn the custard in an ice cream maker according to manufacturer's instructions.

9. To assemble, spoon the ice cream and compote into a freezer container in alternate layers. Using a blunt knife, cut through the layers and carefully swirl the compote through the ice cream. Cover the surface directly with waxed paper or foil and freeze.
Recipe from Ice Cream! Delicious Ice Creams for All Occasions by Pippa Cuthbert & Lindsay Wilson

1 year ago: Denny's Saucepan Chocolate Cake
2 years ago: Coconut-Cream-Filled Chocolate Cupcakes (mhm)

Pancake Week #4 Bacon Pancakes (Oh, Yes)

Wow. I should have thought of this in college; I definitely could have used it in grad school. Sometimes it takes a subscription to Everyday Food to have the obvious pointed out to me. Bacon and pancakes and syrup - it doesn't get more classic and comforting than that and here they are all together. Genius, right? Thank you, Martha. Thank you.

Now's also a good time to mention my new griddle. For years I've been cooking my pancakes 3 at a time in a stove-top skillet. Which is quaint if you have all the time in the world and only need to make 6 pancakes. It was time to upgrade, and preparing for Pancake Week was the perfect excuse. So in December I got myself a little early Christmas present - the biggest griddle I could find with excellent reviews and a reasonable price tag: the Presto Tilt n' Drain Cool Touch Big Griddle. It's on my Well-Stocked Kitchen List. I love it and obviously have used it a ton - and not just for pancakes but also bacon (both for this recipe!), eggs, and sandwiches. I love the enormous nonstick surface and reliably even heat. And no, they're not paying me to say it. I wish.

Bacon Pancakes (print recipe)
1 cup all-purpose flour
2 T sugar
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp coarse salt
1 1/4 cups buttermilk
2 T unsalted butter, melted
1 large egg
8 slices bacon
Maple syrup, for serving

1. Preheat oven to 200. In a bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt. In another bowl, whisk together buttermilk, melted butter, and egg. Whisk flour mixture into buttermilk mixture just until moistened, with small to medium lumps remaining.

2. In a large cast-iron or nonstick skillet or on a griddle, cook 8 slices bacon over medium-high until fat is rendered and bacon is browned on one side, 5 to 6 minutes. Flip and cook until golden and crisp on underside, 1 to 3 minutes. Drain bacon on paper towels; pour off all but 1 tsp fat from skillet.
3. Heat skillet over medium. Pour 1/4-cupfuls batter into skillet and top each with a bacon slice. Cook until some bubbles appear on top of pancakes and a few have burst, about 2 minutes. With a spatula, carefully flip pancakes and cook until browned on underside, about 2 minutes. Transfer to a platter, bacon side up, and loosely tent with foil. Keep pancakes warm in oven and repeat with remaining batter, addint more bacon fat if needed. Serve with pure maple syrup. Makes 8 pancakesRecipe from Everyday Food, a few months ago

Pancake Week #1 Ricotta Pancakes with Roasted Golden Delicious Apples and Roasted Prosciutto

Let's start off the week with something impressive, shall we? I don't want you to think I've been dinking around, not taking Pancake Week seriously. You have no idea the time I put into it, seeking out the most interesting and delicious-sounding flapjacks I can find.

These fit that description to a T. You know Tyler Florence, right? (Love his line of Sprout baby food.) Well this is his recipe, so between him and me, you know we won't steer you wrong.

Though I admit, this is one of the most involved recipes this week. But it's an entire meal - it's got starch, fruit, and meat! So cook it up and serve it for dinner and love every bite.

Ricotta Pancakes with Roasted Golden Delicious Apples and Roasted Prosciutto (print recipe)
For the Topping:
12 slices prosciutto
Salt and freshly ground black pepper, optional
4 Golden Delicious apples
1/2 stick butter, melted
1/4 cup maple syrup

For the Pancakes:
2 cups ricotta
4 large eggs, separated
1 cup buttermilk
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 teaspoon lemon zest
1 cup all-purpose flour
3 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
Pinch salt
Butter, for cooking
Confectioners' sugar, for dusting, optional
1 cup maple syrup, warmed on stove-top

1. For the topping: Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. On 1 tray lay the slices of prosciutto out in a single flat layer. Season with some salt and freshly ground black pepper, if desired, and pop into the oven. Roast the prosciutto until crispy, about 10 to 15 minutes.

