Apple Pancakes with Zesty Vanilla Whip and Maple Syrup

Receita em Português AQUI

Recipe Ingredients: (enough for 4 if not too sweet toothed)

• 1 glass of self raising flour
  
• 3/4 glass of full fat milk (or a little more if needed)
  
• 3 soup spoons and one tea spoon of sugar
• 1 heaped tea spoon of baking powder
  
• 1/2 glass of whipping cream
  
• 1/2 of a lemon zest
  
• 1 tea spoon of vanilla essence
  
• 4 soup spoons of vegetable oil
  
• 1 egg
• 1 apple (skinless and cut into quarters, then finely slice all the quarters)
• Maple Syrup (to taste)
  

In a bowl put the flour and the baking powder and the 3 soup spoons of sugar, and with the aid of a whisk, mix both very well. Now make a well in the flour and place the egg in there as well as the vegetable oil, start whisking from the centre outwards and as it gets thick start adding the milk little by little and whisking until is all incorporated, it should have the consistency of runny yoghurt. Now pour the thinly sliced apple into that and give it one stir, cover it with a cloth and let it rest around 10 minutes.

Mean while put a non stick frying pan on the stove with the flame just above minimum, and let it heat do this about 4 minutes before the end of the dough rest period. Meanwhile in another bowl put the cream there and start whipping it and when is almost at its peak add the vanilla, lemon zest and sugar, bet remaining to peak and your cream is done.

Now on the preheated frying pan, if this one is large enough like 26-28" you should be able to make 3 pancakes at each time, two soup spoons of dough for each pancake and once these are golden brown on one side turn them over. Always check that they are fully cooked through, that is why pan can't be too hot or it will cook the outside with still runny dough on the inside.

Herbed Pancakes and Mini Spring Burgers with a tuft of Salad (Pancake day Gastro Feast)

Pancake day gastro feast... Only had a small dinner as had some more sweet pancakes to come after as desert...this was really enjoyable.

Recipe Ingredients: (good for 3-4 people)

• 1small glass of self raising flour
• 2 eggs
  
• 1 tea spoon of baking powder
• 2/3 of a glass with milk
• 3 soup spoons of olive oil
• 1 bunch of parsley (chopped)
• 1/4 tea spoon of garlic granules
• 400grs lean beef mince
• 3 spring onions (thinly sliced)
  
• 1 small onion (sliced)
• one bag of mixed salad
• 1 hand full of bread crumbs
• 2 garlic cloves (minced)
• 1/3 tea spoon paprika
• 1 soup spoon of smoked barbecue sauce
• also some barbecue and ketchup sauce to top burgers
• salt and pepper to taste
  

With so many ingredients sounds difficult...No? Well it is not.
Dead easy, pour the flour in a bowl and the baking powder, whisk well together, then make a well and in the middle put 1 egg, oil, garlic granules, salt and pepper and start to mix, as it gets thicker add the milk a little a the time and continue mixing it in until all the milk is used up (it should be the consistency of thick bechamel, so add more milk if needed). Lastly add the parsley and set it aside to rest.

In another bowl place the mince, and add: bread crumbs, 1 egg, barbecue sauce, spring onions (save a little for decorating), garlic "minced", paprika and salt + pepper (to taste). Mix it all in with your hands, and after make balls the size of golf balls, which then you squash to make the mini burgers, these are grilled in a hot griddle pan, and the pancake mix is made in a non stick frying pan (no oil needed as these already contain oil) two soup spoons per pancake should be the right size, make sure they are cooked on both sides.

Serve the burgers over the savoury pancakes, squeeze a dollop of BBQ sauce and Ketchup over each burger and add a little spring onions to decorate as well as normal sliced onions (you can also use mini tomato slices, cucumber etc. " i didn't have any in" lol) put also a tuft of mixed leaves salad in each plate and drizzle some olive oil balsamic vinegar and refined salt. there you are a nice little healthy pancake meal for your pancake day.!!!

Crepes with Vanilla Cream and Maple Syrup

Receita em Portugues clique AQUI.

Here you are something to celebrate about, easy peasy to do pancakes (crepes) I made these on a non stick frying pan. This I offered to my family as a New Year treat breakfast ...Obviously with a steaming cup of coffee...but I am sure you know how to make the coffee....lol

Recipe Ingredients:
Crepes:

• 6 soup spoons of plain flour
• 3 soup spoons of sugar
• 1 egg
  
• 3 soup spoons of vegetable oil
• about 1 and 1/2 glass of milk (consistency should be of gravy)
• a dash of vanilla essence

Whipped Cream:

• 1 glass of chilled fresh double cream
• 2 tea spoons of sugar
• 1 dash of vanilla essence (or a scraping of vanilla seeds from a split pod)
• 3 drops of lemon juice

In a jug put the flour and the sugar in, whisk it together. Make a little well and pour the oil and the egg, star whisking it and as it starts to get pasty add milk little by little always whisking it, last add the vanilla essence whisk once more and it's done.

Place the non stick frying pan in the fire, once hot reduce fire to just bellow medium, pour a drop of oil and with a dried tissue spread that oil evenly on the whole area of the pan, then with the jug pour in the center of the pan the liquid until it fills 2/3 of the area then stop spread the rest by inclining the pan and going around motion always over the fire until liquid sets. Once it sets let it cook it takes about 2-3 minutes on each side, to flip with a spatula lift the side of the pancake enough to get your fingers in then with your hands (fingers) pull it up gently without ripping it and flip it to the other side. Then once cooked is ready for the filling...which you can just add sugar and lemon, or just syrup or chocolate sauce or fresh cream or many many more combos.

I used a vanilla whipped cream with maple syrup. To make this pour one cup of chilled fresh cream into a bowl and start whisking it once is half way through add the 2 tea spoons of sugar the lemon juice and whisk a little more then the dash of vanilla essence (remember at this stage you van also add liquor like Tia maria (coffee flavour) or baileys (caramel flavour) cointreau (orange flavour) see ...your only limit is your imagination...one cap full will suffice. And that is that.

Obviously there is many many more fancy stuff you can do with pancakes, I know a few maybe I'll tell you later.... ;)

Picture in the reverse order of making process: