Pancakes

For this first post I figured I'd start with breakfast, everyone says it's the most important meal of the day. Pancakes are by far one of my favorite foods yet although I love them I very seldom make them because frankly I suck at them but I think I've finally conquered them. This recipe can be found on pg. 26 of the Healthy College Cookbook. They call them traditional pancakes:

1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
2 tablespoons sugar
 pinch of salt
1 egg
1 cup skim milk
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
cooking spray

1. combine the flour, baking powder, sugar and salt in a medium bowl.
2. in a large bowl, whisk together the egg, milk, oil, and vanilla. add the dry ingredients and stir until the mixture is smooth.
3. heat a nonstick skillet over medium heat until a drop of water dances on the surface. coat the skillet lightly with cooking spray. pour small puddles of batter, one for each pancake, into the skillet. Do Not crowd pancakes. (if you do not have a nonstick skillet, you'll need to melt a little butter in the pan first to keep the pancakes from sticking.) Cook until bubbles begin to appear and pop on the uncooked side. flip and cook the other side.when both sides are golden brown remove from the pan and keep warm while you cook the rest of the batter.

Substitutions:

• I put in a cup of soy milk instead of skim because I'm lactose intolerant
• I added brown sugar instead of white: had brown on hand

Notes

• the brown sugar makes the pancakes a bit more moist than normal so look out for that
• always let your batter rest before you start cooking it
• you might need an extra splash of milk if the batters too thick
• I put them in the microwave on warm to keep them warm: you can also use the oven set at 200F
• Use a big skillet, especially if you have trouble with the flip
• if you have trouble with the flip climb the pancake up the side of the pan with the spatula and use free hand to turn pancake

• some people use a ladle to measure out pancakes I just use the 1 cup measure. fill it about 1/2 full

Ta for now... enjoy your pancakes