2. Cut each apple into thirds, remove the cheeks and discard the core. Slice each piece into 4 and toss with butter and maple syrup in a large bowl. Transfer to a roasting pan and place in the oven. Roast the apples until they are fork-tender and slightly caramelized on the top, about 30 to 45 minutes depending on ripeness of the fruit.

3. For the pancakes: Combine the ricotta, egg yolks, buttermilk, lemon juice, and lemon zest in a large mixing bowl. Sift the dry ingredients: flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt together into the ricotta mixture and stir until fully combined. In a separate bowl whisk the egg whites until stiff peaks form and then gently fold into the batter.

4. Heat a large nonstick pan over medium heat and add a little butter. Cook 2 to 3 pancakes at a time using a 6-ounce ladle or measuring cup to pour the batter into the pan. The trick to perfect round pancakes to carefully pour all the batter in the same spot and let it roll out to a complete circle. Cook the pancakes on 1 side until they set. When small bubbles appear on the uncooked surface, flip the pancakes and cook until golden on both sides, about 6 minutes. Keep the pancakes on a plate set at the back of the stove under a dry towel to keep warm while you make the rest.

5. To serve, lay the pancakes on a plate and dust with confectioners' sugar. Serve with roasted apples, crispy prosciutto strips and warm maple syrup. Makes 4 servings

Recipe from Tyler Florence, FoodNetwork.com

Peach-Blueberry Popover Pancake

I love popovers. They're little crusty/eggy/puffy rolls that are empty in the middle and delicious with butter and any kind of jam. So good. So a popover pancake - just a big giant popover - covered with syrupy peaches and blueberries sounded OK to me.

First of all, it was ridiculously easy. Easier even than regular pancakes because it's just one and cooks by itself in the oven. Second, seasonally friendly because it calls for frozen peaches and frozen blueberries. Of course if it's summer, you can by all means use fresh and it would be even better. But frozen fruit is good and worked well in for me in this recipe.

We had this for dinner so we had some fried ham on the side. Bacon and eggs would be good too. My only complaint was it wasn't quite sweet enough for me, so we drizzled a little maple syrup on to get it right. Blueberry or other flavored syrup would be good, too.

Peach-Blueberry Popover Pancake

4 large eggs, lightly beaten

1 cup milk

1 cup all-purpose flour

1/4 tsp salt

1/3 cup butter or margarine, melted

3 T orange marmalade

3 T butter or margarine

1 T lemon juice

1 (16 oz) package frozen sliced peaches, thawed and drained

1 cup fresh blueberries or frozen blueberries, thawed and drained

Drizzle of maple syrup, optional

1. Place a well-greased 12-inch cast-iron skillet in a 425F oven for 5 minutes.

2. Combine first 5 ingredients (eggs through 1/3 cup butter), stirring with a wire wisk until blended.

3. Remove skillet from oven. Pour batter into hot skillet.

4. Bake at 425 for 20 to 25 minutes. (This resembles a giant popover and will fall quickly after removing from oven.)

5. Combine marmalade, 3 T butter and lemon juice in a saucepan; bring to a boil. Add peaches, and cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, 2 to 3 minutes. Spoon on top of baked pancake. Sprinkle with blueberries. Drizzle with maple syrup if desired.

Recipe from Southern Living, Jan 1996

Silver Dollar Pear Pancakes

Last year for Pancake Week my very favorite recipe was Double Coconut Pancakes with Vanilla Pear Sauce. I think pears naturally pair with pancakes beautifully. And these little loves are no exception. The coring/peeling was a bit of work (I used my twirly-whirly apple corer but the pears were a bit too soft and got lots of juice all over the place, but yummy juice) but it all paid off when we sat down to gobble them up. Delicious!

