A special type of pancake.

Pancakes in our household is almost a weekly tradition. During the week we are rushing about – rushing to get the girls dressed, rushing to get them out the door to daycare/preschool, and rushing to drive to work. Often breakfast for the kids is a quick bowl of cereal in the kitchen or a piece of fruit bread while walking to their childcare centre. The weekend is the only time we all get together and sit at the dinner table for breakfast. It’s nice, relaxing and fun. If we’re not having pancakes, we’re having eggs on toast or french toast… but more often than not it’s pancakes. While we often make American Pancakes, we whip up these blueberry ricotta pancakes when it’s a special occasion.

This week I had some ricotta in the fridge left over from when I made gnocchi one night. At first I got the big raised eyebrow look from Daniel when he discovered that I was putting ricotta into the pancakes. He was definitely skeptical, especially not being a cheese fan. Then when I served these ricotta pancakes, he was pleasantly surprised. Daniel really enjoyed them. Actually that’s exactly how he reacted when I made ricotta gnocchi.

Let’s get technical

The next part of this post talks about the technical element around the eggs in this ricotta pancakes recipe.  How you whip them, then how you fold them into the mixture – this is what adds the lightness and volume to the pancake mixture.

First, lets talk about beating the egg whites. These need to be soft peaks. In other words, the egg white holds its shape in the bowl and will not slide out if the bowl is upside down. When you lift the beater or whisk out of the egg white foam, a peak will form that slumps over to the side.

Once you have your egg white foam, you need to fold it into the batter mixture. To do this correctly is a form of art. You can’t rush this stage or you lose the air you’ve whipped into the egg whites. First you need to temper the batter by only mixing in about 1/3 of the foam. This helps with mixing in the rest of the egg whites. To temper you only stir the egg whites into the batter until the batter looks barely combined and slightly clumpy. Now comes the actual folding. Always use a large spatula or metal spoon… but never a whisk or electric beater. Use this to cut a path down the middle of the mixture with the edge of the spatula. Gently turn half the mixture over onto the other half – in other words, folding. Continue cutting down the middle and turning a portion over until you’ve incorporated the whites. The finished mixture should still look a little lumpy but no egg whites should actually be showing.

So there you have it. If you didn’t know how to either beat or fold egg whites before, you do now!

Blueberry Ricotta Pancakes

Light and fluffy, these pancakes are worth the little extra effort to prepare. Definitely make these when you have a special breakfast or brunch planned. Serve with fresh fruit and maple syrup.

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Prep Time 10 minutes mins

Cook Time 20 minutes mins

Total Time 30 minutes mins

Servings 4 serves

Ingredients

 

• 1 1/2 cups flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
• 3 large eggs, separated
• 1 3/4 cups milk
• 2/3 cup ricotta cheese
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
• unsalted butter, for the frying pan
• 250 g blueberries, fresh
• Pure maple syrup, for serving

Instructions

 

• Preheat the oven to 100 degrees celsius.
• In a small bowl, whisk the flour, baking powder and salt. In a large bowl, whisk the egg yolks with the milk, ricotta, sugar and vanilla. Add the dry ingredients and whisk until the batter is smooth.
• In a large bowl, using an electric mixer, beat the egg whites at medium speed until frothy. Beat at high speed until soft peaks form. Fold in 1/3 of the egg whites into the batter to temper it, then fold in the remaining egg whites until no streaks remain.
• Preheat your frying pan on low-medium heat, then lightly butter it.
• For each pancake, ladle about 1/4 cup of the batter for each pancake. You may be able to put more than one pancake in the pan at a time but make sure you leave enough space between them. Sprinkle each pancake with a few blueberries and press lightly. Cook until the bottoms are golden and the pancakes are just beginning to set, about 1 to 2 minutes.
• Flip the pancakes and cook until golden on the bottom and cooked through, about 1 minute longer. Transfer the pancakes to a plate and keep them warm in the oven while you make the rest.
• Serve warm.

Notes

• The batter can be refrigerated overnight. Bring to room temperature and whisk briefly before cooking.
• These pancakes are wonderful when served with fresh fruit such as chopped banana, strawberries or extra blueberries. A dose of maple syrup on top and you've got yourself a breakfast that will impress.