One thing holiday weekends are good for is offering that rare lazy morning where my husband and I can enjoy breakfast together without one of us having to race off to work. Today we took full advantage of that luxury with some delicious ricotta pancakes. These aren't traditionally Italian, nor is the syrup that I made to go along with the pancakes, but they are wonderful nonetheless. They were too good not to share, so we'll call them Italian inspired and consider them good enough to put on Cucina DiBella.
I am a huge pancake fan. I have great memories of my mom spelling out my initials in pancake batter. So, I had never felt the need to deviate much from the pancake recipe of my childhood, and therefore had never tried pancakes with ricotta cheese mixed in. Well, I'm glad I did. The beauty of ricotta is that it works equally well in savory dishes, like lasagna, and sweet recipes like cannoli. Here, the ricotta works to make pancakes that are much lighter and more moist than your average pancake. They are wonderful! To match their airiness, I decided to create a syrup that was a little on the lighter side as well but that added the needed sweetness. So, I created what I call Bellini Maple Syrup which is just maple syrup combined with peaches and some champagne. The champagne thins the syrup, giving it a lighter feel just like the pancakes, and the peaches add a wonderful flavor to the whole thing.
Ricotta Pancakes with Bellini Maple Syrup
Ricotta Pancake recipe adapted from Bobby Flay
Ingredients:
For the Pancakes:
1 cup ricotta cheese
2/3 cup milk
2 eggs
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
3/4 cup flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons sugar
Butter, for pan
For the Syrup:
3/4 cup maple syrup
1/2 cup champagne
3/4 cup fresh or frozen peaches, cut into chunks
Procedure:
- To make the syrup, combine the maple syrup, champagne, and peaches in a saucepan. Bring to a low simmer and cook about 5 minutes, stirring occassionally. Optional: use a fork to mash the peaches or leave the peaches in large chunks to serve over pancakes (The second option is my vote!).
- In a bowl, whisk the ricotta, milk, eggs, and vanilla. In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt, and sugar. Add the flour mixture to the wet ingredients and whisk together.
- Heat a griddle or frying pan to medium heat. Brush with butter. When hot, pour about 1/4 cup of batter onto the griddle or pan. Cook until golden brown on each side, about 2 minutes on each side. Set aside and repeat with remaining batter. (Tip: to keep pancakes warm until the whole batch is done, put finished pancakes on an oven-safe serving platter and place in a 200 degree oven to keep warm.)
- Top pancakes with Bellini Maple Syrup.
Ryan's rating of Ricotta Pancakes with Bellini Maple Syrup: 5s across the board! I got a 5 for the pancakes, a 5 for the syrup, and a 5 for the dish overall. I think this recipe has replaced my normal pancake recipe!
1 - Awful. If you make this again I'll shove a fork in my eye.
2 - Meh. It's not my favorite, but I won't threaten self-harm if it shows up again.
3 - Good. I wouldn't feel forced to order a pizza behind your back.
4 - Great! I will fight you for the leftovers.
5 - Love it! Make it again tomorrow. Or immediately and I will bathe in it.
Whoa! 5s across the board!
Posted by: Jeanne | 04/09/2012 at 06:35 PM