Light & Fluffy Buttermilk Pancakes with Strawberry Syrup

I love to sometimes surprise my kids with a special breakfast on a Saturday or Sunday morning.  Not every Saturday or Sunday mind you....then it wouldn't be a surprise.  All week long they pretty much eat cereal, oatmeal or eggs with cheese and toast.  So they love when they wake up to something different.  It just makes for start of a good day.  Happy kids generally result in an even happier mommy!

So this past weekend I got up early (now THAT is love), opened the fridge and saw a very sad container of strawberries just sitting there ready to be either used ASAP or thrown in the compost/recycle bin.  Option B: No, no, no!!  I decided the best course of action would be to turn some borderline nasty strawberries into some sweet delicious strawberry syrup for a pancake topping.  I am so glad I opted for this.  The strawberry syrup turned out so good...a beautiful red topping that is not too thick or too thin and is bursting with yummy strawberriness.  It made me really excited for all the delicious strawberry dishes I will be able to make with the fruit I will yield from my strawberry garden this summer.  This is a super simple recipe and could easily be adapted with other fruits like blueberries, raspberries, blackberries, cherries, peaches....not sure about bananas, but maybe??

I am always on the search to try a new pancake recipe and recently started following a really cool blog, SWEET AS SUGAR COOKIES.  If you are looking for suggestions on sweet treats to make, I would click on over and check out Lisa's page.  The other day she blogged (and raved) about some super fluffy pancakes she had made from an Alton Brown (the Food Network cook that breaks down everything scientifically) recipe.  She had a picture of this stack of pancakes she made that was a mile high!  I wanted to try them as soon as possible....this particular morning would be the perfect reason to whip up a batch.  Much like Lisa, I have no idea scientifically why separating the egg whites from the egg yolks and then combining them at a later point in the recipe results in such a high rising pancake, and honestly after I started eating the pancakes I really could have cared less.  They really were so light and fluffy!  My husband even commented about how "puffy" they were...and for him to notice ANYTHING about the food I make automatically gets the recipe bonus points.  It was pretty fun to watch how they elevated right after flipping them...I was a tiny bit sad Brenna wasn't there to watch them with me.  I think I might make them again tonight just so I can share the novelty with her.  Plus is there any WRONG reason to make pancakes?!?  I don't think so!!

Strawberry Syrup

I have been making syrup like this for years and honestly don't know where I found the recipe.  It's really just a simple syrup with fruit mixed in it...not sure anyone can really lay claim to this one.  Recipe yields about 2 cups of syrup.

2 c. chopped strawberries (if you want smooth syrup, mash your strawberries.  I wanted chunks in mine so I just cut them up.  They break down quite a bit during cooking anyway.)

1 c. white sugar

1 c. water

2 tsp. cornstarch

   

Add 3/4 c. of water and 1 c. sugar to a saucepan and bring to a boil, stirring frequently.

Once the sugar is dissolved and mixture is boiling, slowly add the strawberries.  Continue to stir until mixture returns to a boil.

Reduce heat and simmer, uncovered, for 10 mins.  Make sure you continue to stir often so the syrup doesn't stick to the pan.  Meanwhile, in a small bowl, combine the cornstarch with the remaining 1/4 c water and stir until dissolved.

Pour the liquid cornstarch into the mixture and continue stirring constantly until desired consistency is reached.  Remove from heat.  Syrup will thicken slightly as it cools.

Buttermilk Pancakes (Alton Brown)

*I forgot to count how many pancakes I got, but there was more than enough for my family.  I'd say there was probably about 16 of them.

2 c. flour

1/2 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
1 tbsp. sugar
1 egg, separated
1 c. buttermilk (I had no buttermilk so I added 1 tbsp. white vinegar to enough milk to make 1 cup)
2 tbsp. melted butter

In a large mixing bowl, combine the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt and sugar.

In a small bowl, melt the butter.  Then whisk together with the egg yolk until blended.

In another container, whisk together the egg white with the buttermilk (or fake buttermilk that I made).

Combine the butter mixture with the buttermilk mixture and mix well.

Add the liquid ingredients to the dry ingredients, and mix until ingredients just start to come together.  DO NOT stir until mixture is smooth.  There will still be lumps in your batter...this is OKAY!

Lightly grease a pan or griddle and heat over medium heat.  Gently drop the batter by 1/4 c and cook until bubbles start to form around the edges and the bottom is golden brown.

Flip the pancakes and prepare to be amazed!

Continue cooking for an additional minute, until other side is golden brown.

Buttermilk Pancakes and Strawberry Syrup.  YUM!

As I was making the scrambled eggs, I cracked open 1 egg that had 2 yolks.  See it on the top?!?  I hate these for no other reason than they creep me out!! =)

Recipe for: Strawberry Syrup

www.momsaysjustonebite.blogspot.com

To prepare: Recipe yields about 2 cups of syrup.  Store the unused portion in an airtight container in the refrigerator.