Silver Dollar Pear Pancakes
Pears:
4 Bosc or Bartlett pears
3 T pure maple syrup, plus more for drizzling
3/4 tsp ground cinnamon (I used pumpkin pie spice for fun)
1/2 tsp unsalted butter

Pancakes:
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
3 T sugar
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
3 cups buttermilk
4 T unsalted butter, melted, plus 1/2 tsp for griddle

1. Core pears with an apple corer. Starting at the bottom, slice pears crosswise into 1/8-inch-thick rings, and toss in a small bowl with maple syrup and cinnamon.

2. To make pancake batter, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and sugar in a medium bowl. Add eggs, buttermilk, and 4 T melted butter; whisk to combine. Batter whouls have small to medium lumps.

3. Heat an electric griddle to 375 degrees or a heavy skillet until very hot. Brush with butter. Place a few pear slices on griddle, 2 1/2 inches apart. Let cook 1 minute. Ladle about 1/4 cup batter into the center of each pear ring. Using the bottom of the ladle, gently push batter over edges of pears. Let cook until pancakes have bubbles on top and are slightly dry around the edges, about 2 1/2 minutes.

4. Using spatula, turn pancakes over; cook until golden on bottom, about 1 minute. Repeat with remaining pears and batter. Serve with a dollop of sour cream and extra syrup.Recipe from Martha Stewart Living, February 1998

Banana Macadamia Pancakes with Orange Butter

Now here is a great pancake recipe. Different but not outrageous. Sophisticated but subtle. The bananas are soft and sweet, the nuts are buttery and gently crunchy, and the orange butter lends just enough flavor that you enjoy an essence as you exhale through your nose. And these are not a lot of work to make (though workwise, I prefer mashing bananas to cutting them into bits - they get a bit slippery.)

My girls informed me they wouldn't like these because there were nuts in them. They often tell me this, then eat whatever I was making without complaint. This was no exception, and in fact I think the mild flavor of macadamias was appealing to them. Ginger even asked for a handful on the side to eat with her pancakes.

Banana Macadamia Pancakes

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

3 T sugar

1 1/2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/4 tsp salt

1 1/2 cups well-shaken buttermilk

3 T unsalted butter, melted

2 large eggs

1 tsp vanilla

1 ripe large banana

1/2 cup salted roasted macadamia nuts, chopped (plus more for garnish if desired)

Orange Butter

1/2 stick (1/4 cup) unsalted butter, softened

1/2 tsp finely grated fresh orange zest

1 1/2 tsp fresh orange juice

1/8 tsp salt

1. To make orange butter, stir ingredients together in small bowl until well combined.

2. To make pancakes, whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a bowl. Whisk together buttermilk, 2 T melted butter, eggs and vanilla in a large bowl until smooth. Add flour mixture and whisk until just combined. Cut banana into bits and fold into batter along with the nuts. Batter will be thick.

3. Brush a 12-inch nonstick or cast iron skillet with remaining tablespoon of melted butter and heat over moderate heat until hot but not smoking. (*Careful - I didn't think about my cheap brush having synthetic bristles and the ends all melted and got frayed and tangly.) Working in batches of 3, pour 1/4 cup batter per pancake into hot skillet and cook until bubbles appear on surface and undersides are golden brown, 1 to 2 minutes. Flip pancakes with a spatula and cook until golden brown and cooked through, about 1 to 2 minutes more. Transfer to a large plate and loosely cover with foil to keep warm, then make more pancakes, brushing skillet with butter for each batch. Serve with orange butter and maple syrup. Garnish with chopped macadamia nuts if desired.

