Pea Pancakes with Smoked Trout

Ingredients:

400g whole smoked trout

125ml plain flour

125ml self-raising flour

1.25ml bicarbonate of soda

160ml buttermilk

80ml milk

125ml frozen baby peas, thawed and drained

15ml finely chopped fresh parsley

30ml finely chopped fresh chives

1 egg white

60ml low-fat sour cream

Pickled Cucumber:

2 short cucumbers

1 small red capsicum, chopped finely

60ml water

60ml sugar

125ml white vinegar

Method:

Remove any skin and bones from the fish and break into large pieces.

Sift flours and bicarb into a large bowl. Combine the buttermilk, milk, peas, parsley and half the chives in a jug and gradually whisk in whisk this into the flour mixture to form a batter.

Beat egg white in a small bowl with an electric beater until soft peaks form; fold the egg white into the batter. Pour 60ml of the batter for each flapjack into a large heated oiled non-stick frying pan. Cook the flapjacks in batches until browned on each side.

Combine the sour cream and remaining chives in a small bowl. Serve warm flapjacks topped with fish, pickled cucumber and sour cream mixture.

Pickled Cucumber:

Using a vegetable peeler, slice the cucumbers into ribbons. Combine the cucumber with the capsicum in a medium sized bowl. Combine water and sugar in a small saucepan and stir over a low heat until the sugar dissolves. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer uncovered for about 5 minutes or until slightly thickened. Add vinegar to the syrup and pour hot syrup over the cucumber mixture. Cover and store in the fridge to cool.

Pancakes with Onion and Camembert Filling

Who can resist the wonderful, smooth and creamy flavour of Camembert? Not me, that's for sure. It is one of my favourite cheeses, which I'm always looking for new ways to use for a delicious supper.

My curiosity for where foods originate unearthed a charming story to this delicious cheese. 'Camembert de Normandie' is more than a simple cheese; it has a rich history and has become a symbol of French Gastronomy. It is what is called a 'surface-ripened' cheese, traditionally made from unpasteurised cow's milk, which originated in Camembert, Orne, the largest small village in Normandy, northern France. In 1791 a farmer, Marie Harel, learned from a priest from Brie how to make a soft cheese and Camembert cheese was born.

The cheese we know today is more likely to have it's beginnings in the industrialization of the cheese making process at the end of the 19th century. In the early years the maturation process of this cheese produced a rind of dubious colours developed by chance, but from the early 20th century, the colour become creamy white due to the use of an aqueous suspension of penicillium moulds sprayed on the outside of the cheese before being left to ripen.

Cheese and pancakes are such a quick and easy meat-free meal for during the week.

Ingredients:

For the Pancakes:

15ml olive oil

half a red onion, sliced

1 garlic clove, finely chopped

150g flour

a pinch of salt

2 large eggs

100ml milk

25g butter

85g Camembert, sliced

paprika to sprinkle

For the Sauce:

150ml double cream

half a vegetable stock cube or 15ml liquid vegetable stock concentrate

15ml chopped fresh parsley

a pinch of paprika

Method:

Preheat the oven to 180C.

For the pancakes, mix the flour, salt and eggs and half of the milk in a bowl, adding more milk as necessary, until the batter has the consistency of double cream. Heat the butter in an ovenproof frying pan over a high heat until it is foaming. add the batter mixture with a ladle, swirling the pan to spread the mixture evenly over the bottom of the pan. Fry the pancake on both sides for 1-2 minutes until golden brown on both sides. Set aside while you finish making the pancakes. The mixture should make 4 pancakes.

When finished making the pancakes, heat the oil in another frying pan over a medium heat and fry the onion and garlic for 3-4 minutes until softened.

To assemble the pancakes, put the onions and cheese onto one half of each pancake and sprinkle over a little paprika to taste. Fold the other half of the pancake over the filling and transfer to the pan in which the pancakes were made. Warm 2 pancakes at a time in the oven for 3-4 minutes, or until the cheese has melted.

For the sauce, pour the cream into a pan and crumble the half stock cube into it - or add the liquid stock if using. simmer over a medium heat for 5-6 minutes, until the liquid has reduced slightly, then stir in the parsley and a pinch of paprika.

To serve, put the filled pancakes onto a warmed serving plate, pour over the sauce. Serve with a salad of green leaves and baby tomatoes.

