Health Food Breakthrough

I don’t really cook any more. I lost my interest, and I was tired of cooking for people who showed up late, left early, and didn’t shop, help cook, or clean. I still have to cook for myself, though, so once in a while, I turn on the stove.

I make what must be the worst pancakes on earth. Or at least I used to. It was frustrating, because my waffles were perfect. I make them with bacon grease instead of butter. My pancakes came out heavy and rubbery. They would keep a man going all day because it took so long for the stomach to break them down.

Yesterday I tried again. I looked up a New York Times recipe and went to work. Result: rubber pancakes. I know why it happened. I used the wrong spoon to measure the baking powder.

Today I used the correct spoon, and I made some adjustments of my own. I have a tentative recipe to post. The pancakes were light and tasty.

INGREDIENTS

1 cup biscuit flour (not self-rising)
1 cup milk
1 tbsp melted butter
1 egg
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
2 tsp. sugar

I warmed the milk up to room temperature before using it.

You separate the egg and beat the white until it’s stiff. After that, put the mixer away. You don’t want it near the batter. Mixers seem to make pancakes gluey. Maybe that’s my imagination, though.

Mix the remaining ingredients with a spoon, but hold back 1/4 cup of milk. Fold in the egg white. Stir in enough of the remaining milk to make the batter flow the way it should.

When you fry your pancakes, put a little butter on top of each one as it hits the plate. To be really decadent, sprinkle it with salt.

I heat my syrup in the microwave, and I add butter to it. Cold syrup and hard butter ruin pancakes.

That’s about it. It takes a little longer than using a box. I can’t say it’s worth it because I don’t have a box to compare it to.

I think they would taste better with a whole teaspoon of salt in the batter, but I was too chicken to try it today.

I use a Griswold cast iron griddle for pancakes. It’s wonderful. They brown very quickly, and they never stick. Best thing I’ve ever seen for pancakes. Much better than a skillet. With a skillet, the walls get in the way when you try to flip your pancakes.

I use grade B syrup because it has more flavor than grade A. I buy a brand called Anderson’s, from Amazon. I keep maple syrup in the fridge or freezer to prevent mold.

I need to learn to make blueberry pancakes. I’m not sure you can throw blueberries into batter without additional steps. They might be too sour and raw. The syrup is easy. You heat blueberries with a little sugar and water. You can add starch to bulk it up, and you might consider a small amount of lemon juice. Make sure the syrup boils. Starch has to boil.

Buckwheat pancakes would be great. I’m sure I can find buckwheat flour on the Internet. I think buckwheat pancakes are the best pancakes possible.

I’ll post a photo of today’s pancakes. I am open to suggestions.