The High Priestess of Pancakes Shares All

Pancakes. Ah, the very thought of golden cakes, dripping with melting butter and honey...

But there's lots more you can do to pancakes to make them delightful breakfast fare. (You can even--ugh--make them healthful.) Let's go pancaking...

First, the confession: I like pancakes, my husband likes pancakes, my brother likes pancakes, et cetera. throughout the family tree. When I would make pancakes, from a mix or from scratch, they always came out horrible. Not horribly. Horrible.

I’d try different fry pans and different recipes or mixes, and ALWAYS make horrible looking pancakes. Scary looking pancakes. They were edible, but…

After Hurricane Katrina, we moved to North Carolina and there I learned the secret to perfect pancakes. The secret is so simple, yet it works with expensive pancake mixes, scratch pancakes, and cheap pancake mixes (my favorite is WalMart’s Great Value Extra Fluffy pancakes). Now, this is not a North Carolina secret, this is a master pancake-maker secret. Or secret-no-more, thanks to me. I learned this when I won a silent-auction item—a gift basket from a very popular pancake/breakfast restaurant in MaggieValley (okay, so it was Joey’s). This wonderful secret was included in the instructions, for all the world to see. Yet, no one I ever met knows this secret. Until now.

Okay, two ingredients for perfect pancakes: time and a Presto grill (the $20 model is great). I haven’t tried this with other electric grills, though I expect you would get similar results. I have never ever ever gotten pretty pancakes out of a frying pan or even that grill pan that uses two burners on the stove. Forget them.

Once you have your Presto (or whatever) grill, you will want to set the temperature at 350 degrees. You know, the same universal 350 degrees that we perfect cooks use for all our baking. You do not want to grease, butter, or spray the grill.

And, now, for the secret ingredient: time. Yes, time. A whole ten minutes. After you mix your pancake batter, set it aside for 10-15 minutes. Just let it sit. This allows the ingredients to incorporate and you get a better batter. Seriously!

Preheat your grill for about 5 minutes, pour your batter, and when the pancakes look dry on top flip them. In about one more minute they will be done. And fluffy. And perfect.

Being a child in the fifties, one had no clue that frying steaks in bacon fat might not be good for you, cutting the mold off the cheese didn’t make it all right, or that high fructose corn syrup would one day be a red flag before a bull. Although I began making pancakes when I was seven, my father was the pancake chef in our family. No matter who made them, though, they were definitely made “from scratch,” a description that somehow suggests something that should make you queasy. We were very middle class and didn’t seem to be lacking anything, but for some reason we did not use pancake syrup. Instead, we were supplied with Kayro (dark) to top our pancakes. What that amounts to is using intense sweetness of no particular flavor. This might be why I started skipping the butter and syrup and began salting my pancakes and rolling them up into tubes. Or maybe Dad just didn’t use enough salt in his recipe.

Not only did I know nothing of maple syrup, but it was an epicurean epiphany when I had breakfast “down the block” at a friend’s house and her mom put grape jelly in a small pan, warmed it, and served it over pancakes. Wow! Flavor! Soon after that experience, I was introduced to pancake houses. This was back in the day when a waitress would bring a rack with six, SIX!!!, flavors of syrup with your order. There was maple, strawberry, boysenberry…what? No CORN syrup??? What an outrage. Fast forward twenty-something years, and the morning after Thanksgiving I am making French toast for my children. A women’s magazine had suggested “Red Sauce” to pour atop holiday-time breakfast. The “Red Sauce” recipe was really quite simple. Put your leftover cranberry sauce in a pan with some butter, heat it up, pour it on pancakes, waffles, or French toast. It was actually good! I expect it would have also been good with oatmeal, grits, Wheatena and any number of other breakfasty-type things. Well, maybe not Maypo.

Fast forward again to 2007 when I learned to make perfect pancakes. Chip (my perfect husband) and I are rather eclectic in our dining out choices. So, besides our great love for Bistro 1896 in Asheville, we are also huge fans of Cracker Barrel. When we have to take a road trip, Cracker Barrel is certainly on the itinerary, usually more than once. Our breakfast there is quite routine. Since I can’t eat all that much, I have a small oatmeal with a LOT of honey. Conversely, Chip enjoys a big breakfast and the main feature is usually some kind of messy pancakes topped with whipped cream. They may be strawberry pancakes or peach, but whatever they are, there are lots of them and he likes them. Lots.

Having mastered perfect pancakes, I began making them more often. Chip is not very fussy. I could serve his pancakes with margarine and syrup every time and he wouldn’t complain, though he may occasionally request a side of bacon (did I mention he’s a saint?). I, having ADD, get bored with the same ol’ same ol’, and have to shake things up. This is one of the reasons that in the past nine years we have never had exactly the same meal twice unless it was in a restaurant. And, though I have ADD, I am also lazy so when I shake things up it’s usually in the most effortless way.

