The Breslin's Ricotta Pancakes
the perfect pile of pancakes
Ingredients:
- 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/4 cup fine white cornmeal
- 2 tablespoons sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 2 cups buttermilk
- 2 large eggs, separated
- 1/2 cup fresh ricotta
Here's the link to the full recipe:
I opted only to make the pancakes but if you try the orange syrup and ricotta topping, let me know how it turns out!
batter up!
What I liked about this recipe:
The pancakes were amazing! So light, so fluffy with just a hint of sweetness. For me, the ultimate test to a good pancake is if I can eat it alone without the assistance of sweet syrup and creamy butter to amp up the flavors. These pancakes are delicious on their own! So delicious that I ate the first several test rounds before I realized I needed to save some for photos!
Ricotta is my new best friend. I knew how delicious it was but this recipe reminded me of how wonderful the texture is. It's such a versatile flavor that now I'll be adding to all sorts of baked mixtures to add a softer, airier texture.
Whipped egg whites make everything fluffier! This recipe calls to separate the eggs, adding the yolks into the wet ingredients and folding the whipped whites into the final batter. I wasn't sure about this technique at first but it clearly helped create a light and fluffy batter, the base of any good pancake.
"stiff but not dry"(as the recipe calls for) egg whites
What I learned from this recipe:
Butter is better! The recipe initially calls for a "thin film" of vegetable oil to grease the pan. I instantly questioned this direction because I've read in several other pancake recipes about the importance of using butter to grease the pan. Butter contains sugar which helps in creating the golden brown and crispy crust of the pancake. However, being the diligent lemming that I am, I followed the directions to see what would happen. Just as I suspected, my first round of pancakes lacked the golden color I desired. After the experiment I switched to using butter to grease the pan.
top pancake cooked in butter, bottom in vegetable oil:
And just as when I was eight years old, too many pancakes will give me a stomach ache!
Overall I really enjoyed this recipe and will now be my standard pancake recipe. Not only did I love the result, I got to use one of my favorite kitchen dishes:
My lodge cast iron griddle!
