Why Buy a Mix?: Betty Makes Pancakes

I have a confession to make--please, go easy on me. I buy pancake mix. In bulk.

I'll wait for you to stop yelling at me... done yet?

When the 10 pound bag ran empty today, it was time to man up and make some from scratch. And why it took so long, I simply don't know.
It's not like I thought it was hard. I mean, I know people who can't make proper toast who make their pancakes from scratch. But I can be incredible lazy at times.

In my perpetual pursuit to make as much from scratch in this home as possible (some call it my pursuit to make life more difficult but we'll see who's laughing when they run out of hotpockets)- in my pursuit to make whatever I can, I give you buttermilk pancakes

This recipe is easily doubled or tripled. Remember, any pancakes that are left over can be frozen in a ziploc for those mornings when you need a sturdy breakfast fast. Also, you can always mix up the dry stuff to keep in the pantry and add the wet when you're ready.



In a bowl, whisk together

Dry ingredients

1 cups AP flour
1 Tbs sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda

wet ingredients

In a separate bowl, whisk your wet ingredients together first so you don't overmix the batter later.
You'll need
1 egg
1 Tbs vegetable oil
1 cup of buttermilk or regular milk (*if you use fresh milk, the pancakes will be great but not as fluffy)

Blend the wet to the dry mix only as long as it takes to blend them together. If you have used buttermilk, you'll actually be able to hear it reacting with the baking soda and baking powder. That is where all the fluffiness and lift comes from in buttermilk pancakes. The longer you wait to get them into a hot griddle, the more fluffiness you lose, so snap to it.

I could hear the buttermilk
reacting--super cool

And while I'm sure I don't need to walk you through what to do next, I will.

The griddle or skillet for pancakes should never be too hot otherwise the centers won't cook and you'll have yuckiness (*technical term).

Spray your pan (or, if you're my dad, use a "little" vegetable oil to brush the surface), lower the heat if things are smoking-that's a pretty good indication that it's too hot.

Ladle in the batter. Watch closely and you will begin to see bubbles. The bubbles will get larger; slide your spatula under the edge--does it lift easily? Flip that baby then. The trick to flipping a pancake properly is to stop thinking so damned hard about it and let yourself go. If you don't crowd the pan, you'll get the feel of it faster.

When your cakes are thick, it may be hard to tell if they are done in the center. With the edge of your spatula, pierce the center of the bottom--what do you see? If it oozes, let the cake cook. If you see fluff, you're good to go.

I keep my pancakes on a plate, covered with a bowl--really high tech stuff, I know. But everything is hot to trot when I serve them to the family, so this works for me.

Get your own