by Lori Baltazar
I woke up grumpy as hell today. I was ravenous and someone in the household had eaten the last two buchis that I had reserved for myself the night before. I just hate it when my stomach is all geared up to eat something and it’s missing from the fridge.
With my stomach growling ”“ a reminder that it needed to be fed ”“ I perused the contents of the fridge, but nothing appealed to me. With me getting more irate by the minute, soon even I would give Grumpy the dwarf serious competition.
Might I be in the mood for French toast, perhaps? I didn’t want to make a coffeecake, and I just didn’t have the energy to get out of my pajamas and go out for some Danish pastries. I’m also not the type to have rice for breakfast, since I grew up on sugary cereals like Trix, Cap’n Crunch, and Frosted Flakes. Now, all the cereals I ever buy for myself are disgustingly fiber-dense things like Grape Nuts and bran flakes. Eck.
So I made pancakes. When I was a kid, my mom used to make plate-sized pancakes for my two sisters and me. There was always a side of bacon to go along with them and some Vienna sausages, those cute canned wieners that are capable of making anything taste good. I should ask my mom to make me those platter pancakes again sometime.
puckered up with butter and kissed with maple syrup
My previous pancakes always turned out brick-like, dense enough to leave some temporary damage to someone’s face. I sought to make pancakes that were fluffy, similar to the ones at Pancake House, which in my opinion, consistently serves the best pancakes in Manila.
Achieving light-as-air pancakes depends on the leavener used ”“ baking powder and/or baking soda ”“ as well as light-handed mixing. Overly enthusiastic mixing will only create gluten, which will make the pancakes tough.
The recipe I used called for both baking powder and baking soda as well as buttermilk. Buttermilk is not available in Manila, so I used a mixture of vinegar and fresh milk to come up with “clabbered milk,” an acceptable substitute. The acid in the baking soda gave the pancakes a coarser crumb, making them light with “bite.” The baking powder helped the pancakes rise, and the buttermilk contributed flavor.
After putting together the rest of the ingredients, it’s simply a matter of dumping the wet into the dry. A few seconds of whisking just until everything is incorporated is all that’s needed. A few minutes on a hot skillet, slap a pat of butter and douse with real maple syrup ”“ that’s all I needed to make my house a Pancake House.
Those pancakes looked just like those from pancake house!! Tomorrow, Im going to have some!!! Yr pancakes looked just soooo goooood!!!
Oh my Lori, what was it with the weekend (or more correctly put — the past few days), people who love to play in the kitchen have been making pancakes! Including myself 😛 hehehe!
I have got to get cooking and baking again. It’s been too long.
And note to self: eat breakfast before reading your posts.
the idea of vinegar in pancakes made my mouth pucker, and not in a good way. I should probably try it, but since buttermilk’s readily available to me, i don’t see that happening anytime soon.
i’ve been stalking you for about a week now, i think. i must say — i LOVE LOVE LOVE your blog. I happened by in the wee hours of the morning, read your writeup on Xocolat and was immediately hooked. You have a wonderful way of conveying flavor experiences through the written word, and the scrumptious pix complement that talent.
i hope you don’t mind that i’ve added you to my fave links.
I also had a plate of pancakes, but at the hotel buffet (one of the better ones in the city), along with an experiment of toasted nuts (walnuts and macadamias), dried apricots, a pat of butter and some blueberry preserves in lieu of maple syrup. Your pancakes just made me hungry again for another set though!
Sari–
Wow, thanks. To say that my pancakes look like the ones from Pancake House is a huge compliment!
Mel–
I have no clue, and to think that I hardly make pancakes!
Eric–
Cooking and baking are technical skills. You must practice otherwise you’ll lose them. Besides, Christmas is coming and I want some of that bread you gave me before. :p
f–
Baking powder and baking soda need an acid to work properly, so the vingear serves a good purpose here.
Hi lori, your pancakes look yummy! I think I will head over to the Pancake House after work 🙂 Im just wondering, what camera do you use? Your pictures look so good! For some reason, I cant take the same quality up close pictures with my current digicam. I know it’s so off-topic, but Id appreciate if you can tell me. Thanks!
— Bettina
I’ll remember that. Note to self: Bake golden honey bread for Lori. 😀
Bettina–
I use a Canon Powershot G2. People make fun of me because it’s such a huge camera, but it kicks ass! :p
ha! i’m just about to make pancakes right now! i normally use buttermilk (and if you can ever get your hands on some buttermilk, you just HAVE to try making pancakes with them!)
i’ll try the vinegar-milk mixture when i’m in manila 😉 it’s funny… i think that was the first question i ever asked you! a replacement for buttermilk! hahaha!