light pancakes Archives - Splash of Sherri

We first had marzipan pancakes in Chicago many years ago. I wish I could remember the name of the restaurant, but I can’t. It was super cute and they had the most amazing breakfast. What I can remember, is at the time my older son was very much into marzipan. He talked about it incessantly! His entire 5^th grade class knew about it, of course our family and friends, and even our rabbi got in on the action and yada, yada, yada, yes, he loves marzipan too! Imagine our surprise to find they had what they called marzipan pancakes on the menu! They were amazing!

They were sweet, but not too sweet and they tasted like the familiar rainbow cookies – a.k.a. Neapolitan cookies – a.k.a. 7 layer cookies. And, without a doubt they tasted like marzipan! The texture is light and sprinkled throughout with delicious specks of almond paste.

In case you are not familiar, I should probably tell you what marzipan and almond paste is. Marzipan is sweeter and smoother than almond paste. It is roughly 2/3 sugar to 1/3 ground almonds, it’s soft and pliable and can be molded into beautiful realistic looking candy. It is most often made into the shape of fruits or vegetables. Almond paste is less sweet and grainier. It is roughly 50/50 sugar and ground almonds and is used for baked goods like cakes and cookies like the rainbows mentioned above. The reason the restaurant called them marzipan pancakes instead of almond pancakes was because the chef was also a big fan of this delicious confection. Join the club!

Because of my son’s peanut allergy, we always asked for ingredients of foods when at a restaurant – especially breakfast. The waiter told us it was a basic pancake recipe but they added cream cheese to add richness and almond paste for an intense almond flavor. I wrote down what he said and knew I was going to have to try to make them when I got home and of course I did! The restaurant made the batter from scratch and back in the day I did too. Once I found a good box mix I liked, I never looked back! No shame in that especially when you find one that has wholesome organic ingredients and not crazy on the sugar.

So, today in celebration of National Pancake Day, I decided to throw it back to when my boys were little and I made what they proclaimed to be the best pancakes they ever ate in their lives! Enjoy!

ingredients
2 cups pancake mix (I like Annie’s organic)
4 ounces almond paste, grated on a box grater
1 cup fat free milk (or whatever milk you like)
1/4 cup (4 ounces) low-fat cream cheese, at room temperature
1 large or extra-large egg
1 tablespoon unsalted butter melted plus additional for the griddle
1 teaspoon pure almond extract
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
¼ teaspoon baking powder
Optional: confectioner’s sugar, maple syrup, slivered almonds, strawberries

directions
Preheat a griddle or a large, nonstick skillet over low heat while preparing the batter.

In a large bowl combine the milk, cream cheese, egg, 1 tablespoon of melted butter, almond and vanilla extracts. I use a handheld stick blender but you could also use a food processor to process until smooth. Add the pancake mix and blend until just combined. Then add the almond paste and stir to incorporate.

Check the temperature of the griddle. It should be hot but not so hot that it burns the butter. You can make a little test pancake to see how hot it is by dropping one tablespoon of batter onto the griddle. This is a great nosh while making the rest of the pancakes!

Grease the pan with the remaining butter. Work in batches and pour ¼ cup of batter onto the pan and cook for about 2 minutes a side or until the top starts to bubble and the bottom is golden brown. I like to use my ¼ cup cookie scoop for this, but a measuring cup will be great for this too. Continue with the remaining batter making sure to butter in between.

Serve with strawberries or fruit of your choice. I like it with a little confectioners sugar sprinkled on top and some toasted almonds. Go ahead and dress them up however you like.

As if I even need a reason, one of my favorite things about these pancakes beside the obvious (hello – they are PANCAKES!), is they use a whole can of pumpkin puree! No smidgen of pumpkin left behind in the fridge for weeks until it’s unrecognizable. Despite all of your good intentions to make something spectacular with ¼ cup of pumpkin, it always goes unused – but not anymore! Topping them with a maple yogurt cream (of course you could use a maple whipped cream too – I won’t tell) and a pumpkin seed brittle puts them over the top. They are so light, fluffy, and delicious you will want them every day of the week.

