Pancakes with Ree

My younger daughter turned 16 a week ago.  Most of her friends turned 16 at least six months ago.  She is so ready to drive she can hardly stand it.  This morning we had planned to make an early trip to the place where all of her dreams would come true–the Wallisville Department of Public Safety.  You might be asking where that is, which is what I asked when she suggested it .  It’s on I-10 East, near Columbus.  If you do not have a child between the ages of 15-17, you are also probably asking why.  That, my friends, could be the topic of an entirely  different post entitled something like ” Screw Border Security- This State Has Real Problems”, but I will spare you the rant (which I have already vented on Facebook) .

Unfortunately, due to an annoying and persistent cough by someone in this family  who was in my bed, I was still wide awake at 2:15 this morning.  I texted Martha, who was also wide awake at a sleep-over (which  she was supposed to leave early), and  we agreed to reschedule the rockin’ good time in Wallisville for next week.  It will give us something to look forward to.  So it was that instead of waltzing across Texas at dawn, I was thinking about Ree.

Many of you know about my bff Ree, also called The Pioneer Woman by those who aren’t as close to her as I am.  She has visited me twice at Blue Willow.  Here are the pictures, should you dare to doubt.  We’re tight, I tell ya.

 Ree lives on a small farm in Oklahoma and has a little blog, kind of like mine.  You can find it at thepioneerwoman.com, but don’t judge – she is still a beginner.

Anyway, not too long ago she posted about some pancakes that have been lingering in the food fantasy part of my brain ever since.  Today, finding myself with an unexpectedly empty morning, I decided to whip some up and find out for myself whether they were as good as they looked and sounded.  Guess what?  They were so flippin’ good I want to give all my other friends the opportunity to start fantasizing about them, too.  Starting now.

These are not your regular, plain Jane, Hungry Jemima pancakes.  These, my friends, are Lemon Blueberry Pancakes, and they rock.  I could take pictures of my own lovely Short Stack, but Ree’s pictures came out surprisingly good (for her), so I’ll let you look at them.TPW_4599.

These were so delicious!  I sat here by myself at my kitchen table, lovin’ my pancakes and coffee, and thanking God I wasn’t sitting at the DPS in Wallisville.

Happy Friday, my fellow Texas drivers!  The roads are still safe.

Here is the recipe.

Recipe: Lemon Blueberry Pancakes

Prep Time: 10 Minutes  |  Cook Time: 10 Minutes  |  Difficulty: Easy  |  Servings: 4

Ingredients

• 1-1/2 cup Cake Flour
• 1 Tablespoon (additional) Cake Flour
• 1/4 teaspoon Salt
• 1 Tablespoon (heaping) Baking Powder
• 3 Tablespoons Sugar
• 1-1/2 cup Evaporated Milk (more If Needed)
• 1 whole Lemon (more If Needed)
• 1 whole Large Egg
• 1-1/2 teaspoon Vanilla
• 2 Tablespoons Butter, Melted
• Zest From 1 Lemon
• 1 cup Heaping Blueberries
• Extra Butter
• Maple Or Pancake Syrup

Preparation Instructions

Heat heavy skillet or grill over medium low heat.

In a medium bowl, mix flour, salt, baking powder, and sugar. Set aside.

In a separate bowl, mix evaporated milk, juice of 1 lemon (more if lemon isn’t very juicy), and lemon zest. Allow to sit for five minutes, then add egg, vanilla, and melted butter. Mix to combine.

Pour wet mixture into dry ingredients. Stir gently to combine. Splash in more evaporated milk if mixture is overly thick. Stir in blueberries. Again, check to make sure mixture isn’t overly thick.

Melt butter in heated skillet. Drop batter by 1/4 cup measures and fry pancakes on both sides until golden.

Serve with softened butter and warm syrup.