RSS Feed

Category Archives: Pancakes

Blueberry and Cottage Cheese Pancakes

Posted on May 27, 2012 by thesweetestbrunch

I fear that all these sweet brunches start showing on my hips soon and with summer just around the corner this is not good news! The good news though is that this concern made me look for recipes with less calories, less fat and less sugar and I shall share some with you.

As my favourite brunch dish is probably still a pancake I started experimenting with some healthier pancake receipes I found. Winning this experiment were these blueberry cottage cheese pancakes!

It may sound a bit strange to have cottage cheese in your pancake batter but as I had already successfully made pancakes with Quark in the past (see Quark Pancakes with Spiced Apples), another almost fat free cheese, cottage cheese seemed like another good option for making ‘skinnier’ pancakes.

Cottage Cheese has hardly any fat, yet is full of protein and it gives the pancakes subsistence, texture and height. Admittedly, on it’s own, the pancakes are a bit too ‘healthy’ tasting due to the cottage cheese.

That’s why I decided to add some blueberries – they add a fruity sweetness to the slightly tart/tangy pancakes. Adding them to the batter, rather than just served aside the cooked pancakes, allows the blueberries to warm through as the pancakes are being cooked, until the juices start bursting out.

Do keep a few berries aside for serving though – along with a drizzle of Maple Syrup or maybe Agave Nectar, which apparently is the healthier sweetener!

For 2 portions you’ll need:

  • 3 eggs

  • ¾ cup low fat cottage cheese

  • ¼ cup flour
  • ca 150g blueberries (a small punnet)
  • a little low cal spray oil for cooking, if you want to keep the fat low (otherwise you can use vegetable oil or any other fat, such as butter)

Separate the eggs and whisk the egg whites stiff.

In another bowl whisk the egg yolks until they become thick and paler, and then stir in the cottage cheese, followed by the flour. Then fold the egg whites under and add as many of your blueberries as you like (I added two thirds of a small punnet and kept the rest aside).

Heat a pan and spray a little low cal spray oil, then use a big serving spoon to make some circles from the batter and cook the pancakes until the border of them starts to show bubbles. Flip carefully over and continue cooking for about 3-5 minutes, careful not to burn the pancakes.

Serve with more blueberries and syrup of your choice!

Leave a comment

Posted in Healthy, Pancakes and tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , . Bookmark the permalink.

Poppy Seed Pancakes with “Saucy Oranges”

Posted on January 19, 2012 by thesweetestbrunch


I just can’t get enough of pancakes, it seems.

After about four months of blogging, this is already the fourth time that I am telling you about another pancake recipe. I guess, it’s not that surprising as pancakes make such a satisfying brunch – they are yummy and quick and easy to make! Another reason why I have one more pancake recipe here for you is that I it was time to tidy my spice cupboard and in the back, behind all the little glasses and boxes of all sorts of spices I found a small bag of left over poppy seeds (not sure how they had moved from the baking cupboard to the spice section…). This meant that I had to look for recipes that would use up these few black poppy seeds and of course I opted for a pancake recipe!

I found it on 101 Cookbooks and have slightly amended it, omitting the sunflower seeds. The author suggested a citrus syrup with it and I liked the idea of this combination but opted for an orange sauce I had made in the past, also because I didn’t have agave or maple syrup in the house.”Orange sauce” makes me think of the colour more than the fruit… so that’s why I shall be calling it “saucy oranges” from now on The “saucy oranges” are also easy to make, as long as you mix the cornflour with a bit of the warm water first, before adding it to the hot sauce on the stove – otherwise the sauce may go lumpy.

As for filleting the orange, I used to think it requires the knowledge of some chef trick and was worried about creating a big mess trying to get out some clean orange segments. From a cookery class at Leith’s cookery school I then learned that it isn’t very hard, as long as you have a very sharp knife. You have to cut off one end of the orange to create a flat surface, before you can start cutting away at the orange so the orange doesn’t move about. And don’t be shy to be quite generous when cutting away the peel to make sure the orange segments are clean of all pith.


Pancake recipe based on 101 Cookcooks.
For about 4 portions you will need…

Starting with the “saucy oranges”:

  • 7 oranges
  • 25g caster sugar (about 2 tbsp worth)
  • juice of ½ lemon
  • 2tsp cornflour

Take 5 of the oranges and cut off the bottoms so they sit on a flat surface. Using a very sharp knife cut away the peel & pith, following the round shape of the orange with your knife. Then cut out the segments. Try and collect any juice that might collect on the board as you go along. Leave orange segments and juice to the side.

Cut the rind of the other 2 oranges with an orange peeler that gives you small matchstick strips, then squeeze the juice from these oranges into a small pan and add the rind. Add the sugar and lemon juice and simmer gently for 5 minutes until the sugar has dissolved and the rind is tender.

Blend the cornflour with 1 tbsp of water in a small cup, then mix in a little hot juice. Add to the pan and cook, stirring for 1 minute until the sauce has thickened. Take off the heat and add more orange juice if you like.

Add the juice and segments to the sauce, cover and chill.

