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When my children were growing up, one thing which I used to make frequently for them for breakfast on Saturday's was pancakes. They loved them.
When I was a child we only ever got pancakes once a year. On Shrove Tuesday. And always for supper, never breakfast.
We never got pancakes at any other time. I guess my children were spoiled a bit in comparison because I used to make them pancakes often, and always always when they had a guest come to stay overnight. It was a bit of a sleepover breakfast tradition.
I do confess that I also indulged in the pancake breakfasts. I love pancakes after all. I still crave them from time to time, but I don't always want to be making a full recipe of them just for me. I know I could freeze the extras, but I only have so much room in the freezer.
I discovered this recipe for Fluffy Pancakes for One over on a blog called One Dish Kitchen. I decided to give it a go and adapted it for use on this page. I added Metric measurements for the UK, and left out the vanilla.
.JPG "Easy Pancakes for One")
Call me pedantic, but I didn't think that vanilla belonged in plain pancakes. If you are going to add something to them like chocolate chips or fruit, maybe. But plain pancakes, vanilla is a no no for me.
I think vanilla is one of those flavorings that is highly overused. When you make a basic Victoria Sandwich Cake no flavoring is used at all. All you taste is butter, sugar and eggs. I can promise you it is quite delightfully delicious.
There are some variations that will add vanilla, but the basic version does not.
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I never saw myself as being a purist at heart, but I guess I can be one when it comes to certain things and one of those things just happens to be the flagrant use of vanilla!
Don't get me wrong I love vanilla. Just not in simple easy fluffy plain pancakes. They get enough flavor from the butter and then the syrup you pour over top when you go to eat them. Nothing else is needed. And as you can probably tell I love my butter and my syrup. 😋
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WHAT YOU NEED TO MAKE EASY PANCAKES FOR ONE (FROM SCRATCH)
What I love about this recipe is that it uses all natural, pure ingredients. Nothing artificial here and you don't have to rely on having a mix. These are pure and simple.
- 1 cup (140g) plain all purpose flour
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 TBS granulated sugar
- pinch salt
- 1 large free range egg
- 3/4 cup (180ml) whole milk
- 1 TBS butter, melted
- more butter to grease the skillet
- butter and maple syrup to serve
.JPG "Easy Pancakes for One")
I have started using unbleached flour in all of my cooking and baking. I don't want to be eating something that has to be bleached to whiten it. I would rather have it natural.
I also like to use free range eggs. In the summer months we buy them from a farmer who is just down the road from where I live. I do not support an inhumane industry such as the one which produces eggs from caged hens.
You have to pick your battles in life and that is one of mine. My first husband came from a farming family. They had battery hens. It is an appalling industry. I don't mind paying a bit more when it comes to eggs.
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I also use organic, unbleached sugar. I buy it in a huge bag from Costco. Again, I like to use as natural and unrefined a product as I can. In the U.K I used to buy only natural sugar and it was readily available in all the shops.
I also loved to use Muscovado sugar rather than brown sugar. Again, it was more natural, but that has nothing to do with pancakes! Just my fussiness!
I also don't bother for the most part with having two kinds of butter in my kitchen. I buy lightly salted and I use it for everything. (Boy, do I miss European butter.)
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HOW TO MAKE EASY PANCAKES FOR ONE (FROM SCRATCH)
Nothing is really simpler than making pancakes so long as you follow a few rules.
Pancake batter goes together much the same as a muffin batter does. Mix together your dry ingredients in a bowl. Mix your wet ingredients separately and then add the wet to the dry and lightly combine.
One don't overmix your batter. As with all quick breads (and pancakes are considered a quick bread), overmixing produces a rubbery finish. Use a light touch and just mix the batter until no dry streaks remain. A few lumps are a.o.k.
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Two, don't be in a rush. Heat your pan too high and your pancakes will be burnt on the outside and raw in the middle. Use a medium heat and don't flip your pancake until the surface is covered with tiny bubbles. By then it should be golden brown on the bottom side and you can flip it over.
You can keep the pancakes warm while you finish using up all the batter in a low oven.
