Wake Up with Super Simple Pancakes

While my boys take longer to get started in the morning, I wake up early and I wake up HUNGRY!  I like to start the day with something hot, usually porridge.  Sometimes that just won't do. You know what I mean,  a full cooked breakfast is too much .... cereal or toast is too little. This sounds like a job for the Super Simple Pancake Recipe!

These pancakes are really quick to make but if you are pressed for time in the morning, you can prepare the ingredients before you go to bed. Just measure the dry ingredients into your mixing bowl and  cover it with cling film.  Leave it on the counter overnight. Combine the wet ingredients in a jug and refrigerate overnight.  In the morning whisk the two together and TA DA.....pancake batter!

Here is the list of ingredients:

1 cup plain flour

2 Tablespoons sugar

2 teaspoons baking powder

pinch of salt

1 cup milk*

1 egg, beaten

2 Tablespoons vegetable oil

Place the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt in a mixing bowl.  Give this a quick stir to lighten the flour and mix together all the dry ingredients.  Add the remaining ingredients and whisk until the flour is incorporated.  Don't over beat the batter, it's OK if you have a few TINY lumps.

Let the batter rest while you heat a griddle or frying pan and grease it with a little butter or oil.  (It's hot enough to cook pancakes when you sprinkle in a few drops of water and they skitter around.)  I use a bit of paper towel dipped in vegetable oil to lightly grease the frying pan between each addition of batter.

Using a jug or a big spoon, pour pancake batter on to the hot griddle or frying pan. You can make them any size you want.... tiny Silver Dollar pancakes or full frying pan size pancakes! The little ones are probably easier to turn over. Turn the pancakes when they start to puff up and have lots of little bubbles. Cook on the flip-side for a few minutes, until golden brown. 

 Now this is important, don't worry if the first pancake doesn't want to leave the pan or isn't perfectly cooked!  Almost everyone has a weird first pancake experience.  You feed that one to the birds, or the dog, or eat it yourself while cooking the other pancakes.  Just grease your pan and start another pancake.  It will be perfect! 

   Serve them with butter and syrup. 

Since there are only two of us for breakfast, I often have batter left over.  This can be kept, covered, in the fridge until the next morning.  Add a few drops of milk, if the batter has thicken overnight, to make it pourable and give it a good stir before using it.  Oh boy, pancakes for breakfast AGAIN! 

*If you like super-fluffy pancakes, substitute buttermilk or plain yogurt for the milk.  The pancakes will puff up  and be extra light textured. Delicious!