I feel like a modern pioneer. The past few weeks we’ve been tapping maple trees. And we harvested gallons and gallons of sap. Guess how much maple syrup we got? Well, here’s a hint: it’s a 40:1 ratio. 

We boiled sap from morning to late afternoon, and watched it turn from clear to a golden brown as the water evaporated. Our bounty of maple syrup was about 3 cups total! 

Well, maple syrup calls for pancakes, don’t you think? Have breakfast for supper one evening. Pancakes with a side of bacon or sausage. Warm maple syrup? Or maybe a smear of maple pecan butter on the pancakes? Yes, please.  

JEANNE’S PANCAKES

My friend, Jeanne, shared this recipe a long time ago. Simple enough for little ones to help.

Ingredients

1 egg

1 cup buttermilk

1 cup all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon double acting baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon oil

Instructions

Whisk egg and buttermilk together. 

Whisk dry ingredients together. 

Stir into egg mixture and mix gently. Stir in butter. Mix again but don’t over mix. A few lumps are OK. 

Let batter rest 10 minutes or so before frying. 

Pour about 1/3 cup of batter onto hot greased griddle for each pancake.

They’re ready to turn over when golden brown on bottom and bubbles appear around edges and middle.

Turn pancakes only once. 

Maple pecan butter 

Whip together 1 stick softened butter with 1/3 cup pecans, toasted and finely chopped and 1/4 cup maple syrup.

Whole wheat pancakes

Daughter-in-law Jess makes these in a big batch, then warms them up later

in the microwave or toaster. “Pancakes last a week in the refrigerator”, Jess 

said.

Ingredients

2 cups milk

2 eggs

4 tablespoons sugar

2 tablespoons walnut or other oil

1 cup whole wheat flour

1 cup all-purpose or pastry flour

1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon double acting baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

Instructions

You’ll love these simple instructions from Jess: “Whisk wet together; whisk

dry together, then combine, but don’t over mix.” A few lumps remaining are 

OK.

Let batter rest 10 minutes or so before frying.,

Pour about 1/3 cup of batter onto hot greased griddle for each pancake. 

They’re ready to turn over when golden brown on bottom and bubbles appear around edges and middle.

Turn pancakes only once.

Blueberry pancakes

Stir in a cup or more fresh or slightly thawed frozen blueberries into dry ingredients. 

Tip: 

Single acting vs double acting baking powder

For pancakes, use double acting.

Single acting is activated by moisture only; double is activated by 

moisture and heat. You need both for pancakes to turn out well.

Rested batter = better pancakes

Resting gives the liquid time to soften/hydrate/relax the flour and dissolve 

any lumps that remain. 

Resting also allows leavening time to get mixed in evenly in the batter.

Even leavening produces air bubbles that puff pancakes as they cook.

More pancake recipes:

Buttermilk Pancakes with Sweet Milk Variation

Lois Boekley is a confident, very careful, cook. Whatever she shares I know will turn out well. She tests recipes until they are perfect! Here’s a lovely pancake recipe.

Ingredients

1-1/2 cups flour, all-purpose

1-1/2 teaspoons double acting baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 tablespoons sugar

1-1/2 cups buttermilk

1 egg

3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

Instructions

Preheat a nonstick griddle over medium heat. Grease lightly, just enough to prevent the pancakes from sticking.

In a medium bowl, stir together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and sugar.

Combine the buttermilk, egg, and melted butter in a small bowl; blend well.

Pour the liquid all at once into the dry ingredients; stir together just until all the flour is moistened. There will be some lumps in the batter. Do not over mix. 

Pour a scant ¼ cup of batter onto the hot griddle for each pancake. Use a heatproof ¼ cup measuring cup or ladle and use the bottom of the cup to spread the batter to a 4-inch pancake. Cook until bubbles form and just start to pop on the top surface and the edges appear dry. Turn the pancake with a wide spatula to lightly brown the other side. Turn pancakes only once.

Makes about 10 to 12 pancakes.

Variation: Regular pancakes can be made by substituting 1 to 1 1/4 cups of sweet milk for the buttermilk, increasing the baking powder to 3 teaspoons and omitting the baking soda.