I have heard it said that the first pancake is always hit and miss. I don't believe that. There is no reason why your first pancake and your second pancake and your third and so on can't all be perfect!
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This really is a great basic recipe and can be a jumping off point for you to use your imagination and try out different kinds.
If you want chocolate chip pancakes, by all means throw in a dash of vanilla and a small handful of chocolate chips.
If you want blueberry pancakes, try adding some finely grated lemon zest and a small handful of berries. I actually find it easier and better to add the berries while I am cooking the pancakes. Just sprinkle a few over top before the flip while the batter is still fairly wet and not many bubbles have formed.
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With Pancake day coming up (Shrove Tuesday on the 21st of February) here are some more Pancake recipes that you might also enjoy!
WORLD'S BEST SILVER DOLLAR PANCAKES - My children always loved it when I made these. The size of a silver dollar they loved being able to fit a whole one in their mouth. They are tender and fluffy and oh so tasty!
BLUEBERRY BUTTERMILK PANCAKES - These are incredibly light and fluffy and stay light and fluffy. Some pancakes fall after they sit. These don't. They are the best blueberry pancakes in my humble opinion.
Yield: 1
Easy Pancakes for One
Prep time: 5 MinCook time: 10 MinTotal time: 15 Min
Light, soft and fluffy pancakes. These delicious pancakes go together very quickly and are perfectly sized to please just one person! All natural!
Ingredients
- 1 cup (140g) plain all purpose flour
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 TBS granulated sugar
- pinch salt
- 1 large free range egg
- 3/4 cup (180ml) whole milk
- 1 TBS butter, melted
- more butter to grease the skillet
- butter and maple syrup to serve
Instructions
- Whisk the flour, baking powder, sugar and salt together in a bowl.
- Whisk the milk, egg and melted butter together in another bowl.
- Make a well in the dry ingredients and add the wet ingredients. Stir together with a fork just to combine. A few lumps are okay. If you think the batter is too thick you can add a bit more milk.
- Heat a large non-stick skillet or griddle pan over medium heat. Rub with a bit of butter.
- Ladle 1/3 of the batter into the pan and rotate the pan to make a pancake.
- Cook over medium heat until the surface of the pancake is covered with bubbles, and the pancake is golden brown on the bottom. Flip over with a spatula and brown the other side.
- Keep warm and repeat to make two more pancakes.
- Serve hot with some butter for spreading and maple syrup for pouring. You can also serve some fruit on the side if you wish. I am particularly fond of peaches.
Notes
If you like blueberry or chocolate chip pancakes, you can easily adapt this recipe to suit. For blueberry pancakes, add a small amount of grated lemon zest to the batter and then sprinkle a few blueberries on top while you are cooking them in the pan.
For chocolate chip pancakes, add 1/2 tsp of vanilla to the batter and stir in 2 TBS of chocolate chips.
Thanks so much for visiting. Do come again!
This recipe for Washington Pie I am sharing today is actually a cake recipe, not a pie. It comes from the pages of an old cookery book of mine. Woman's Day, Old Fashioned Desserts by Barbara Myers.
It is a recipe I have been making for a very long time, however. I first tasted this lovely cake when my friend Leona baked it to serve as a dessert when we were invited to her place back in the early 1980's. We fell in love with it. It's a cake that I baked for my children often when they were growing up.
But how does a cake get called a pie? I was intrigued and so this morning I did a search to find out the history behind this delicious cake.
The recipe made its first appearance around 1850 in Mrs. Putnam's Receipt Book. So people have been baking this cake for almost 200 years now.
But why call it a pie when it's actually a cake? From what I have read, it all boils down to equipment used. In the mid 19th century most home cooks often baked their layer cakes in pie tins resulting in many referring to cakes baked in pie tins as "pies."
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It is actually a cake that is very similar to the traditional Victoria Sandwich Cake. Both are layer cakes and both have those layers sandwiched together with jam.
Both are also dusted with confectioners' sugar rather than being iced.