For the poppy seed pancakes (recipe based on http://www.101cookbooks.com/archives/poppy-seed-pancakes-recipe.html):

  • 2 cups flour
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • 1/2 tsp baking soda
  • 1/2 tsp fine grain sea salt
  • 1/2 cup poppy seeds
  • 2 1/4 cups organic buttermilk
  • 2 large organic eggs, lightly beaten
  • ½ tsp vanilla extract
  • 2 tbsps butter, melted (plus extra for the pan)

Combine all the dry ingredients – flour, baking powder, bicarb of soda, salt and poppy seeds in one bowl. In another small bowl or jug, combine the buttermilk, eggs and melted butter. Stir the wet ingredients in the dry mix until just combined (I found the batter to be quite thick).

Heat the pan to medium-hot and brush it with a bit of butter. As a test for the right temperature 101 Cooks suggests: “If a drop of water dropped onto the pan starts to dance, you are in the ballpark.”

Bake the pancakes, each of about 1/3 of a cup, and wait until the pancake bottom is deep golden in colour, then flip and cook the other side until golden and cooked through.

Leave a comment

Posted in Pancakes and tagged , , , , , , , , , . Bookmark the permalink.

Pumpkin Pancakes with Bananas & Cinnamon Syrup

Posted on October 23, 2011 by thesweetestbrunch


It’s pumpkin time! With Halloween around the corner pumpkins are starting to pop up in every shop and market right now. I’m not that big on Halloween but I do like a nice orange pumpkin and all the things that can be made with it

And with American Thanksgiving not that far off – and Canadian Thanksgiving already gone by – the shops in London are also serving North American Expats by stocking cans of pumpkin puree for those Thanksgiving Pumpkin Pies. This recipe requires pumpkin puree and the easiest way is to get such a can of 100% pumpkin puree. The classic Libby’s version is available at Waitrose for about £1.50, which is much cheaper than the health food shop version for about £4.

If you can’t find either (or don’t want to spend £4 on the health food shop version) I’d suggest to make the puree yourself. Pioneer Woman suggests in her blog that the easiest way to do that is to roast wedges of pumpkin in the oven until soft, cooling them down and then pureeing the soft flesh, see http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2008/10/make-your-own-pumpkin-puree/

Whichever pumpkin puree you go with, these pancakes with homemade cinnamon syrup and bananas are amazing – one of the best brunches I’ve ever had! The pancakes themselves are great – fluffy and thick – but the syrup makes the whole dish, so do go through the effort of making the whole recipe. I promise you won’t regret it!

This recipe is slightly adapted from the one on this blog:
http://tastesbetterfromscratch.blogspot.com/2010/11/pumpkin-pancakes-with-cinnamon-syrup.html

Start with the cinnamon syrup, for which you need:

  • 1/2 cup white sugar
  • 1/2 cup dark brown sugar
  • 2 Tbsps flour
  • 1 tsp ground cinnamon
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1 cup water

Sift the brown sugar (sifting helps getting ridd of the lumps as brown sugar easily crumbles up) into a heavy bottomed saucepan, along with all the other ingredients and stir them together. Bring to the boil over a medium heat, stirring occasionally. Let it boil for a few minutes, while stirring until it thickens. Remove from heat and set aside until needed.

Now, for the pancakes you’ll need:

  • 1 cup flour
  • 1 Tbsp brown sugar
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • 1/2 tsp baking soda
  • 1/2 tsp ground ginger
  • 1 tsp ground cinnamon
  • pinch of salt tsp salt
  • 3/4 cup milk
  • 1/2 cup pumpkin puree
  • 1 egg
  • 1 Tbsp vegetable oil
  • 1 Tbsp vinegar (any plain tasting one will do)

Mix all the dry ingredients in one large bowl – that’s the flour, brown sugar, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger and pinch of salt.

In another bowl, mix together the milk, pumpkin, egg, oil and vinegar with a whisk. When it’s all combined pour this wet mix into the dry flour mix and whisk it under with the whisk (but don’t over-whisk the whole lot, it just needs to be incorporated).

Then heat a lightly oiled frying pan over medium heat. Pour or scoop the batter onto the pan- the recipe suggested using approximately ¼ cup for each pancake. My cup messaurements are in form of a big spoon, so this worked a treat. It’s a good way to ensure all pancakes come out in more or less the same size.  If you’re using a generous ¼ cup of batter you will get 6 pancakes. I’d suggest using a little less than the full ¼ cup, which should result in 8 pancakes.

Brown on both sides and serve hot, with slices of banana and a generous amount of syrup. Mmmmmhhh!

1 Comment

Posted in Pancakes and tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , . Bookmark the permalink.

Oat Pancakes with Plum Compote

Posted on October 7, 2011 by thesweetestbrunch

The plum is the fruit that rings autumn in for me. And the ones I really like and look forward to baking with are the oval shaped purple plums, as opposed to the round yellowish ones you seem to get everywhere. In my opinion, the purple ones have more flavour – maybe not as sweet as the yellow ones but overall tasting more of a real garden plum.

