TITUS 2-SDAY - PANCAKES!

We did not have pancakes for breakfast this morning - but that's only because we had them for supper night before last. I love pancakes! They are our version of "fast food" - quick and easy to prepare, cheap, and everybody at my house likes them. Here is the awesome Kendall pancake recipe (so much better than a mix), followed by a few pancake-y tips and ideas.

BASIC PANCAKES
Sift together dry ingredients:
1 1/2 c. flour
1 Tbsp. sugar
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt

Whisk together wet ingredients:
1 1/2 c. buttermilk
2 eggs
2 Tbsp. oil or melted butter
1/2 tsp. vanilla

Stir wet ingredients into dry, just until moistened. Let sit 3-5 minutes, to allow flour to absorb moisture. Pour batter onto hot griddle. Turn pancakes when tops are bubbly. Serve hot with butter and syrup.

This batter makes thick, fluffy pancakes. If you like your pancakes thinner and flatter, add more buttermilk to make a thinner batter. To feed 8, I double this recipe. As is, I think it would serve 4-6, depending upon whether you have big eaters or not.

Okay, now for the fun stuff...extras! My family really likes banana pancakes - I add two smushed, over-ripe bananas to a double recipe of batter. Yum! For blueberry pancakes, stir a half cup of fresh or frozen blueberries into a single recipe of batter. Other tasty add-ins: chopped walnuts, cinnamon, or bits of cooked apple.

Another idea - We like to spread peanut butter on plain pancakes before dousing them with syrup. This adds some protein and gives your breakfast a bit more staying power. (We learned this trick from camping buddies - thanks, Katherine!) Another friend stores leftover pancakes in a ziploc baggie and uses them to make peanut-butter-and-jelly sandwiches for lunch - her kids think the small, round sandwiches are pretty cool!

I prefer real maple syrup for my pancakes, but it is SO EXPENSIVE. Instead, we make our own pancake syrup. Combine two parts sugar with one part water in a saucepan (eg., 2 c. sugar, 1 c. water). Bring to a boil; stir and boil for one minute. Remove from heat. Add a tablespoon of Mapleine flavoring. Cool before serving. (Mapleine is available at Wal-Mart, on the same shelf as other flavorings and extracts. It comes in a blue box.)

One year I made strawberry jam and forgot to put in the Sure-Jell. The jam didn't "set", and I was left with several jars of strawberry syrup. This made a fabulous pancake and ice cream topping. Another yummy topping: sliced fresh strawberries, dusted with powdered sugar.

I hope this gives you some ideas - go start cooking!