The Victoria Sandwich cake however is created by creaming together margarine or butter and caster sugar, and then having eggs beaten in, along with a quantity of self-raising flour. Generally speaking, the sugar, eggs, flour and butter are of the same weight. This enables you to bake a Victoria sponge of almost any size quite easily.
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Washington Pie, in contrast, uses white vegetable shortening and much more sugar than its British counterpart. In North American generally this means Crisco and in the UK you would use white flora or a vegetable fat called Trex.
I have to confess I prefer the British version over the North American cake, but both cakes are very good. My tastes have changed since living in the UK for as long as I did. I no longer have the same sweet tooth I had prior to moving over there and find North American desserts and cakes quite sweet in comparison.
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WHAT YOU NEED TO MAKE WASHINGTON PIE
Simple everyday baking ingredients. You will also need two 8-inch round layer cake tins.
- 2 cups (249g) sifted cake flour (see note)
- 2 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 cup (200g) sugar
- 1/3 cup (73g) vegetable shortening
- 3/4 cup (180ml) milk
- 1 large free range egg
For filling and topping:
- Red raspberry preserves
- Icing sugar (confectioner's sugar)
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There is no such thing as cake flour as far as I know in the UK. In its place just measure out the flour, removing 1 TBS of flour per cup of flour used (or 2 TBS for this recipe) and then replace it with 2 TBS corn flour/starch.
That's what I did as I didn't have any cake flour in the house.
I think I would prefer to make this cake with butter. I know others have and it works fine. I have lost my taste for shortening through the years, I think. I did do a search to try to find a version where they used only butter but came up short.
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I even checked Rose Levy Berenbaum's cookbook, Rose's Heavenly cakes, and Martha Stewart's Bakig Bible, but there were no Washington Pie Cake recipes in either. I cannot say how it would work with butter rather than shortening.
If you are wanting to make a cake with butter than shortening, I would recommend that you use the Victoria Sponge Cake Recipe. I know that recipe works perfectly. It actually uses equal parts margarine and butter, but I have made it with all butter, and it works.
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HOW TO MAKE WASHINGTON PIE
If the use of shortening doesn't bother you then this is the cake for you! It is really a relatively simple cake to make.
Preheat the oven to 350*F/180*C/ gas mark 4. Butter and flour 2 (8-inch) round cake tins, tapping out any excess flour.
Sift the flour, baking powder, salt and sugar into a mixing bowl. Add the shortening, vanilla and 1/2 cup (120ml) of the milk.
Beat for 2 minutes with an electric whisk, or 300 strokes by hand.
Add the remaining milk and egg. Beat for 2 minutes longer, scraping down the bowl as needed.
Divide the batter between the two prepared pans.
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Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean or the tops spring back when lightly touched.
Cool on a wire rack for 5 minutes, then tip out onto the rack and cool completely.
Place one layer (bottom side up) on a plate. Spread generously with jam and then top with the second layer (top side up). Dust with some icing sugar to lightly cover the top.
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I really hope that I haven't put you off this cake with my ponderings on butter versus shortening. This really is a lovely cake. I just find it a bit sweet for my taste. Hasn't stopped me from eating it and enjoying it however!
The mark of a true Glutton!
As you can see it is a very nice cake, light and fluffy with a beautiful crumb. It really doesn't need any frosting in my opinion although I do know some people that frost the top layer only and sprinkle coconut on that. I think it is pretty perfect just as is.
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RASPBERRY YOGURT CAKE - I love cakes which are made with sour cream and yogurt. Adding sour cream or yogurt add moisture and makes for a lovely tender crumb. This is a beautiful cake, with a lovely moist crumb. Its light in texture and filled with pockets of sweet tart raspberries.
FRENCH ALMOND, PEAR & CARDAMOM CAKE - This is a lovely cake, gluten free, loaded with beautiful ripe pears, ground almonds, and I added a touch of ground cardamom as pears and cardamom are such a quintessentially beautiful partnership and marriage of flavors. It is delicious served warm, cut into squares with either lashings of pouring cream or softly whipped cream on top.
Yield: 6 - 8
Washington Pie
Prep time: 10 MinCook time: 30 MinTotal time: 40 Min
A delicious layer cake which has a layer of sweet jam in the middle and a dusting of icing sugar on top. This is a recipe as old as the hills that I have been making for a very long time.