Brandy Pancakes with Van der Hum Sauce

There's so many things you can do with pancakes, but this is so exciting you have got to try it. If you don't have Van der Hum liqueur, which is a unique tangerine flavoured liqueur produced in the Cape winelands of South African, substitute another citrus flavoured liqueur.

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Ingredients:

For the pancakes:
120g cake flour
5ml baking powder
2ml salt
2 eggs
200ml milk
200ml water
5ml brandy
125ml cooking oil

For the Van der Hum Sauce:
60ml Van der Hum Liqueur
120g butter 250ml muscovardo sugar
5ml ground cinnamon
zest of half a lemon
4 bananas, halved lengthwise

To Garnish:
Lemon wedges

Method:

Sift together the flour, baking powder and salt. Beat together the eggs and milk and stir into the flour mixture. Add the water and beat the mixture until it has the consistency of thin cream. Pour in the brandy and cooking oil and stir thoroughly.

Cook the pancakes in a greased heavy based frying pan.

To make the sauce, heat together the Van der Hum, butter, sugar, cinnamon and lemon zest, stirring until the butter has melted and the sugar has dissolved. Add the bananas and simmer for a few minutes, coating the bananas with the liquid sauce.

Place a banana half on each pancake and roll up. Put the rolled up pancakes in a serving dish and pour the remaining sauce over all the roll ups.

Serve each pancake with a wedge of lemon.

Buckwheat and Apple Crumpets with Braised Cabbage and Bacon

These would probably be better known as pancakes, which most people think of as an American idea, but they actually come from Europe, especially the Saxon or Germanic peoples, including the British. In South Africa we call them crumpets, which are usually sweet, but those who are of Dutch heritage also make savoury varieties. They are wonderful for breakfast when you have time to make them, or served with a meat course as a side dish.

Ingredients:

For the pancake batter:

2 eggs, lightly beaten

220 ml milk, plus a little extra if necessary

1 apple, peeled and grated

200 g buckwheat flour

10ml baking powder

30ml oatmeal

butter, for frying

For the braised cabbage:

1 small/medium savoy cabbage, cored and cut into wedges

1 red onion, thinly sliced

2 cloves garlic, finely chopped

5ml fresh thyme, leaves

30ml maple syrup

75 ml cider vinegar

100 g butter, diced

To serve:

12 slices lean bacon

apple sauce

6 bags maple syrup

thick crème fraiche

Method:

For the pancake batter:

In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs and milk, then stir in the apple. Sift in the flour, baking powder and a pinch of salt, sprinkle over the oatmeal and fold in until just combined, adding a little more milk if necessary. Transfer the bowl to the refrigerator to rest the batter for 30 minutes.

For the cabbage:

Preheat the oven to 190C. Put the cabbage on a large sheet of tinfoil, top with onion, garlic, thyme, maple syrup and cider vinegar. Dot with butter and season with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Seal the foil edges, put the packet on a baking tray and bake for 45 minutes. Heat a little butter in a heavy-based non-stick frying pan, add spoonfuls of pancake batter and cook until the pancakes begin to bubble on the surface, then flip them over and continue to cook till golden.

Cook the bacon on a griddle until done to your liking. To serve, put the pancakes on serving plates, top with apple sauce, braised cabbage, bacon and crème fraiche and drizzle with maple syrup.

Blueberry Pancakes

It's a special day for my husband and I today

and I was after having something a bit special for breakfast,

so we had Blueberry Pancakes....

Yum yum!

Ingredients:
200g self-raising flour
1 tsp baking powder
Pinch of Salt
1 egg
300ml milk
knob butter
150g blueberries
sunflower oil or a little butter for cooking
maple syrup to serve

Method:
Mix together the flour, baking powder and a pinch of salt in a large bowl.
Beat the egg with the milk.
Make a well in the centre of the dry ingredients and whisk in the milk to make a thick smooth batter.
Beat in the melted butter, and gently stir in half the blueberries.
Heat a teaspoon of oil or small knob of butter in a large non-stick frying pan.
Drop a large tablespoonful of the batter per pancake into the pan to make pancakes about 7cm across.
Make two or three pancakes at a time.
Cook for about 3 minutes over a medium heat until small bubbles appear on the surface of each pancake, then turn and cook another 2-3 minutes until golden.
Cover with kitchen paper to keep warm while you use up the rest of the batter.
Serve with golden syrup and the rest of the blueberries.

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