Ingredients

Directions

2 c. chopped strawberries 1 c. white sugar 1 c. water 2 tsp. corn starch

1.   In a saucepan, combine ¾ c. water and 1 c. sugar.  Heat the mixture to boiling, stirring frequently. 2.   Slowly add the strawberries and return mixture to boiling, stirring frequently. 3.   Reduce heat and simmer, uncovered, for 10 mins. continuing to stir so the syrup doesn’t stick to the pan. 4.   Combine the corn starch with ¼ c. water and mix until smooth. 5.   Add the corn starch mixture to the syrup.  Continue to cook, stirring constantly, until desired consistency is reached.

Recipe for: Buttermilk Pancakes

www.momsaysjustonebite.blogspot.com

Originally from http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/alton-brown/instant-pancake-mix-recipe/index.html

To prepare: Recipe yields about 14-16 pancakes.  Lightly grease a pan or griddle. 

Ingredients

Directions

2 c. flour ½  tsp. baking soda 1 tsp. baking powder 1 tsp. salt 1 tbsp. sugar 1 egg, separated 1 c. buttermilk 2 tbsp. melted butter

1.   In a large mixing bowl, combine the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt and sugar. 2.   In a small bowl, whisk together the melted butter and egg yolk. 3.   In a second bowl, whisk together the egg white and buttermilk. 4.   Combine the butter mixture and buttermilk mixture and mix well. 5.   Add the liquid ingredients to the dry ingredients and mix with a whisk until the batter comes together.  DO NOT work out the lumps. 6.   Heat the pan or griddle over medium heat until water drops dance across the surface.   7.   Gently drop batter by ¼ c onto the griddle, and cook until bubbles form around the edges and the bottom is golden brown. 8.   Flip the pancakes and continue to cook an additional minute until other side is golden brown.

Strawberry-Banana-Pineapple Smoothie

So when is the best time to make smoothies?  Easy....whenever you have fruit that is about to go bad!!  My kids think I'm making them to be nice which is partially true and I'd rather give them a "dessert" that is made up almost entirely of fruit.  We have tried lots of different combinations of fruit and juices.  Sometimes I will throw in a scoop of yogurt if I have some in the fridge, but this is hands down our favorite combination.  In the past, I have tried freezing the fruit to skip the step of adding ice, but honestly, smoothies are almost always a last minute decision in my home so I don't have the added bonus of time to prep the fruit and throw it in the freezer.  I know you could always buy the fruit ahead of time and have it pre-frozen for when my kids need a smoothie fix, but honestly I think it's just easier to throw in the fresh fruit, some juice and a cup of ice and whizz it up in the blender.  I haven't found the ice to water down the smoothie too much or dilute the sweetness of the fruit at all.  It actually is almost needed to balance out the sweetness of the fruit.  Plus, when you are making smoothies for 5 people (6 in a year from now!!!), the ice is a nice filler.  I'm all about stretching out your resources and making a little go a long way!

Bananas rarely make it to the point of even starting to brown in my home.  I've even tried buying an extra bunch in the hopes of them turning brown for banana bread or smoothies (pretty much the only 2 ways I use "old" bananas) and all that happens is my family ends up eating more bananas.  Not a bad thing, but not helpful in making the bread or smoothies.  Banana bread without bananas would just be bread and that's silly!  Strawberries were on sale this past week for only $1 per 16 oz. container!!  I couldn't believe it!!  So I stocked up and bought 3 containers.  The strawberries acted as a nice diversion from the bananas allowing them to start turning brown.  Yeah!  So in went the last 2 bananas, the last container of strawberries (which were starting to turn a little questionable themselves), half of a 20 oz can of pineapple chunks in their own juice, a little orange juice and a big cup of crushed ice.  Blend it well and serve immediately in glasses. 

Smoothies are so easy to make that it's a shame and a waste of money to buy at those expensive smoothie places.  Plus in the time it takes you to get in your car, drive out to the smoothie place, wait in line and then fork out your cash, you could easily have already made your own at home!!  Sure I don't have powdered supplements to add in or any wheat grass growing on my window sill, but fruit is fruit whether you buy it in the store or pay twice as much or someone else to buy it and prep it for you.  Plus, most of the smoothies you buy have hidden sugars in them somewhere!  The only exception I will ever make to the rule is when I meet a friend out for smoothies, but I'm pretty much paying for the conversation and a child free evening, not so much the smoothie itself.  Every now and then it's good to pretend that even for just a few hours I am still an adult, not just a mom!!

1 container strawberries, washed and hulled of course.  I suppose if you really want to use the top green parts of the berry you could, but I probably wouldn't recommend it!!  2 bananas, 1 20 oz can pineapple in 100% juice and some orange juice.

Throw in the bananas, berries, 1/2 the can of pineapple chunks and 1/2 the juice, and a splash of orange juice.  At this point my blender is pretty full so I have to blend it once to make room for the ice.

I never thought I would ever take a picture of a glass of ice, but here it is in all it's glory! The oooohhhs and aaaahhhs may commence now!  =)

Add ice to the blender and process until smooth....thus the name smoothies.

Pour in a glass and serve.  Sorry, we were out of straws and those little umbrella things.  It still tasted the same without them though.