Ingredients
- 2 cups (249g) sifted cake flour (see note)
- 2 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 cup (200g) sugar
- 1/3 cup (73g) vegetable shortening
- 3/4 cup (180ml) milk
- 1 large free range egg
For filling and topping:
- Red raspberry preserves
- Icing sugar (confectioner's sugar)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350*F/180*C/ gas mark 4. Butter and flour 2 (8-inch) round cake tins, tapping out any excess flour.
- Sift the flour, baking powder, salt and sugar into a mixing bowl. Add the shortening, vanilla and 1/2 cup (120ml) of the milk.
- Beat for 2 minutes with an electric whisk, or 300 strokes by hand.
- Add the remaining milk and egg. Beat for 2 minutes longer, scraping down the bowl as needed.
- Divide the batter between the two prepared pans.
- Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean or the tops spring back when lightly touched.
- Cool on a wire rack for 5 minutes, then tip out onto the rack and cool completely.
- Place one layer (bottom side up) on a plate. Spread generously with jam and then top with the second layer (top side up). Dust with some icing sugar to lightly cover the top.
Notes
You can easily make your own cake flour. Simply remove 1 TBS of the flour per cup and replace with 1 TBS corn flour/corn starch. Whisk well together.
Thanks so much for visiting. Do come again!
It was four years ago today we lost our mother unexpectedly. At the time I was living way over in England and had no way of getting home. She had been in hospital, but was doing well. We had no reason to believe that she wouldn't fully recover.
I miss her every day. We were always very close. It still pains me that I was unable to say goodbye properly.
I decided to make myself a picky-bits Teatime Supper today to help distract myself from the nasty weather we are having outside and to cheer me up. Just because I now live alone, that doesn't mean I can't enjoy a nice teatime supper ever now and then.
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This was something I often did when I was in the UK. You don't always feel like making a bit meal do you? Sometimes picky bits are just the ticket for filling that gap! Supper in the UK was always something quite different than dinner.
Supper is meant to be something much more casual than dinner. Supper can be an evening meal but normally when one is invited to supper the invitation is quite different than when one is invited to dinner, which is usually more formal. Supper can also mean a hot or cold snack before bedtime.
It is not meant to be meat, potatoes and veg, but rather a rather informal gathering of picky bits and cakes. Not as formal as a high tea, but meant to be enjoyed on a small plate, next to a fire and, if you are so lucky, enjoyed with some bright conversation and company.
It is a delicious opportunity to gather together some picky bits that you have in house into a simple repast of tasty delights that will please everyone, all washed down with hot cups of tea of course!
.JPG "Teatime Savories")
Of course, any tea table should have a host of savory bits to choose from. These can range anywhere from finger sandwiches to sausage rolls, deviled eggs, savory scones, sliced meats, cheeses, and pickles.
Today I chose to bake some savory scones. Scones don't always have to be sweet and served with cream and jam. They can also be incredibly delicious served with cold meats and pickles.
I chose to make MARY BERRY'S CHEESE SCONES today because they are the best savory scones out there. They are light and fluffy and filled with lovely cheese flavors. I was living in England the last time I baked these! They're beautiful, as one would expect!
.JPG "Cheese & Tomato Sandwiches")
I had some thinly sliced ham as well. Finger sandwiches are also very nice. Some popular flavors are Egg Mayonnaise, Ham and Pickle, Cheese and Pickle, Cheese and Onion, Cucumber and these ones that I chose to make, Cheese and Tomato.
I can remember the first time I enjoyed a Cheese and Tomato sandwich when I was in the UK. It was not a combination I had ever considered but was it ever delicious! Soft white bread was lightly buttered (crusts cut off or not as you please) and filled with grated cheese and thinly sliced tomato.
I baked my own FRENCH SANDWICH PAIN AU LAIT for these sandwiches. I bake a loaf of bread every week anyways, so this week I chose a sandwich loaf. This bread makes beautiful sandwiches.