Recipe from Gourmet, December 2002

Irish Oatmeal (by Tona)

What’s the only thing stopping you from starting a cold winter day with a bowl of hearty, fiber-rich, steel-cut oatmeal? I’m not talking about the pansy, rolled-oats stuff that turns into glue when cooked, or even that sawdust-with-dried apples that Quaker Oats sells in the little packets. No ma’am, I’m talking about the real Irish oatmeal, rich and chewy. The only thing stopping you is the hour it takes for it to cook, right? Who has that kind of time in the morning? Seriously, no one.

A few months ago I discovered frozen single servings of Irish oatmeal at Trader Joe’s , and those were great, but they only came in a 3-pack and for a family of 6 that could add up fast. I bet I could make them at home for less, and found it was really easy and delicious.

All you need is a can of McCann’s Steel Cut Oatmeal , and an hour – so do this ahead, while you’re making dinner or some afternoon when you’re already in the kitchen whipping up some other amazing VGP delicacy. The ratio is one cup of oats to 4 cups water – I like to double that because as long as I’m making it, why not make a lot, and I get 10 half-cup single servings out of a doubled batch.

Into a heavy Dutch oven or other stovetop pot, put 8 cups of water and bring to a boil (I add about 1 tsp of salt to the water as it comes to a boil). Then add 2 cups of the oats, and stir. Keep an eye on it, although you don’t have to stir it constantly, for about 5 minutes until the water starts to look creamy. Then lower the heat to med-low, and simmer for 30-40 minutes, stirring now and then to keep it from sticking to the bottom. I add about 2/3 cup of brown sugar and a drizzle of maple syrup while it cooks, to pre-sweeten it. You’ll know it’s done when it’s thick, all the liquid is absorbed, and it starts to make a skin on the top.

Remove the pot from heat, and prepare your bowls. I like to use a Texas muffin tin, which holds about ½ cup in each bowl. Or you can use small ramekins, or bowls, or mugs or cups or actually anything. Lightly spray them with nonstick spray, and ladle in about ½ cup of the cooked oatmeal. Then put them into the freezer and wait overnight.

Next day, run the muffin tin or cups under warm water until the frozen oatmeal pops out looking like a beige hockey puck. Wrap each one individually securely in plastic wrap and return it to the freezer.

Now you are completely set for some breakfast when you need something fast, hearty, healthy, and filling, in a jiffy. Just take one “hockey puck” of oatmeal, remove it from the plastic wrap and put it into a microwave-safe bowl, wave it for 3 minutes (I usually put the plastic wrap over the top of the bowl to prevent any spatters), and stir. Add toppings – the list is truly endless – you could add a little more sweetness with Demerara sugar, or syrup. Top with berries, chopped dried fruit, nuts (we like chopped pecans or walnuts), butter, whipped cream, milk, soymilk, half and half – anything depending on your tastes and how many calories you want to add (it’s about 150 calories unadorned). Enjoy!

Also, as this post over at pinchmysalt testifies, you don’t have to freeze it. We just do because we don’t eat Irish oatmeal every day, and want it to last a little longer. But putting them in single-serving containers in the fridge is easy too.

Gingery Maple Thins (by Tona)

Guest Baker Tona is my other sister. She's a super busy scholar, full-time professor, mom of four, agriculturalist and community do-gooder, so she doesn't always have time for hard-core baking. But she had a snow day last week and made these little delights for you and me. Thank you! Tona lives in Stow, Massachussetts.
I'm not usually a fan of crystallized ginger, but I really liked these cookies. I used Australian ginger, maybe that makes a difference? It seemed really soft and not as rubbery as I've used in the past. It took about 5 "wafers" of ginger to get 3 tablespoons of finely chopped. I also substituted Mapleine for the maple extract since that's what I had on hand.

I think I made my dough balls too big - more like a walnut sized is probably best, since I didn't get 2 dozen out of this. Or you could just double the recipe.

I would say these are a rather subtle cookie, perhaps even a slightly elegant one - they're not too sweet, which is nice. They were really delicious right out of the oven.

