I love rituals. Most of my daily rituals are done in the early hours of the day. Before the 6AM hour, when all of my babies wake, I’ll have exercised, straightened up, watched the Real Housewives of (insert city), and enjoyed my morning coffee. I love that time to myself. These are rituals that, if accomplished, I have a happier day.
Pancake mornings are an important ritual for most families. I realize after cooking pancakes for this post, however, that they are not a family ritual in my home. I don’t know why. My children and I do share some rituals. For instance, Cameron and I sing the Pie Song before bed, and we usually go for pizza every Friday afternoons. Wesley and I … well, I change Wesley’s diaper a couple of times a day. That’s a ritual right there. I just can’t believe that as an avid home baker I do not have a baking/cooking ritual with my family. Especially cooking something as easy and as kid-friendly as pancakes. Hopefully, that will change.
These pancakes are yummy! A little crisp on the outside, soft on the inside. They taste a bit tangy due to the buttermilk, but they have a nice, lightly sweet finish. I poured Apricot Honey over them instead of maple syrup just to change things up. Oh, and below I have a picture of my vanilla extract that I made from scratch. The Kitchn has a great “how-to” post on making your own vanilla extract.
- 1 2/3 cups All-Purpose Flour
- 1 TBS. Granulated Sugar
- 1/2 TBS. Baking Powder
- 3/4 tsp. Salt
- 1 1/2 cups Buttermilk
- 1/2 TBS. Vanilla Extract
- 2 TBS. Unsalted Butter, melted
- 2 Eggs, large
- Butter as needed to coat griddle
- In a large bowl, sift together the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt.
- In a smaller bowl, or large measuring cup, combine the buttermilk, melted butter, vanilla extract and eggs. Pour the liquid ingredients into the dry ingredients. Mix just until combined. A lumpy batter is better than a smooth batter.
- Coat the griddle with clarified butter and turn up to medium heat. Once the temperature of the griddle reaches 375 degrees F. drop a ladle-full of batter on to it.
- When bubbles appear on the pancake's surface and the bottom is browned, flip the pancake to cook opposite side.
Lumpy pancake batter is better
Homemade Vanilla Extract
