How to Make All Sorts of Pancakes for Pancake Day (and the rest of the year!)

Here's a few suggestions for the big day and for throughout the year, of course!

French Style Crèpes

As we think of them now – they used to be the “normal” pancakes my Mummy used to make on Pancake Day! This makes approx. 6 depending on the size of your pan.

100g plain flour
pinch of salt
1 egg
300ml milk
50g butter – melted

~   Stir together the salt and the flour and make a well in the middle.
~   Break the egg into the well and start whisking it in gradually adding the milk till a batter the consistency of single cream is achieved.
~   Stir in the melted butter.
~   Lightly grease a frying pan, bring to good heat and ladle in about 2 tablespoons of batter.
~   Roll the pan to spread the batter thinly and cook till the underside is golden.
~   Turn with a deft flip of the wrist or more carefully with an implement.

Traditionally, of course, these are served sprinkled with sugar and lemon juice for Pancake Day but are good filled with all sorts of sweet or savoury fillings such as this one filled with sugary sautéed apples.

Lovely Alternative (gluten free - bonus!) Pancakes

These are a great alternative to the above crépes; they are crisp and nutty and good for you! Make them the same way as above replacing the flour with 100g buckwheat flour.  The only difference is that it is a good idea to chill the batter for an hour or two before stirring in the cooled melted butter and proceeding with the recipe.

Thick Fluffy American Style Pancakes

– makes about five 3" pancakes.

120g plain flour
pinch salt
1 tbsp sugar
a rounded teaspoon baking powder
1 egg
100ml milk
a little vegetable oil

~   Stir together the first 4 ingredients.
~   Male a well in the middle of the flour mixture.
~   Break the egg into the well.
~   Gently whisk the egg into the flour and, as it thickens, gradually add the milk, still whisking, till you have a thick but pourable batter.  This may or may not take all the milk, or might even need a tad more, depending on the make and age of the flour.
~   Heat a non stick frying pan and carefully, using a piece of paper towel, smear the surface with a little cooking oil.
~   When the pan is hot and greasy pour a 3" circle of batter in the pan and cook till the surface is pitted with burst bubble holes.
~   Flip or turn the pancake and cook till the other side is golden.

If, like me, you enjoy a crunchy contrast cook each pancake in a spoonful of hot oil (rather than in a lightly greased pan) and you will end up with crisp frazzled edges like these.

Serve immediately or keep in a warm oven till all are done so everyone can eat together.  Very often these are served with smoked bacon, maple syrup and butter but are good with all sorts of things.

Pancake Additions ...

When adding things such as fruit or nuts or chocolate do it this way ...

~   Pour the pancake batter into the pan.
~   Immediately sprinkle your addition evenly sprinkle over the surface. This means that whatever you have added won’t burn as the first side cooks.
~   Drizzle a little more batter over the additional ingredient.
~   Continue as usual.  

 Possibly Strange Pancake Variations

~   I have made this style of pancake with leftover porridge and they are very good indeed which is helpful for me as I dislike the texture of porridge and this helps me get my oats. 

~   Different liquid can be used instead of milk as in this Tomato Soup Pancake!

~     Flourless Banana Pancakes 

I haven’t tried these as I am bananaphobic but they sound like a good idea, this is what I understand you do. 

~   Mash up a large ripe banana.
~   Beat together 2 eggs.
~   Stir the eggs into the banana and make pancakes with the result.

If I did like bananas I would add a drop of vanilla extract.

Chinese Spring Onion Pancakes

These are really a kind of bread but I thought I’d just mention them as they have the “P” word in their title.  They are also known as Tsung yu Ping - recipe here.

Leftover Pancakes and Batter

If you are familiar with this blog you know how I hate to waste food and have even written a book on delicious ways to use up leftovers!

If you have a little leftover batter when making either of the above drizzle it into the pan and make yourself a Cook’s Treat.

Leftover Pancakes can be gently reheated in the pan you cooked them in or fried till crisp - read more about leftover pancakes here.

Delicious pancake topping ideas here.

And ...

Lots more pancake ideas on my Pinterest board ...

Pancake Day ~ and the rest of the year! 

Lovely Alternative (gluten free - bonus!) Pancakes ~ Galettes de Sarrasin

I've been racking my brains (such as they are) to think of a good idea relating to pancakes for Shrove Tuesday, and I've thought of something entirely yummy, worthwhile and useful to write about which is also relevant – Galettes de Sarrasin.

I ate these wonderful Breton buckwheat pancakes years ago when in France and then promptly forgot about them till a recent trip where a scallop and leek galette I dined on in Quimper, Brittany was one of the finest meals of my life.

These are crèpe type pancakes, similar to those my Mummy served on Pancake Day, and not at all similar to American style thick fluffy pancakes.  They have a lovely light and crisp texture, a delicious nutty flavour and, as a bonus, they are gluten free! 

I decided to try and reproduce my wonderful meal, made my own Scallop and Leek Galettes and they worked a treat. The only thing missing was the lovely sunshine, the pretty little walled town and my good friend Carol.  Apart from that – perfect!

Buckwheat Pancakes – about 6 pancakes depending on your pan

100g buckwheat flour

pinch of salt

1 egg

300ml milk

50g butter – melted

~ Stir together the salt and the flour and make a well in the middle.
~ Break the egg into the well and start whisking it in gradually adding the milk till a batter the consistency of single cream is achieved.
~ Chill for a couple of hours then stir in the melted butter.
~ Proceed to make pancakes as per usual, ie. lightly grease a frying pan, bring to good heat and ladle in about 2 tablespoons of batter.
~ Roll the pan to spread the batter thinly and cook till the underside is golden.
~ Turn with a deft flip of the wrist or more carefully with an implement.

I cooked the Scallop and Leek Filling in the same way as I did the salmon here. 

These pancakes are excellent with the traditional sugar and lemon of our childhoods and lend themselves to pretty well any filling you can dream up, savoury or sweet including, of course, delicious leftovers.

If you are interested, in my standard American style Pancake Recipe see this post from Pancake Day last year.

The normal crèpe recipe my Mum used is pretty well the same as the buckwheat recipe above but with plain flour instead of buckwheat and maybe a tad more milk.

 

And here is a picture of an enormous Caramel Crèpe I ate a while back, as it happens this was in France too! 

Although today is known throughout Britain as Pancake Day it is, of course, Shrove Tuesday and is particularly associated with pancakes as they are an ideal way to use up sugar, eggs, milk etc. that we will, of course, be spurning for the next 40 days of Lent.  

Happy Pancake Day!