Gingery Maple Thins
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp ground ginger

8 T (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened

1/2 cup packed light brown sugar

1 large egg

1/4 cup pure maple syrup

1 tsp maple extract

3 T minced crystallized ginger

1/4 cup granulated sugar1. Preheat oven to 350. Line baking sheets with parchment or silpat. Combine flour, baking soda, and ground ginger in a bowl. With electric mixer on medium-high speed, beat butter and brown sugar until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add egg, maple syrup, and maple extract and mix until incorporated. Reduce speed to low, add flour mixture and crystallized ginger, and mix until just combined.

2. Place 1/4 cup granulated sugar in bowl. Moisten hands with water and roll dough into 1 1/2-inch balls, then roll in sugar. Place sugared balls 2 inches apart on prepared baking sheets. Using flat-bottomed glass, press each ball to 1/2-inch thickness. Bake until golden, 12 to 14 minutes. Cool 5 minutes on sheets, then transfer to wire rack to cool completely. (Cookies can be stored in airtight container for 1 week.) Makes about 2 dozen cookies

Recipe from Cook's Country, December 2009

Macademia-Maple Sticky Bars (by Michelle)

Guest Baker Michelle was one of my roommates and best friends at college. Later she became my favorite sister-in-law so the fun just continues. She lives in Harrogate, England.
These were really great. Something totally different from the ordinary Christmas plate fare that will stand-out. I took them to work and all of my co-workers raved about them. One even said "these taste like something you would get at Betty's." Supremely high praise indeed. The crust is like a maple cookie and the top is made like candy, but you don't need a candy thermometer. I am not a fan of ginger, but the crystallized ginger in this really help add flavor to these bars and keep them from being too sweet. A big hit.

I made these without reading the instructions fully so I accidentally added all the brown sugar into the crust. I also didn't have maple sugar so I used golden caster sugar instead. Caster sugar is a more finely ground sugar than standard granulated. Even with these two changes, it turned out fantastic. I am sure it would be even better made 100% correctly. When I had made the topping and put it on, I was worried it wouldn't set, but it did. They looked and tasted great.Macademia-Maple Sticky Bars
1/2 cup plus 6 T (1 3/4 sticks) unsalted butter, softened, plus more for dish
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup coarsely chopped toasted macadamia nuts (about 4 ounces)
1/4 cup plus 3 T packed light-brown sugar
2 teaspoons pure maple syrup
1/4 cup finely chopped crystallized ginger
1/4 cup plus 1 1/2 teaspoons maple sugar
2 T light corn syrup
3 T heavy cream

1. Butter an 8-inch square baking disch; line with parchment, allowing a 2-inch overhang on 2 sides. Butter lining (not overhand); set aside. Whisk flour, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 cup nuts in a bowl.

2. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Put 1/2 cup butter and 1/4 cup brown sugar into the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachmnet; mix on medium speed until pale and fluffy. Mix in flour mixture and 1 teaspoon maple syrup. Press dough evenly onto bottom of prepared dish. Refrigerate 30 minutes. Bake until set in center and pale golden, 22 to 25 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack; let cool slightly.

3. Put remaining 6 tablespoons butter and 1/2 cup nuts into a small saucepan. Cook over medium-high heat, stirring constantly, until butter is very foamy and nuts are fragrant, 2 to 3 minutes. Add remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt, 3 tablespoons brown sugar, 1 teaspoon maple syrup, the ginger, maple sugar, corn syrup, and cream. Boil, stirring constantlly, 2 minutes. Spread over crust. Let cool completely. Run a knife around non-partchment sides; lift out of dish by overhang. Cut into sixteen 2-inch squares. Bars can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature up to 3 days.Recipe from marthastewart.com

French Toast Baked in Honey-Pecan Sauce

When I was still single I went to a bridal shower for a friend and someone gave her the cookbook Intercourses: An Aphrodisiac Cookbook. I looked it over and was hooked. Who cares if I didn't have a honey? I wanted the food! So I got the book and my roommate and I had some pretty awesome dishes from it - strictly platonic - while watching things like Friends and Ally McBeal.