.JPG "Teatime Supper")
Some things to bear in mind when making Cheese and Tomato Sandwiches. One, make sure you use a really nicely flavored cheddar cheese. I used some cheese that I had leftover from Christmas. It had not gotten used. A two year aged cheddar that was nice and sharp and well flavored.
Grate your cheese by hand on the large holes of a box grater.
Use a serrated knife to cut your slices of ripe tomato thinly, and then leave them to drain on some paper towels for about 10 minutes. This helps to prevent them from making the bread soggy.
Butter both slices of bread. This not only helps the cheese to adhere, but it also keeps the bread from drying out and getting soggy as well.
I add the grated cheese to the buttered side of one slice of bread, top with the sliced tomato, add a grinding of black pepper, and then place the other slice of bread on top, butter side down. Slice as you wish.
.JPG "Teatime Supper")
Something crunchy is also very nice to add to the table. Today I added some sweet mixed pickles and slices of sweet eating apples. Oh, how I miss the pickled onions you get in the UK. They are rather larger than our pickled onions and not so sweet, having been pickled in malt vinegar.
You could do crisp raw vegetable sticks such as carrots and celery, or thick slices of cucumber. Potato Chips/Crisps also go down very nicely if you are so inclined.
Of course, one of the highlights of any supper/tea table is something sweet to end the meal. This can take the form of cakes or cookies, just whatever tickles your fancy really. Today I had a few cakes leftover from Christmas and some small dainties (Queen Anne Slices, date squares, etc.)
.JPG "Sour Cream Chocolate Loaf")
One favorite is the VICTORIAN SANDWICH CAKE. I say that because it is the favorite of all the cakes that I bake. I often choose that to be my birthday cake.
Another favorite choice would be a COFFEE CAKE. By that I don't mean the crumb type of cake that is best served at breakfast with a hot cup of coffee. I mean a delicious buttery coffee flavored cake, filled with a layer of buttercream!
You can't go wrong with either of those.
.JPG "Sour Cream Chocolate Loaf")
Being as I am on my own however, today I chose to bake my favorite Sour Cream Chocolate Loaf. I have been making this delicious loaf for years and years.
The recipe comes from the pages of my Big Blue Binder. I can't tell you where I copied it down from, but I can promise you that it is moist and chocolately and delicious!
.JPG "Sour Cream Chocolate Loaf")
It is beautiful cut into thick slices and enjoyed with a hot cup of tea, or coffee for that matter. It's also very nice served with a scoop of vanilla ice cream on top.
Rich and fudgy with a beautiful chocolate flavor. Simply put, it's delicious and something I think you and your family will really enjoy!
Yield: 8 - 10
.JPG "Sour Cream Chocolate Loaf")
Sour Cream Chocolate Loaf
Prep time: 15 MinCook time: 1 H & 10 MInactive time: 24 HourTotal time: 25 H & 25 M
Rich, moist and very chocolatey. A real longtime favorite of mine.
Ingredients
- 6 TBS Dutch cocoa powder, sifted
- 2 tsp instant coffee powder
- 3/4 cup (180ml) boiling water
- 1/2 cup (120g) of butter, room temperature
- 1 1/2 cups (300g) of soft light brown sugar, packed
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 2 medium free-range eggs
- 2 cups (280g) all-purpose plain flour
- 1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/2 cup (60g) of full fat sour cream
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 160*C/325*F. gas mark 3. Butter a 9 by 5 by 3 inch loaf pan and line with baking paper.
- Combine the water and coffee powder. Allow to cool. Stir in the sour cream. Whisk together the cocoa powder, flour, soda and salt.
- Beat the butter together with the brown sugar. Beat in the vanilla and the eggs, one at a time. Add the dry ingredients alternately with the wet, beginning and ending with dry. Mix well together. Pour into the prepared baking pan.
- Bake for 60 to 70 minutes until risen and the top springs back when lightly touched. Cool ten minutes in the pan before tipping out to cool completely on a wire rack. Wrap tightly once cooled and let stand overnight before cutting.
Notes
You can also fold in up to 3/4 cup (170g) of semi sweet chocolate chips.
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