Corn And Scallion Pancakes With A Spiced Strawberry Syrup

This pancake recipe is something I’d hastily jotted down from some cookbook while I was in the long check-out line at the library.



Ingredients:
(For approximately 10 pancakes)
1½ cups all-purpose flour
½ cup cornmeal (I used white)
1 Tbsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1 Tbsp sugar
Salt
2¼ cups buttermilk
2 eggs
2 Tbsp butter, melted
¾ cup corn (I used some frozen corn that I’d thawed)
3-4 scallions, sliced (I used both white and green parts)
Oil/Butter to grease the skillet

Method:
In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, cornmeal, baking powder, baking soda, sugar, and salt.

In another bowl, mix together the buttermilk, eggs, and butter. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix well. Set the batter aside for 10-15 minutes.

Stir in the chopped scallions and corn just before making the pancakes.

Grease a hot skillet with oil/butter; pour a ladleful of the pancake batter. Tilt the skillet around a bit so that the batter spreads out a little.

Cook on medium heat until the bottom is golden brown. Flip the pancake and cook the other side similarly. Repeat with the remainder of the batter.

Serve with your favorite syrup. I did not have any at home. So I looked around for something else I could use instead and saw a jar of strawberry jam in the refrigerator. So that is what I ended up using to make the syrup. I could have thinned it out a bit more, though.

Spiced Strawberry Syrup



Here's how I made the syrup:

I heated 1 tsp of oil and added 1- 2 finely chopped jalapenos (deseed and devein to reduce heat) to it. Then, I added ¾ cup of strawberry jam/jelly (I used Smucker's strawberry jelly) and a pinch of salt. I cooked this for 3-5 minutes. I added the juice of 2 small limes at the end to round off the flavors.

The sweet, sour and spicy syrup was the perfect accompaniment to the pancakes.

Cucumber Pancakes

I tend to gravitate towards simple recipes with minimal ingredients and minimal steps. So, when I saw these soft and melt-in-your-mouth pancakes on Nupur’s blog, I knew I would be making them soon.
I understand this is a common preparation in many Konkani homes but using cucumber in a dosa was a first for me.

Ingredients:
1 large cucumber, peeled and grated
1 cup rice flour
½ cup rava/semolina/sooji (cream of wheat)
1/2 - 3/4 cup buttermilk
4-5 green chillies, chopped finely
A handful of coriander (cilantro) leaves, chopped
1 tsp cumin seeds
Salt to taste
2-3 tsp sesame seeds
Oil

Method:
Peel and grate the cucumber into a large bowl. Throw in the rest of the ingredients (except the sesame seeds) listed above, and mix well to prepare a relatively thick batter. A little bit of water may be used to bring the batter together.

Grease a hot skillet with oil; pour a ladleful or two of the batter. Tilt and move the skillet around a bit so that the batter spreads out a little and then use the back of the ladle to do the rest. Sprinkle some sesame seeds on the pancake.

Cook on medium heat until the bottom is cooked and turns brown. Flip over and cook the other side similarly. Repeat with the remainder of the batter.

Serve hot with your favorite chutney. I think this batter gave me around 7-8 pancakes.

Kale And Potato Pancakes

These pancakes were made by H a couple of weekends back. They tasted so good that I just had to jot it down here. Now, H never measures anything while cooking, so I only have approximate amounts of the ingredients that went into this recipe.

Ingredients:
2 cups kale, chopped as finely as possible
2 medium potatoes, peeled and grated (squeeze out the excess mositure)

To grind to a very coarse mixture:
1 medium onion
4-5 green chillies
3-4 curry leaves
3 Tbsp corn
A tiny piece of ginger
1-2 garlic cloves

Mix together-
2 eggs
½ cup all-purpose flour
¼ cup rice flour
1-2 Tbsp yogurt
2 Tbsp shredded Mozzarella cheese.
1 tsp cumin seeds, pounded coarsely (I used a mortar and pestle)
1 tsp baking powder
Salt
Oil/butter to grease the griddle/skillet

Method:
Mix all the ingredients listed above to form a relatively thick batter. A little bit of water may be used to bring the batter together.

Grease a hot skillet with oil/butter; pour a ladleful of the batter. Tilt and move the skillet around a bit so that the batter spreads out a little. Try and spread it out as evenly as possible with the back of the ladle (not very easy since the batter's really thick).

Cover and cook on medium heat until one side is done. Then, flip and cook the other side similarly. Repeat with the remainder of the batter.

Serve with sour cream. I had mine with ketchup.

Coconut Banana Spice Pancakes

We don’t have pancakes very often, the main reason being that we don’t care much for sickeningly sweet breakfasts. In fact, I think we’ve only had pancakes twice in the last 5 years. But the other day I came across this interesting recipe on Stefanie’s fabulous blog which made me want to try making some immediately. And that’s how I came to make my very first pancake from scratch following her simple recipe.


Ingredients:

For the batter
1 cup all-purpose flour
2tsp baking powder
1/3 rd cup shredded sweetened coconut
½ tsp cardamom
1 tsp red chilli flakes
A pinch of nutmeg
½ tsp salt
1 cup milk
¼ cup coconut milk
1 banana, mashed well
Oil/ Butter- to grease the skillet


For the topping
Honey
Chopped walnuts

Method:
In a large bowl stir together the flour, baking powder, coconut flakes, cardamom, chilli flakes, nutmeg and salt.


In another bowl, blend the milk, coconut milk and mashed banana.
Add this to the flour mixture and whisk well.


Grease a hot skillet with oil/butter, pour a ladleful of the pancake batter . Tilt and move the the skillet around a bit so that the batter spreads out a little.


Cook on medium heat for 45-60 seconds until golden brown. Flip the pancake and cook the other side similarly. Repeat with the remainder of the batter.


Drizzle some honey on the top of the pancakes and sprinkle a few chopped walnuts.


This recipe makes 8 small pancakes.

These pancakes were moist and delicious with just a hint of sweetness. So much better than the syrup-laden cloyingly sweet ones! We loved it.