The part I am leaving out here is that I usually don’t put syrup on pancakes anyway. I like real butter (don’t tell me about Kirstie Alley, okay?) and I share them with Charity Marie DoggyDog. Even so, I have to make changes. So, remember the “Red Sauce” from 30 years ago? And the “Grape Syrup” 20 years before that? Without having to consult Google (aka, my cooking school), I began experimenting with pancake toppings. I served Chip microwaved (such an improvement over the pan and stove method) strawberry preserves. Ooooh—pancakes with chunks of strawberries. Then peach preserves. Plum preserves. And, after Thanksgiving, “Red Sauce.” When there didn’t seem to be quite enough red sauce left, I added some Knott’s Boysenberry Syrup and strawberry preserves. Aha! I was narrowing in on the best recipe! I had a mixed berry syrup with a wonderful consistency, whole fruit (cranberries), and chunks of strawberry. And, like that good old Kayro, it was sweet. Very. Chip spoons it on top of his pancakes, margarine, and maple syrup. Don’t ask me why he doesn’t go into sugar shock.

I wouldn’t say that I have created the perfect pancake topping. I am happy to have something I can make in about 30 seconds from things I always have on hand. When I serve something new, I advise Chip that it’s an experiment, and he’s done very well with that so far.

Despite my love of all things butter, I have dropped butter from the recipe. To make a good pancake topping, I use preserves, syrup, and whatever else pops into my head (usually something I should use up now). Try this: 2 parts any flavor preserves, one part any flavor syrup, and whatever seems reasonable. For example:

• ½ cup strawberry preserves
• ¼ cup syrup (you choose) –or-- 2 Tbs. water or fruit juice
• that leftover fruit cocktail that’s not even one whole serving
• those chopped walnuts that didn’t make it into the cookies

Use any variety of preserves (or jam or jelly if you wish) and add some fruit (those single serve peaches in the canned fruit aisle work nicely, as do the mandarin oranges or pears). I’ve never tried this with orange marmalade—I’d probably be the only one who likes it, and I wouldn’t use it. I’m also curious about pineapple marmalade and shredded coconut—Pina Colada pancakes. Hmmmm. Except, I don’t like Pina Coladas.

Ten years ago, one of the first gifts my soon-to-be husband wanted to give me was a package of Bruce's Sweet Potato Pancake Mix. He knew that I love sweet potatoes and he was anxious for me to try Bruce's because he was fond of them. I convinced him to "wait until we're married," for I was living in New Jersey where my idea of cooking breakfast was instant oatmeal, and he was living in Louisiana. If he gave me the mix, I would have to take it to New Jersey and bring it back to Louisiana five months later. The truth is, as much as I like sweet potatoes, I was a little leery of veggie pancakes.

Once I moved to Louisiana there was no getting around sweet potato pancakes, and it was love at first bite. I enjoy baked sweets, mashed sweets, candied sweets, even leftover sweets. The pancakes do not taste like any of those things, although the taste is comparable to sweet potato pie. In addition to the regular pancake ingredients and sweet potatoes, Bruce's also includes cinnamon, which is partially responsible for its unique taste. People who like spice cake or carrot cake will like this product. Bruce's bills itself as "the breakfast vegetable," and so they should. I had previously only eaten vegetables with breakfast in diners when I ordered omelets. These pancakes were so much better.

If you follow the two simple rules set by the High Priestess of Pancakes, you will have beautiful, delicious, fluffy perfection. Can you improve upon perfection? Sure! Add chopped pecans.

When Katrina moved us from Louisiana to North Carolina, I feared our mornings with Bruce's were over. That's what inspired me to become a pancake pioneer. Several weeks ago, while writing the High Priestess article, I discovered that Amazon carries Bruce's Sweet Potato Pancake Mix. (If you live in a rural or exurban area, you won’t find the more exotic items at "local" stores. I depend on Amazon to bring me the world — or at least the parts of it that I need in my kitchen. Amazon supplies me with stuffed grape leaves, eggplant and red pepper pâté, dehydrated sweet red bell peppers, and many other things I can get somewhere, but not here.)

How can you top Bruce's Sweet Potato Pancake Mix? Oh, that's easy. Start with butter or margarine. Then go for the pancake syrup. Some grocers carry pecan pancake syrup — that's ideal; not everyone cares for the combination of maple and sweet potato. I found a truly decadent topping in Pigeon Forge, TN. There's a restaurant there known as The Old Mill that serves excellent food in extremely large portions. During tourist season, patrons usually wait a bit for a table, and where better to kill some time than at The Old Mill General Store? There we picked up a jar of Toffee Pecan Honey Butter. One quarter cup warmed in the microwave for thirty seconds provides a heavenly, praline-like syrup, rich and very, very sweet.

In addition to pancakes, the mix's bag includes recipes for sweet potato cookies and muffins. In Louisiana, sweet potatoes are big. No, make that BIG. They grow them, cook them, eat them, and study them. Louisianans know their sweet potatoes. My contribution to a party one afternoon was sweet potato cookies. I put the plate down on the table, nobody asked what they were until after they were gone, and they were gone pretty darn fast. Since we were in Louisiana, I had enhanced the cookies with pecans. Raisins would also go nicely with their cinnamony taste.

