Sourdough Pancakes

Ingredients

1 cup sourdough starter (room temperature)

1 T granulated sugar

1 egg

2 tablespoons olive oil

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 tablespoon warm water

Directions

In a large bowl, add sourdough starter, sugar, egg, olive oil, and salt; mix well; set aside. 

In a small bowl, dilute 1 teaspoon baking soda in 1 tablespoon of warm water; set aside until ready to bake your pancakes. Note: don't add the baking soda/water mixture to the pancake batter until right before you are ready to cook them. Once your pan or griddle is hot, you can mix it in quickly just before you cook them.

When ready to cook your sourdough pancakes, fold the baking soda/water mixture gently into the prepared pancake batter. Let the mixture bubble and foam a minute or two before using.

Heat up a lightly-greased griddle until medium/hot and pour the sourdough pancake batter onto the griddle.  For each pancake, pour about 1/4 cup sourdough pancake batter onto hot griddle. 

Peanut Butter Banana Chocolate Chip Pancakes

What more could you ask for in a pancake than peanut butter, banana, and chocolate chips? I'm pretty anti-banana but they are delicious in here.

Ingredients

1 very ripe banana

1 tsp baking powder

1 egg 

1 pinch salt

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

1T peanut, almond, sunflower butter

1T olive oil (or vegetable oil or melted coconut oil, whatever you have)

1/2 cup milk (or more depending on how thin you like your pancakes)

3/4 cup flour (I like to do any combo of white/wheat/almond flour here)

3 T chocolate chips

Directions

Preheat a skillet or griddle to medium heat. Mash your banana with baking powder. Add egg, oil, salt, vanilla, almond butter, and milk and stir. Stir in flour until just combined (don't over-mix). Add chocolate chips and fold in gently. 

Scoop 1/4 cup measurements onto griddle (may need cooking spray or butter depending on what kind of pan you're using). Cook for 2-4 minutes on each side - until golden brown. Make sure the pan/griddle isn't too hot because they're pretty hearty pancakes and it takes awhile for the middle to cook through.

Dutch Baby

Ingredients

½ cup milk

2 eggs

½ cup all-purpose flour

Pinch of salt

1 tablespoon butter

Toppings: fruit, powdered sugar, syrup, anything you like (it's not sweet so you can also do something savory on top)

Directions

Place a cast iron skillet in the oven and preheat to 450 (this works best for 9 inch skillet but you can make more or less for another size). Heat the milk in the microwave for 20 seconds. In a medium bowl beat the eggs, then stir in the warm milk. Slowly whisk in the flour and salt until smooth.

Carefully remove the hot skillet and add the butter to coat the bottom/inside. Add the batter to the skillet and place it back in the oven. Bake 12-14 minutes, or until browned and puffy.

Cinnamon Apple Rings: easy way to impress your friends

http://fortunegoodies.com/cinnamon-apple-rings/

Heidi sent this one in and I can't wait to make them. The one issue I have is that we are not fancy. The recipe calls for "different sized biscuit cutters." We don't have different sized biscuit cutters and I don't plan on buying them anytime soon. Because we are cheap, we use cookie cutters for biscuits. Unless they start making angel-shaped apples, we will be out of luck.

Also, I always like when a recipe comes with a story. It seems to make it more authentic somehow. Alas, this recipe didn't come with a built-in story, so I will have to make one up. Here goes:

One day, Heidi stumbled upon this recipe and decided to make it. Heidi and Haley were having an old-timey hoedown in the kitchen, which is their way.

Alas, Heidi spilled some of the buttermilk batter on Haley's new shoes. The shoes were spangled with stars and glitter, and every time she wore them she was the belle of the ball. A lesser woman may have been startled with fright, but Haley is a woman of considerable aplomb. She smiled and said "I now have the most beautiful AND most delicious shoes in all the land."

From that moment on they were known as "Haley's Shoe Apples."

The end.

Heidi & Haley's chocolate chocolate chip pancakes

1 1/2 cups flour
1/4 cup cocoa powder
3 tbsp sugar
1/3 cup sugar
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
Whisk dry ingredients together.

1 1/2 cups milk
1/2 stick butter (melted)
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
Whisk wet ingredients together.

Combine both bowls of ingredients and whisk in 3/4 cups of mini chocolate chips.  Cook on griddle at about 325.