Great Grandma's Classic Pancakes

Even the most dedicated cannibal occasionally hungers for a vegetarian dish-- especially pancakes. The ingredients are basic and can be found in even the most neglected of pantries. What has taken Great Grandma's perfect pancakes out of the reach of most working parents, besides the recipe, are the accouterments, condiments and accessories that Great Grandma used, and, that you (or Grandma or Ma) were too busy to take notice... but I did! That was lucky for you and the rest of humanity.

For starters: any one who has known me for any period of time, I have made these pancakes every Sunday for more than 30-years. Even a continental shift and six thousand miles did not cause me to skip a beat. On my first Sunday in Budapest, I made them. Conversely, I made them on the first Sunday after returning to the State.

Pancake Ingredients for (3 to 4 people):

- 1 1/2 cups of flour
- 3/4 -to- 1 to teaspoon of baking powder
- 1/2-to03/4 teaspoon of salt
- 1 1/2 cups of milk
- 3/4 to 1 cup of water, depending if you like them as I do, crepe-lite
- 4 table spoons of melted butter
- 1 egg well beaten
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract (optional... but take the option)

-Fresh raspberries (the best choice), sliced strawberries or sliced banana or a mixture of both to be sprinkled on your pancakes before eating.

-Genuine pure Maple syrup!

I am biased toward upstate New York maple syrup, however, I understand Vermont makes it, too. But, unless I can really avoid it, I stay away from Canadian Maple syrup (CAMP is one brand). Sometimes, however, you don't have a choice and you must go Canadian. The thing is, they mass cook their syrup for export using gas stoves in steel pots. I've sat in a sap house with farmers making an extra buck in late winter, when the sap is running, usually late February - early March (When the ground thaws during the day and freezes up again at night).

They used wood (0ne-year-old seasoned maple, what else?), and cooked it slowly (40 gallons of sap for one gallon of syrup). The Canadian geese were returning and could be heard overhead. The fragrance of the cooking sap was divine. Then, to hear two old guys tell stories while eating the jarred food that their wives had made the summer before was enough for me to write a story about them. Having said all that, I have to admit that I use the only maple syrup that I can get in Hungary... Canadian imported to Hungary via German at $25 a liter.

Utensils:

-Spatula
-Large plate
-Ladle
-Cake cover (If you are going to make 10 to 30 pancakes you need to cover them as you take them out of the skittle two by two).
-And, MOST IMPORTANT, two 10' cast iron frying pans. It's important to know and remember that Great Grandma was never anemic. To put it another way, Great Grandma never had Iron Deficiency Anemia, but Grand Ma probably did. The reason? Grand Ma bought the advertising hype and switched from iron to stainless steel pots. Mom probably went one further and switched to aluminum. Bad moves.

People a hundred years ago didn't suffer from iron deficiency because they cooked in iron pots. And, enough easily absorbable iron leached out into the food to keep them rich in iron. This is not a myth, it's good provable science. On the other hand, Popeye could never have gotten strong from the iron in spinach because the iron in spinach is not absorbable in the human gut. But, if it's calcium that you need: then, spinach is one of the richest sources of calcium.

Stainless steel is good for boiling water, but that's it. Aluminum just sucks outright. And, by the way, aluminum leaches harmful amounts of aluminum into your food.

Process:

Mix the dry goods in a large mixing bowl. Then, switch your attention to the stove. The pans should be on slightly more than moderate fire. Melt the four tablespoons of butter in one pan and put a little tab of extra butter in the other. When the butter is melted, pour into the milk which should have been waiting in a two-cup measuring cup. Mix well.

Add the beaten egg to the milk and butter mixture. Mix well. Add the optional, non-optional vanilla: Mix.

Pour the liquid mixture into the dry ingredients. Mix. Now, this is important. Do you want thick pancakes? If so the mixture should pour off a ladle like a cake mixture. If you like them crepe-lite (I think that I coined that word), add water and thin out the mixture.

Have you been watching the stove? Take a piece of paper towel and wipe of the excess butter (mostly burnt butter fat). Make sure that the pan is well greased. When the pans start to SMOKE, they are hot enough to try your first batch. I remember Bill Safire once saying that children are like the first batch of pancakes you have to throw them out. Bunk! I have never had to throw out any pancakes. They have come out perfect from start to finish. I can say that, too, about my children..

When the topside of the poured pancakes start to dry (They bubble and lose the glistening sheen), it's time to turn them over. When, you see steam rising up, check them out. They should have brown splotches. Take them out, pour in the second batch. You should not have to grease your pan again. However, if the pans are new and you have not seasoned them properly, you might have to add more butter to the pans, but wipe it off right away.
Don't forget to smother your pancakes with fruit and maple syrup (They don't need any more butter)

I usually eat ten or more crepe-lites stacked up. One can, also, roll them up filled with fruit and syrup.

Treat your pot(s) right. When you are done, wash them in warm soapy water. Never use a metal scrubber or Ajax (scouring powder) on your pans. If you have to, let them soak in water. Dry them, put them back on the stove, HEAT them up and add a little vegetable oil on them. Wipe them thoroughly with paper towel. Make sure you have oiled the entire inside, Then let them cool off before putting them away.

Szia,
From Budapest