After Ed and I married, we have gotten the book out on occasion and made a dish together on Valentine's Day or our anniversary. But even though these foods are supposedly seductive (chapters on pine nuts, strawberries, black beans, rosemary, etc.), there are some seriously good recipes in there for any time or relationship.

This is one of my favorite, and definitely most-made, recipes from Intercourses (from the Honey chapter.) Especially if I have half a loaf of French bread sitting around that would otherwise go stale. Just put it together at night, bake it in the morning. Yummy deliciousness - or, as the book calls it, "puffy clouds of ecstasy" - for everyone!

French Toast Baked in Honey-Pecan Sauce
4 eggs, beaten
3/4 cup half-and-half
1/2 T brown sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
4 thick slices French bread
1/4 cup butter
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup honey
1/4 cup maple syrup
1/4 cup chopped pecans

1. Combine the eggs, half-and-half, brown sugar, and vanilla extract in a small bowl. Pour half the mixture into a baking dish. Place the bread in the pan and top with the other half of egg mixture. Refrigerate, covered, overnight.
2. The next morning, preheat oven to 350. Melt the butter in a 9x13 baking dish and stir in the brown sugar, honey, maple syrup, and pecans. Add the soaked bread slices. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes until puffed and brown. Serve immediately, with sauce from the dish.

Batter Up: It's Pancake Week!

Earlier this month I read in a magazine that National Pancake Day is February 24th and on that day you can go to IHOP and get a free short stack. Intrigued by this holiday, rather than the prospect of waiting in line for free sawdust cakes at IHOP, I Googled it and discovered that Pancake Day is always on Mardi Gras, which as all good Mormons know, is the last day to live it up before Lent starts on Ash Wednesday, 40 days before Easter. Historically, this day, also known as Shrove Tuesday, was the last day to use up fat and eggs from the pantry before Lent, and pancakes are a great way to do that.

A few slightly sketchy sources also promised that this is actually National Pancake Week, from February 22-28. And hey, that's good enough for me. Pancake Week is a concept I can really get behind, and I know you can see where this is going. Every day this week on DMTotW you will find a new awesome, yummy, easy recipe for everyone's favorite breakfast. All of which I've tried. All of which are really, REALLY good.

I've become so accustomed to just using Trader Joe's mix that I'd forgotten how easy it is to make pancakes from scratch. Not only that, but trying this week's recipes really opened my eyes to some fabulous and delicious variations that are just as easy. Just to let you know, we'll be sticking to the traditional, rather than broad, sense of the word pancake here. The weekend breakfast sense of the word: batter cooked on hot greased griddle, topped with something sweet. Can't you just smell them now?

So without further ado, let's start the week off with a delicious buttermilk-banana bang:

Buttermilk-Banana Pancakes
with Pomegranate Syrup
from Cooking Light, November 2005

Pancakes:
1 cup all purpose flour
1 T sugar
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp salt
1 (1-ounce) package uncooked instant farina (like Cream of Wheat)
1 1/4 cups low-fat buttermilk
1 T canola oil
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1 large egg
1 cup mashed banana (about 1 large)

Syrup:
1/2 cup pomegranate juice
1/2 cup maple syrup
2 T pomegranate juice
2 tsp cornstarch

Combine flour and next 6 ingredients (through farina) in a large bowl; stir with a whisk. Combine buttermilk, oil, vanilla, and egg; add to flour mixture, stirring until smooth. Fold in banana.

Spoon 1/4 cup batter per pancake onto hot greased or nonstick griddle. Turn when tops are covered with bubbles and edges look cooked.

To prepare syrup, combine 1/2 cup juice and syrup in a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil over med-high heat. Combine 2 T juice and cornstarch in a bowl; add to pan. Cook 1 minute or until thickened; remove from heat. Serve with pancakes.

Makes 6 servings (3 pancakes and 2 T syrup each)
Cal 315, Fat 4g, Chol 37mg, Prot 5.7g, Fiber 1.4g