Honey & Vanilla Pancakes {with Strawberry & Rhubarb Sauce}

One of the things that I love to do on Saturdays now that the weather is nicer, is go downtown to the St.Lawrence Market. I love wandering through the North Farmer’s Market tables, because most of what you get there is local produce, with a lot of organic options. Inside the two levels of the South Market, you will find everything food related from cooking supplies, produce, cheese, meats and more! On Saturdays, they’re open at 5am, so I make my way down there as early as possible. Today, I managed to get there for shortly before 6am, and went on my mission to pick up some tasty foods. Since I was out grocery shopping at the market so early, getting back from the market at 7am gave me ample time to prepare a tasty and healthy{ish} breakfast for Joe and myself. {More about my day at the St.Lawrence Market.}

This morning, I decided on pancakes. I don’t really like plain pancakes, and didn’t feel up for adding fruit to them. I loved chocolate chip pancakes as a kid, but find that to be a bit too sweet for such an early hour. What I wanted was something that was light, with a hint of sweetness to them. So here’s what I threw together! Enjoy!

This recipe serves 2 people, and I’ve also included a quick strawberry rhubarb sauce that I made to go along with the pancakes.

Honey & Vanilla Pancakes

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cup unbleached flour
2 tsp baking powder
1 tbsp vanilla
1 tsp cinnamon
1 3/4 cups milk {start with 1 1/2 cups, if the batter is too thick, add a little more in 1/4 cup increments until it’s as thin or thick as  you like it}
1/2 tsp salt
2 egg whites
2 tbsp vegetable oil
1 tbsp golden liquid honey
1 tsp vanilla sugar

Method:

In a large bowl, mix together all of the dry ingredients.
Add the egg whites and oil to the dry ingredients, and stir.
Add all of the other ingredients, and mix well until there are no lumps/traces of dry ingredients.
Heat a pan over medium heat, and spray with a light coating of cooking spray. Allow to warm up for a minute or two.
Pour about 1/4 cup of pancake batter {more if you want larger pancakes, less if you want smaller pancakes}, and tilt the pan slightly to make sure the batter is spread out evenly. You don’t want it too thinned out, and may not even need to tilt the pan at all…
Allow to cook until you see bubbles forming on the surface of the batter. At this point, use a spatula to slowly and carefully detach the pancake from the pan. Once you’ve gotten the pancake onto the spatula, carefully flip it uncooked side down back into the pan. If you’ve never made pancakes before, your first or second one may be a little crumbled and ugly, but that’s alright! Start off with small pancakes, it’s easier.
Once it’s flipped onto the other side, cook for another 2-3 minutes. After 2 minutes, check the pancake by gently lifting the side up with the spatula. If it’s golden brown, it’s good to go! If not, keep it on longer, checking at 1 minute intervals.
When it’s done, set the pancake aside in a paper towel lined plate {if you just stack them on a plate while they’re sitting waiting for the others to be done, the steam coming from the pancake will collect onto the plate and cause your pancakes to be soggy}. Then cover the plate of pancakes with a plate or a bowl so they stay warm. Repeat these steps with a 1/4 cup of batter for each pancake until all of the batter is done.
Serve with syrup, a fruit sauce, or any other toppings you like!

Strawberry & Rhubarb Sauce

Ingredients:

1/2 cup chopped strawberries {about 5 large, or 10 small}
2 stalks rhubarb, finely diced {prepare the stalks of rhubarb similar to the way you would prepare celery. Cut off both ends, cut out any dented or marked bits, and if you like you can peel off some of the outer skin although it is not necessary}
1 cup water
1/2 cup orange juice
1 tsp sugar
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 tbsp maple syrup

Method:

Fill a saucepan with 1 cup of water, and the rhubarb, and bring to a boil over medium-high heat.
Allow to boil for 1 minute, then drain.
Add the orange juice to the saucepan with the rhubarb, and all of the other ingredients except for the strawberries and maple syrup.
Return the saucepan to the stove, and bring back to a boil at medium-high heat.
Once it comes to a boil, cook {stirring constantly} for 1 minute.
Remove from heat, and add the strawberries and maple syrup. Stir.
Add all contents to the blender, and blend until smooth.
Drizzle the sauce over pancakes, waffles, or frozen yogurt/ice cream!



Filed under: breakfast, desserts, Recipes Tagged: breakfast, culinary, dessert, fruit, healthy, maple syrup, pancakes, recipe, rhubarb, sauce, st. lawrence market, strawberry, Sweet, Toronto, vanilla