American Flag Pancakes and a Giveaway

It is almost the Fourth of July! To celebrate I have decided to review the Teflon’s Flip It griddle. This particular one has an American Flag imprint, creating neat, festive pancakes.

 

How cool is that!?! I love making Holiday specific foods, and this is a super fun way to celebrate Fourth or July, or even Flag Day!

It was fairly easy to use and the non-stick surface worked great. I do have a few tips for using the Flip It. I learned from experience, so you wont have to.

• After you preheat it on the stove, remove it from the heat to cook the pancakes (if not you will end up with a really pretty looking, black flag imprint that is inedible).
• Make sure to spray both sides with cooking spray or it wont flip properly.
• Let it cook long enough before you try flipping it.

It is still not quite as fast as loading up a big griddle because you must make them one at a time, but it sure makes some pretty, patriotic pancakes. It can also make omelets and grilled cheese sandwiches. I loved that it was small and light, not bulky at all. It doesn’t take up hardly any storage space.

The good new is, Teflon has given me an extra Flip It griddle to give to one of our readers! All you need to do is comment on this post by noon on Thursday July 8th. Tell us what your favorite pancake toppings are. I will randomly draw one of the names using random.org and send the winner their very own Flip It.

Meyer Lemon Ricotta Pancakes with Macerated Strawberry Coulis

Is that title an intimidating mouth full or what? Well, just wait until you get a "mouth full!" Don't shy away- you can do it! The lemon and ricotta makes this one stand out from your typical pancake, but then you fold in the fluffy egg whites, and the strawberry stuff- sounds so fancy- (I don't even know what coulis means) but I do know it tasted incredible! SO SWEET and yummy. What a way to kick of the day! If you've got some time... because trust me, this one takes some TLC, whip these babies up... you'll thank yourself after, I promise. Doug said, (and I quote,) "These are by far the BEST pancakes I have ever had."

Meyer Lemon Ricotta Pancakes with Macerated Strawberry Coulis (Recipe courtesy of Food Network's Anne Burell)

Strawberry coulis:
1quart strawberries, topped and quartered
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup orange juice

Pancake:
2 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt, plus a pinch for egg whites
1 heaping teaspoon baking powder
4 eggs, separated
1 heaping cup ricotta cheese
3/4 cup milk
2 Meyer lemons, zested and juiced
Butter, for cooking the pancakes
Powdered sugar, for dusting

Strawberries:
Toss the strawberries with the sugar and orange juice. Cover and let sit at room temperature for at least 30 minutes.
After the berries and sugar have macerated and become very juicy, remove 1/2 of the berry mixture, put it in a food processor and puree until smooth. Return it to the rest of the berries and reserve until ready to use.

Pancakes:
Sift together all of the dry ingredients in a large bowl. In another bowl, combine the egg yolks, ricotta, milk and lemon zest and juice, and mix until it becomes homogeneous. Make a well in the dry ingredients, add the wet ingredients to the well and whisk until combined.
Preheat a griddle.
In another bowl, using a whisk or electric mixer, beat the egg whites with a pinch of salt to stiff peaks. Fold the egg whites into the flour mixture in thirds. Do this quickly and gently so the pancakes will be light and fluffy.
Melt small pats of butter onto the preheated griddle, and spread it around with a paper towel to remove any excess butter. Spoon or ladle the pancake batter onto the prepared griddle to desired size of the pancake. When the top of the pancake is full of holes, like bubbles have risen to the surface and burst, the pancake is ready to flip. Flip the cakes and cook until the bottom is golden brown.
Remove the pancakes from the grill to serving plates. Top with the macerated strawberry coulis and garnish with powdered sugar.
What a flapjack!

Blitz Pancakes

I'm excited to contribute this little gem of a recipe that I found. I haven't always been a pancake lover, but these were yummy and different than the "norm." They blend sour cream and cottage cheese--ingredients usually associated with blitzes. But that's what gives them such a distinct, delicious, old fashioned flavor. You can top the pancakes with berry syrup, fruit (we chose peaches) and whipped cream to turn an ordinary morning into an extraordinary day!

Ingredients:
1 cup all-purpose flour (I used whole wheat flour and I promise it tasted delicious!)
1 tablespoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup (8 oz) sour cream
1 cup (8 oz) small curd cottage cheese (I used large curd and it still tasted delicious)
4 eggs, lightly beaten
Syrup (optional)
Fresh fruit (optional)
In a bowl, combine the flour, sugar, and salt; mix well. Add sour cream, cottage cheese and eggs; mix just until combined. Spoon 1/4 cupfuls of batter onto a greased hot griddle. Turn when edges are set; cook until second side is golden brown. Serve w/ syrup and fruit of desired. (Yield: 12 pancakes)Spoon 1/4 cupfuls of batter onto a greased hot griddle. Turn when edges are set;
Turn when edges are set; cook until second side is golden brown.
Serve w/ syrup and fruit of desired. (Yield: 12 pancakes) *note: the picture above shows my husbands pancakes. He LOVES whipped cream. The picture below shows a normal scoop of whipped cream. These surprised me with their deliciousness! Enjoy! <3, Aunt B

Country Crunch Pancakes

 

These pancakes were awesome! They were so moist and hearty. The best part is the crunchy topping that makes kind of a sweet, toasty crust. And they have whole wheat flour and oatmeal to make them a bit more healthy.

