The Great Single Serving Peanut Butter Pancake Debate

Chef Betharoni had done it just for me. The Gourmet In The Field had come up with a single serving peanut butter pancake recipe, and then entertained us with her story of the process.  She said it was just the first prototype, but I was in the mood to go ahead and try it. I knew she wouldn’t mind my experimenting, because I know how she “follows” recipes.  😉

You’ll have to go to her blog for the full recipe (use the link above or click here), but here are the changes I made:

• 1/3 cup milk, soured with an estimated 1/3 teaspoon of cider vinegar
• 1/4 cup peanut butter, but, yes, I used crunchy, so as not to be a heretic
• 3 TBSP of freshly ground pastry flour, plus 1 TBSP store bought unbleached white flour
• a smidge more salt, specifically sea salt, but I don’t know what kind of salt she used

Why did I make these changes? She had said her pancakes were on the thick side. I would rather they be thinner, hence more milk right from the start. I used the fresh ground pastry flour, ground in my WonderMill Grain Millthat I have had for over 20 years and use constantly. I think the taste of the fresh ground whole wheat pastry flour is light, but adds better flavor to things like cookies and pancakes. I originally used just the same amount of flour as her, but the batter was too thin, so I added the extra tablespoon of common white flour.

I admit to only using 1/4 cup of peanut butter because it was easier to measure that amount than 3/8 of a cup. I added a touch more salt because sea salt in general has slightly less salt power, plus I have been wanting more salt in all my baked goods lately. I have been regularly doubling the salt in most recipes!

The griddle that Chef Betharoni grew up with lives at my house, with the gas range she would prefer to use, and I had that pre-heating while I mixed things. About 30 seconds before pouring on the batter, I drizzled some olive oil on the griddle. Then, I poured approximate 2 inch disks of the pancake batter. Since my batter was quite a bit thinner, no spreading went on. I had to be careful not to pour too much. I don’t think they puffed quite as nicely as hers did, but that may be partially due to my griddle being too hot and having to turn them before they burnt. They were expanding upward, but I pushed them flat with the spatula to make sure they got cooked through. My bad. Still, I thought they were quite yummy!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It appears that my little changes make this a 2 serving recipe. I ate 7 buttered peanut butter pancakes. There are 7 left for tomorrow or for snacking. Ironically, I am also going for a long run this morning, so I will be able to report how the pancakes are for pre-run fuel. What next, Chef Betharoni?