Ginger Breakfast Pancakes
SERVES
4-6
INGREDIENTS
220g/8oz Buckwheat flour
2 tsp baking powder
½ tsp bicarbonate of soda
75g/3oz soft light brown sugar
3 tsp ground ginger
1 tsp cinnamon
½ tsp ground allspice
1 tsp ground nutmeg
4 eggs, separated
600ml/1 pint buttermilk
50g/2oz melted butter, plus extra to fry
Stem ginger syrup
75g/3oz stem ginger, finely chopped, plus 100ml/3½fl oz ginger syrup
Zest of 1 lemon
3 tbsp runny honey
Zest of 1 orange
1% Fromage Frais, to serve
METHOD
Make the syrup first. Place all the ingredients in a small saucepan with 2 tbsp water and bring to a gentle simmer for a couple of minutes. Take off the heat to infuse and keep warm.
To make the pancakes, sift the flour, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda, sugar, spices and a pinch of salt into a large mixing bowl. Mix together the egg yolks, buttermilk and melted butter and stir into the flour mixture until the batter is thick and smooth, but don’t overmix.
In a separate clean bowl, whisk the egg whites until stiff. Carefully fold the egg whites into the batter until just incorporated.
Place a large frying pan over a medium heat and brush lightly with melted butter. Drop two or three large dollops of batter into the pan to make pancakes about 8cm/3in across. When bubbles appear on the surface (after about two to three minutes), flip the pancakes over and cook on the other side until browned.
Transfer to plates and spoon over the warmed syrup before serving with a dollop of whipped cream.