Back in Germany the oval, dark purple ones, the “Zwetschgen” are much more common. In England I struggle to find them but think that big Damsons are the nearest thing to it. And the other day, I actually saw some very “Zwetschgen”-like plums in my local greengrocer:


I got very excited and thought I’d share the pleasure with you by giving you a quick plum compote recipe. This compote would go well with all sorts of brunch treats: waffles, french toast (hmmm…now thinking I should have made french toast!) and also as a dessert, with vanilla ice cream. But I had seen this recipe for oat pancakes on another blog (http://www.myrecipes.com/recipe/oatmeal-pancakes-10000002011047/)  and wanted to try them out, thinking they would make a great base for the plum compote.

I had never heard of oat pancakes before but figured, oat based porridge is a very healthy breakfast (slow release energy and all that) so oat based pancakes must somehow make a healthier pancake.

And I’m glad I did, as they made a substantial brunch without being stodgy and not as fatty as french toast would have been, I guess. The oats make them more filling than an ordinary pancake, so if nothing else you’ll probably eat one or two less than of normal pancakes, so maybe the healthy theory is right!

Try them out and let me know what you think.


First for the Quick Plum Compote (which will make more than you need for the pancakes and that’s a good thing, so you can have some the next day too).
You’ll need:

  • 500g plums
  • 50g sugar
  • 3 tablespoons of lemon juice (or water, if you have no lemons in the house – but they add a little extra something)
  • 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1 cinnamon stick

Half and de-stone the plums and add all ingredients to a put and slowly put the heat on underneath it. As the juices are coming out of the plums, the syrup gets fruiter and thicker.

Keep the pot on a low simmer until the plums are soft but not falling apart; about 15 mins. Set aside and let it cool down a little.

Now, for the Oatmeal Pancakes, slightly amended from: http://www.myrecipes.com/recipe/oatmeal-pancakes-10000002011047
For 2-3 portions, you’ll need:

  • 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1 cup porridge oats (not the big ones but the ones for quick cooking, that ones that broken down a bit already)
  • 1 tablespoon sugar
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • pinch of salt
  • 1 cup buttermilk
  • 2 tablespoons butter, melted
  • 1 egg
  • oil for baking the pancakes

Combine all dry ingredients in one big bowl, so that’s the flour, oats, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon and pinch of salt.

In another bowl mix buttermilk, butter, and egg with a whisk, then add the liquid mixture to the dry flour mix, stirring just until moist.

Heat a pan with a little oil and spoon about 2 1/2 tablespoons batter per pancake onto it. Cook until bottoms are browned, which should be when bubbles are coming up on the top (maybe check in between, so they don’t turn dark brown), then flip over and cook until the other side is browned.

Serve with the compote and enjoy…

2 Comments

Posted in Healthy, Pancakes and tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , . Bookmark the permalink.

Quark Pancakes with Spiced Apples

Posted on October 3, 2011 by thesweetestbrunch


Now, that autumn has started it’s time to get some new season apples from the farmer’s market – don’t they look great, all rosy! They’ll make a nice accompaniment, sweetly spiced with cinnamon, to Quark Pancakes. When I decided to start this blog, I knew my Quark Pancakes would be one of my first posts. It’s always a winner, as the quark makes the pancakes fluffy and light.

Quark is a German almost fat free soft cheese, a bit like curd cheese or ricotta but creamier yet lighter and more tangy. In the UK quark is now available in big supermarkets but if you can’t get hold of it, you could replace it with ricotta in this recipe.

This brunch dish is quickly made and fills the house with nice smells of cinnamon, apples and sweet pancakes!

For 4 portions you need:

  • 25g butter
  • 50g demera sugar
  • 4-6 apples (depending on size), peeled, quartered and cored
  • ½ tsp ground cinnamon
  • ½ tsp ground ginger
    (for the spiced apples)
  • 200g flour
  • 2 tsp baking powder
  • 150g quark (if this is not easy to get hold of you could substitue with ricotta)
  • 150ml milk
  • 4 eggs
  • 1 tbsp sugar
  • pinch of salt
  • oil for baking
    (for the pancakes)
  • optional: small pot half fat crème fraiche

Start by preparing your ingredients, i.e. measure them out and peel/core/cut apples, then make the Spiced Apples by melting the butter and sugar in a medium sized frying pan or pot over a low heat. Add apples, spices and cook for a 5-8 mins, preferably with a loosely covering lid, until the apples are softened but not mushy.

Set aside in a bowl and make the pancakes by mixing the flour and baking powder together. In another, slightly bigger bowl whisk the eggs, quark, milk & sugar and then whisk the flour-baking powder mix in.

To bake, heat a little oil in a frying pan and use 2 tbsp of batter per pancake, which should result in pancakes of about 8-10 cms diameter.
They require about 3-4 min baking per side.

If you want to keep them warm whilst baking the rest, pile them up in a lightly heated oven (75 degrees).

To serve pile about 3-4 pancakes on each plate and top with the apples and for an extra treat, a dollop of half fat crème fraiche.

Enjoy!


1 Comment

Posted in Pancakes and tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , . Bookmark the permalink.
Follow

Get every new post delivered to your Inbox.

Join 25 other followers