What, exactly, is in Bruce’s Sweet Potato Pancake Mix? "Bleached Wheat Flour Enriched..., Sweet Potatoes, Sugar, Soy Flour, Partially Hydrogenated Soybean Oil, Leavening, Artificial Flavor, Dextrose, Buttermilk Solids, Salt, Cinnamon, Egg White, Lecithin, Non Fat Dry Milk," according to the ingredients panel. They are certified "Heart Healthy" by the American Heart Association; they are "naturally sweet," low-fat, and have no cholesterol. As you would expect from sweet potatoes, they have lots of lovely vitamins.

Amazon rates the popularity of the products it sells, and Bruce's Sweet Potato Pancake Mix is sixteenth in pancake and waffle mixes, sixty-first in baking mixes. I have a feeling there are a whole lot of sweet potato pancakes being eaten out there.

Bottom line: Would I buy Bruce's Sweet Potato Pancake Mix? By the case! It's a staple in our house, a well-missed friend that we greedily welcome back.

Throwing away perfectly good food bugs me. And when I say “bugs me,” I mean it in a very OCD way. If I buy something, as an example let’s randomly choose fruity oatmeal, for Chip and he doesn’t finish all of it, I’ll save it. Forever. I won’t eat it, but I won’t throw it away. I don’t know if food pantries will accept open packages of things like fruity oatmeal. As I was going through my pantry, you’ll never guess what I found. Oh…you guessed it was fruity oatmeal. Now what can you do with a couple of packets of Strawberries and Cream or Peaches and Cream oatmeal, other than add boiling water, stir, and eat? I’ll bet you’ve also guessed that it has something to do with pancakes. You are so smart!

There is a host of things you can put into pancakes that won’t make people sick. For example one or two packets of instant oatmeal (any flavor) added to one cup of pancake mix (scratch or store-bought) and mixed with water will provide you with two things: flavored pancakes and fiber.  How much water? Start with ¾ cup, and add a little at a time until you get to batter consistency. It shouldn’t be much more than a cup, but it depends on the type of oatmeal you use. Don’t forget to let your batter sit ten minutes before cooking.

Chips are great in pancakes. No, not potato chips (hmmmm….), baking chips. Mini or regular chocolate chips, peanut butter chips, butterscotch chips, it depends on what you like. How about nuts? For some reason, when I bake I always end up with a small portion of chocolate chips, pecans, or walnuts in the bag. I carefully fold up the bag, clip it closed, and store it. Forever. Instead, the nuts are excellent in pancakes and they are good for you, too. Warm some maple syrup, add pecans, and serve over pecan-enhanced pancakes. How about mini-chocolate chips and walnut pieces together in a pancake? Sounds as good as a chocolate chip cookie, doesn’t it? It is!

Small chunks of fruit work nicely, but if it’s canned, be sure to drain it first. Frozen or dried berries are good candidates for pancakes. Craisins are nice. I have not tried raisins, but they might be pretty good with slivered almonds, oatmeal, or honey. I’m not suggesting you try this, because if they don’t turn out well, you can’t feed them to the dog. Although, right now I’m thinking of a topping that combines honey, raisins, and slivered almonds. Gee, I’d like that on ice cream, too!

Most of us are familiar with Jiffy Corn Muffin Mix. In addition to corn muffins, Jiffy also makes raspberry, banana, oatmeal, and apple mixes. For a while we were regular consumers of these flavored muffins, then we just stopped. Of course, we stopped using them after I had stocked up on them. Combine one cup Jiffy with one cup pancake mix, add 1½ cups water, stir, let sit ten minutes, and make your pancakes. One bit of advice: the fruit in Jiffy Muffins isn’t real fruit, it’s fruit-flavored chips. Oh, and another: the pancakes will be sweeter than what you’ve made before. I don’t make these anymore because our local ValueMart no longer carries the fruity muffin mixes.

Don’t get me wrong. I appreciate the value of good, plain pancakes. Or buttermilk pancakes. But variety is good for you. Variety is the spice of life. Which reminds me…a dash of nutmeg, a bit of cinnamon, a little ginger…any or all of these together can go into your pancakes to give them a little pizzazz. If you don’t know what pizzazz is, you’re too young to be reading this.

Don’t add anything you wouldn’t normally eat; you know that’s a disaster in the making. Check your cabinets and freezer for little bits of things that aren’t enough in themselves, but would complement pancakes. Coconut? Sure! Whole oats? Absolutely. The key is to stay on board. Huh? Well, don’t go overboard; use no more than ¼ cup of fruit or nuts to a cup of batter. Actually, ⅛ cup is sufficient.

With all this experimenting, I have never made pancakes Chip wouldn’t eat. I may have said, “they’re okay but I wouldn’t want them again,” but nothing was inedible. And none ever made us sick. It’s like I said, variety is the spice of pancakes.

All photographs (except Bruce's Sweet Potato Pancakes) are courtesy of Inmagination.com