Cookbook:Ginger Pancakes

| American cuisine | Breakfast Cuisine | Vegetarian Cuisine | Bread

Ingredients

 * 1 cup all-purpose bleached flour
 * 2 teaspoons sugar
 * ½ teaspoon salt
 * ½ teaspoon baking powder
 * ¼ teaspoon baking soda
 * 1 teaspoon ground ginger
 * ¾ cup buttermilk
 * ¼ cup milk
 * 1 large egg
 * 2 tablespoon unsalted butter, melted
 * 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
 * Vegetable oil for brushing griddle
 * ½ cup finely-chopped crystallized ginger

Procedure

 * 1) Heat a large non-stick skillet or griddle over low heat while preparing ingredients.
 * 2) Mix flour, sugar, salt, baking powder, and baking soda in medium bowl.
 * 3) Whisk ground ginger into dry ingredients.
 * 4) Microwave buttermilk and milk in a 2-cup Pyrex measuring cup for 20–30 seconds until it is room temperature. Whisk in egg, butter, and vanilla.
 * 5) Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients and whisk until just mixed.
 * 6) Return batter to measuring cup, stirring in a teaspoon or two of water, if necessary, to make a thick, but pourable batter.
 * 7) Increase heat to medium and generously brush skillet or griddle with oil.
 * 8) When oil starts to spider, but before it starts to smoke, pour in dollops of batter, about ¼ cup at a time. Work in batches, if necessary, to avoid overcrowding.
 * 9) Sprinkle 1 tablespoon crystallized ginger over the uncooked side of each pancake as it cooks.
 * 10) When pancake bottoms are golden brown and tops start to bubble (2–3 minutes), flip pancakes.
 * 11) Cook until pancakes are golden brown on remaining side.
 * 12) Repeat cooking with remaining batter, brushing skillet or griddle with oil between batches.
 * 13) Serve hot.

Notes, tips, and variations

 * Use bleached flour to make a more tender pancake.
 * If using salted butter, reduce salt to ¼ teaspoon.
 * Pancake batter should pour, not glug! On the other hand, runny batter makes thin, oddly shaped pancakes that frequently collide on the griddle. Stir in a touch more flour into thin batter. For batter that's too thick, whisk in water, a teaspoon at a time.
 * The temperature of the pan or griddle is important: too hot and the pancakes are dark and raw; too cool and they're blond and hard. For tender, golden brown pancakes, heat the pan or griddle on low while you make the batter. Then increase the heat to medium and generously brush the pan or griddle with oil. It's ready when the oil starts to shimmer and, in any skillet or griddle other than non-stick, sends out tendrils that resemble and octopus or spider. But if the pan starts to smoke, set it down off the burner until the smoking subsides and the oil cools a bit.
 * This recipe easily doubles for a crowd.