What Does Your Pancake Preference Say About You?
Somehow, despite the fact it feels as though Christmas has only just happened, it's Shrove Tuesday tomorrow. That crêpet up ... ... ... okay, okay, enough of the terrible pancake puns. What I'm more interested in is what your pancake preference says about your personality.
Given the choice, are you most likely to opt for a savoury filling? Or are you a pancake traditionalist for whom nothing but standard lemon & caster sugar will suffice?
Savoury Susan
Picture the scene, you're sat with a group of friends around the table of a Dutch Pancake House - one of those where the menu offers over 100 combinations to choose from. As you're drooling over golden syrup, caramel sauce and spoonfuls of nutella, Susan pipes up "I think I'll go for cheese & mushroom" ... silence. Erm, hello! Can somebody please remind Susan she's in a Pancake House, not Pizza Hut.
"I'm just more of a savoury sort of person" justifies Susan. Well, me too as it happens, but not when it comes to pancakes. Surely sweet is the only way to go? Unless you're opting for a two course pancake extravaganza and then I'll forgive you one of each. Savoury Susan goes against the grain. She's carefree. Susan is unfazed by what anybody else might think. Some might say a maverick, but in my honest opinion, Susan is just plain wrong.
The Fancy Crêper
There is most definitely an air of sophistication around the fancy crêper. Whilst these days found commonly served at Christmas markets & British fairgrounds, crêpes originate in thirteenth century Brittany. Legend has it they were discovered quite by accident when a French housewife spilled some porridge on a hot, flat iron cooker top. Many folk have tried to replicate the wafer thin pancake ever since, but the French have turned it into an art-form. Whether you're a simple lemon & sugar sort of person or a flamboyant fan of the crêpe Suzette - a batter made with lightly grated orange peel and Grand Marnier, which is subsequently lit upon presentation - your pancake of choice suggests you're an elegant traditionalist & like things to be done proper.
The Fluffy New Yorker
Now this is my kind of pancaker. Forget wafer thin, when it comes to pancakes ... squishy, spongey, fluffy, tangy blueberry beauties are surely the best? These are the sorts of pancakes I'd envisage served up at Central Perk, or inside one of those shiny tin diner pit stops beside Route 66. A little fresh fruit because, well, we're not heathens. But most importantly the pancake itself ought to be 0.5cm thick at a minimum. To me, the fluffy New Yorker appreciates cosy home comforts, loves indulgence and goes all-in for decadence without having to justify the occasion.
Fancy making your own vegan Blueberry beauties this Shrove Tuesday? Here's how
INGREDIENTS
125g self raising flour (I used gluten free)
250ml milk (I used almond)
1 tbsp coconut sugar
1 tbsp baking powder
1 tsp apple cider vinegar
Coconut Oil (for frying)
100g fresh blueberries
HERE'S HOW
Add the flour, milk, sugar, baking powder & apple cider vinegar to a nutribullet cup and blitz. It should form a thick batter
Heat the coconut oil in a pan
Add a drop of thick batter to the pan, pouring very slowly. Then drop fresh blueberries into the circle of batter. Allow to fry for a minute or so until the underneath is solid, carefully flip & fry the other side
Stack high & serve with fresh blueberries & maple syrup
