eclaire (what’s in a) name?

thanks to the magic of delayed posting, i am not at home typing away right now, but off enjoying boston, portland (maine), new york city, and ann arbor (to see my sister!!!) with mike to celebrate both our wedding (2 year) and dating (10! year!) anniversaries. so while we’re exploring the eastern side of our country, i thought i’d keep you all satiated with my favorite pancake recipe – partly because pancakes are so delicious and partly because my sis-in-law asked me to post the recipe on this site after sampling them.

this is one of those recipes that i’ve had in my recipe box forever, and i tend to change it every time i make it depending upon what fruit i have on hand and what i’m craving at the moment. regardless of ingredients, the most important item you need to have when making pancakes is patience – and for this reason, mike is usually the one who cooks the pancakes. i used to turn the burner up too high, press down on the cakes as they’re cooking, and flip them way too soon, yielding  flat, burnt, uncooked in the middle blobs. but over the years, i’ve learned to warm up the pan as soon as i begin making the batter, but keep the temp on medium.  i use real butter to grease the pan, and wait until i see bubbles (like on the picture on the left) and browned edges before i flip. and i never, ever, ever press them so they’ll stay nice and fluffy. i suggest you do the same.

before i leave you to enjoy this recipe, i want to strongly encourage all of you to let me know if you want to see a recipe for something on eclaire.name. i would honestly love nothing more than to post your favorite foods here! if you have requests or suggestions, leave me a comment below,  send me a tweet, or leave me a message on facebook.

pancakes

• 1½c flour (i often use a 50/50 mix of all purpose and whole wheat)
• 1/2c oats
• 2t baking powder
• 1/2t baking soda
• 1/2t salt
• 1/2t cinnamon, optional
• 1½c (soy) milk
• 2t sugar (i like brown)
• 2T oil
• 1t vanilla
• 2 eggs
• 1 apple grated, optional
• 1c berries, optional
• butter, for cooking
• maple syrup or jam for the top
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1. heat frying pan over medium heat
2. mix the flour, oats, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon together in a large bowl
3. add the soy milk, sugar, oil, vanilla and eggs, stirring once all ingredients are added (if you  stir in between the batter will get tough)
4. add fruit as desired
5. melt butter in pan and pour about 1/3c batter into pan, making sure pancakes are several inches apart (see pics above)
6. allow pancake to cook for about 4 minutes per side, or until lots of bubbles form and the edges are noticeably darker (see pics above again)
7. either place them in the over to keep warm while cooking the rest, or serve immediately, topped with jam or maple syrup and enjoy!