• CHOCOLATE CHIP PANCAKES

    Classic chocolate chip pancakes are the perfect sweet treat for a lazy weekend morning. Sieve the dry ingredents into a large bowl, make a well in the centre and pour in the wet ingredients. Whisk until smooth, then fold through milk chocolate chips. Fry in a hot pan, then top with any leftover chocolate and a dollop of whipped cream or ice cream.

  • BLUEBERRY CHEESE PANCAKES

    Brunch can't get more indulgent than blueberry cheesecake pancakes. Simmer fresh blueberries with a tablespoon of maple syrup for a tangy fruit compote. Whip up these easy crêpes and top with sweetened cream cheese, the blueberry mixture, crushed caramelised biscuits or ginger nuts and chopped pecans or almonds.

  • CINNAMON ROLL PANCAKES

    Combine two breakfast favourites with these cinnamon roll pancakes. Whisk together a basic pancake batter, then mix cinnamon with maple syrup, light brown sugar and melted butter. Using a piping bag, swirl the cinnamon mixture into each pancake while cooking. Serve with toffee or caramel yogurt
    and extra maple syrup.

HOLY CREPE!

Today is PANCAKE Day, or Shrove Tuesday, which can be one of the most delicious foodie days to celebrate.

Whether you want to have a flipping great time from the moment you get up and have a breakfast to remember or decide to whip up the batter for tea or dinner, the choice is yours – there is no right or wrong time of the day to eat pancakes on pancake day!

Just seven weeks before Easter, Pancake Day, Shrove Tuesday or Mardi Gras is a Christian festival that marks the beginning of Lent, a period of fasting that is meant to remind us of Jesus' time he was tempted by the devil in the desert for 40 days and 40 nights before his death.

In French-speaking places it is often called Mardi Gras (Fat Tuesday) and refers to events of the Carnival celebration, beginning on or after the Christian feasts of the Epiphany (Three Kings Day) and culminating on the day before Ash Wednesday.

Shrove comes from the old English word "shrive", which means "to obtain absolution for one's sins by way of confession and doing penance."

The day always falls on a Tuesday because of the period of time it marks between the start of Lent and Easter.

Then Ash Wednesday comes along the following day marking the start of fasting during Lent.

This fasting ordeal culminates in Easter, with Easter Sunday this year falling on April 4th.

So feast your eyes on some of the pancakes you could make, savour and enjoy and above all make this day flipping marvellous!

 

MAKING IT EVEN BATTER!

For the pancake mixture

  • 110g/4oz plain flour, sifted
  • pinch of salt
  • 2 eggs
  • 200ml/7fl oz milk mixed with 75ml/3fl oz water
  • 50g/2oz butter

To serve

  • caster sugar

  • lemon juice
  • lemon wedges
Recipe tips

Method

  1. Sift the flour and salt into a large mixing bowl with a sieve held high above the bowl so the flour gets an airing. Now make a well in the centre of the flour and break the eggs into it. Then begin whisking the eggs - any sort of whisk or even a fork will do - incorporating any bits of flour from around the edge of the bowl as you do so.

  2. Next gradually add small quantities of the milk and water mixture, still whisking (don't worry about any lumps as they will eventually disappear as you whisk). When all the liquid has been added, use a rubber spatula to scrape any elusive bits of flour from around the edge into the centre, then whisk once more until the batter is smooth, with the consistency of thin cream. Now melt the 50g/2oz of butter in a pan. Spoon 2 tbsp of it into the batter and whisk it in, then pour the rest into a bowl and use it to lubricate the pan, using a wodge of kitchen paper to smear it round before you make each pancake.

  3. Now get the pan really hot, then turn the heat down to medium and, to start with, do a test pancake to see if you're using the correct amount of batter. I find 2 tbsp is about right for an 18cm/7in pan. It's also helpful if you spoon the batter into a ladle so it can be poured into the hot pan in one go. As soon as the batter hits the hot pan, tip it around from side to side to get the base evenly coated with batter. It should take only half a minute or so to cook; you can lift the edge with a palette knife to see if it's tinged gold as it should be. Flip the pancake over with a pan slice or palette knife - the other side will need a few seconds only - then simply slide it out of the pan onto a plate.

  4. Stack the pancakes as you make them between sheets of greaseproof paper on a plate fitted over simmering water, to keep them warm while you make the rest.

  5. To serve, sprinkle each pancake with freshly squeezed lemon juice and caster sugar, fold in half, then in half again to form triangles, or else simply roll them up. Serve sprinkled with a little more sugar and lemon juice and extra sections of lemon.