I am also excited to share my new discovery. Powdered buttermilk! I don’t know about you, but I always need buttermilk when I don’t have it and when I actually have it I let it go bad before I get around to using it. A solution to my problems: Saco Cultured Buttermilk Blend.

 

Just keep it in your fridge until you need it. It works great in bread machine recipes, too!

Ingredients:

• 2 C. all purpose flour
• 1/3 C. whole wheat flour
• 1/3 C. quick-cooking oats
• 2 TBSP. sugar
• 2 tsp. baking powder
• 1 tsp. baking soda
• 1 tsp. salt
• 1 tsp. ground cinnamon
• 2-1/3 C. Buttermilk
• 2 eggs, lightly beaten
• 2 TBSP. vegetable oil

Crunchy Topping:

• 1/2 C. quick-cooking oats
• 1/4 C. chopped slivered almonds
• 1/4 C. packed brown sugar
• 1 tsp. ground cinnamon

Directions:

1. In a bowl, combine flours, oats, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon. Combine buttermilk, eggs, and oil. If you use the powdered buttermilk just put it in with the dry ingredients and the water with the wet ingredients.
2. Stir wet ingredients into dry ingredients just until moistened and blended. Do not over-mix.
3. Combine topping ingredients. I used a small food processor to chop up the almonds. Sprinkle about 1 teaspoon for each pancake onto a lightly greased hot griddle. It works best if you spread the topping around in a circle so that it is the shape of a pancake.
4. Pour 1/4 C. of batter over topping.  Immediately sprinkle another teaspoon full of topping. Don’t be skimpy; this topping is delicious!
5. Turn when the top starts to bubble. Cook until second side is golden brown.

 

Recipe adapted from Taste of Home

Maple Cranberry Pancake Muffins

When I made these, I was quite surprised to find that they tasted just like pancakes with cranberries inside. The maple flavor and texture all combine to make you feel like you are eating pancakes. These are the best when eaten right out of the oven. The ones I tried the next day were good, but not as soft and moist. And the drizzly maple glaze is a must!

 

Ingredients:

• 1-3/4 C. all purpose flour
• 1-1/2 tsp. baking powder
• 1/4 tsp. baking soda
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• 1 egg beaten
• 1/2 C. maple syrup
• 1/2 C. milk
• 1/4 C. butter, melted
• 1/2 C. dried cranberries or cherries or chopped fresh cranberries

Icing:

• 1/2 C. powdered sugar
• 1/4 tsp. maple flavoring
• 2-3 tsp. milk

Directions:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Grease twelve standard muffin cups or line with muffin tin liners.
• In a medium mixing bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Make a well in the center.
• In a small mixing bowl, stir together the egg, maple syrup, milk, and butter. Add all at once to the flour mixture and stir until just moistened (the batter should be lumpy). Fold in fruit.
• Spoon batter into prepared muffin cups, filling them 2/3 full. Bake until golden brown, about 15 minutes.
• For the icing, in a small mixing bowl stir together the powdered sugar, maple flavoring, and enough milk to make a smooth icing of drizzling consistency. Drizzle over fresh muffins.

Recipe adapted from The Muffin Book

Romney Rolo Pancakes--King Style

We grew up begging Mom to make "rolo" pancakes for breakfast.  It wasn't until college that I finally realized we are the only family in the world to call them that--they are crepes . . . but "rolo" pancakes are so much more appropriate!  My son absolutely loves these, and while my girls usually request waffles, I can't help but agree with him.  I'm warning you, any posts that I add to this blog are probably going to call for whole wheat, but that's because I prefer the taste and the feeling after I eat whole wheat.  You could easily use normal flour or rice flour if desired.

I wish I had actually taken this delicious picture . . . my camera is still broken.
But you get the idea.  Mint leaves would be a nice touch.

4 beaten eggs
3 cups milk
1 cup whole wheat flour
2 Tbs. cooking oil
4 Tbs. sugar
dash salt

Combine eggs, milk, flour, oil, and salt; beat till well mixed.  Heat a lightly greased 6-inch skillet; remove from heat.  Spoon in 2 tablespoons batter; lift and tilt skillet to spread batter.  Return to heat; brown on 1 side only. (Or, cook on a crepe maker according to manufacturer's directions.)  Invert over paper towels; remove crepe.  Repeat with remaining batter, greasing skillet occasionally.  Makes 36 crepes.

OR you can use my method (the one above is from my Better Homes & Gardens Cookbook):
Mix everything together with a wire whisk, use oil spray on skillet in between each batch.  Using 1/2 cup size measuring cup, pour batter on skillet--we use a large skillet and do two at a time. Before batter cooks, tilt your skillet (yes, even if it is huge) so batter spreads around evenly and becomes thin.  Flip after about 30 seconds and cook an additional 30.

Toppings:
Powdered sugar
fruit (we prefer strawberries & bananas)
maple syrup
jam
honey
anything you have on hand that's remotely sweet and pancake-ish