So why did I decide to make them? Yesterday morning I looked in my pantry and found I had 6 cans of pumpkin, which for some reason have no memory of purchasing! There must have been an after Thanksgiving sale, or like rabbits – they are just multiplying. Nevertheless, I was extremely happy to find them. Gone are the crisp days of autumn, when everything was made with pumpkin and I miss that. Plus, pumpkin has so many health benefits. They are rich in vitamin A, fiber, beta-carotene, have more potassium than bananas, and some studies say they keep your skin looking young, In addition, the pumpkin seeds may help elevate your mood – what’s not to love about that? Maybe I should call these happy pancakes – they did make me happy!

Years ago, I came up with a basic pancake mix which has just a few ingredients. I have never liked using pancake mix from a box; it contains so much sugar and salt. I took that recipe and tweaked it by adding pumpkin and spices to it plus a healthy addition of yogurt for a little extra protein. They are ready in less than 30 minutes start to finish – which is a plus. If I plan ahead and measure out my dry ingredients the night before, when I wake up in the morning, I’m that much closer to eating these mouthwatering, and healthy pancakes. Let me know what you think. Enjoy!

This recipe makes 20 delicious 4” pancakes or 16 delicious 5” pancakes

Ingredients
2 ½ cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
½ teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1 ½ teaspoons salt
½ teaspoon ginger
1 ¾ cups regular milk at room temperature (I used almond milk*)
1 – 15 ounce can pumpkin puree (I used Libby’s)
2 extra-large eggs (at room temperature)
¼ cup fat free vanilla Greek yogurt (can be omitted to be dairy free)
3 tablespoons real maple syrup (honey or sugar would work too)
2 tablespoons of unsalted butter melted (or sub a healthy oil to make them non-dairy)
2 tablespoons of unsalted butter to butter the griddle (or spray oil)
2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Toppings:
Maple syrup spiked Greek yogurt cream
½ cup vanilla fat free Greek yogurt
1 tablespoon real maple syrup

Pumpkin seed brittle
½ cup pumpkin seeds (also called pepita seeds)
1 tablespoon maple syrup
pinch of salt

Directions
Before prepping your ingredients, heat a non-stick griddle or large frying pan on medium heat.

In a medium size bowl add all the dry ingredients, whisk together and set aside.

In a larger bowl, add the wet ingredients and mix until well blended. One notable tip, when using a spoon or spatula, make sure not to use one which is clear or white. The pumpkin will turn it orange. I learned this the hard way!

Add the dry ingredients into the wet about 1 cup at a time until combined. Then let the mixture sit for a couple of minutes. Butter or spray your pan and pour the batter onto the hot griddle. So they come out the same size, you can use a measuring cup or I like to use a large ice cream scoop (aka a disher). Depending on the size of the pancake you want, use a 1/3 cup for a 4” pancake and ½ cup for a 5” pancake. I think I have every size scoop and some doubles to keep one parve and one dairy. They are the best kitchen investment you can make.

The pancakes are ready to flip when they brown slightly around the edges and you see bubbles starting to form. They are pretty thick and may brown before they bubble so keep an eye on them. It should take about 2 or 3 minutes per side. Flip, plate, top with the yogurt and brittle and enjoy!

For the yogurt topping, mix together ½ cup plain nonfat Greek yogurt. For the brittle, place the pumpkin seeds in an 8” frying pan on medium/low heat. Stir them around until they toast lightly about 4 minutes. Add the pinch of salt, maple syrup and cook until the liquid evaporates, about 2 minutes. Pour them onto parchment paper to cool.

*I have made these pancakes so many times and tried different milks, they all work well. I generally use almond milk as I did with this recipe.

Splash of Sherri

Tag: light pancakes

marzipan pancakes aka “marzipancakes”

Pumpkin Pancakes with Maple Yogurt Cream and Pumpkin Seed Brittle