Perfect Pancakes

I've been on this mission to make the perfect pancake for over a year now.  During this time, I've enjoyed some fantastic recipes with my hubby.  Fluffy buttermilk pancakes, perfect blueberry pancakes, rich chocolate chip pancakes, pumpkin pancakes and most recently, lemon ricotta pancakes.  I've always loved baking with ricotta and I had some extra in the fridge and figured I'd add it to my blueberry pancake recipe.  What an amazing addition!  So of course to the internet I went and I looked up ricotta pancakes and came across my latest pancake variation.  Perfection.  Next time, I will add a cup of blueberries to the recipe (after all, my favorite muffin is lemon blueberry)!  Enjoy!

Lemon Ricotta Pancakes.  Photo, Culinary Lovelies via Pinterest

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour (I prefer King Arthur unbleached flour for all of my baking)

2 tablespoons sugar (I always use half brown, half white sugar)

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 1/2 cups buttermilk(buttermilk is best but if you don't have any on hand, add 1 tsp lemon or lime juice to each cup of milk and let it sit for at least 5 minutes.  It will sour and thicken.  It's a great alternative I love to use when I'm in a pinch)

2 large eggs, separated

1 tablespoon grated lemon peel

1/3 cup part-skim ricotta cheese

Salad oil (I used canola oil)

Preparation:

1. In a large bowl, mix flour, sugar, baking soda, and salt. In a medium bowl, whisk buttermilk, egg yolks, and lemon peel to blend. Stir buttermilk mixture into flour mixture just until evenly moistened. Gently stir in ricotta cheese.

2. In a bowl, with a mixer on high speed, beat the egg whites until soft peaks form. With a flexible spatula, gently fold the whites into the batter just until they are incorporated.

3. Place a nonstick griddle or a 12-inch nonstick frying pan over medium heat (350°); when hot, coat lightly with oil and adjust heat to maintain temperature. Drop batter in 1/2-cup portions onto the griddle and cook until pancakes are browned on the bottom and edges begin to look dry, about 2 minutes; turn cakes with a wide spatula and brown other sides, 1 1/2 to 2 minutes longer. Coat pan with more oil as necessary to cook remaining pancakes.

4. Serve pancakes as cooked, or keep warm in a single layer on baking sheets in a 200° oven for up to 15 minutes.

While we are on the subject of delicious pancakes, I mentioned during last month's book review that this month we are reading Gwyneth Paltrow's cookbook, My Father's Daughter.  Apparently, Bruce Paltrow made a mean pancake.  I tried this recipe over the weekend, and OMG.  Another one you have to make and memorize because they were delicious!  Thanks Gwyneth!  More amazing reviews of this cookbook coming next week!

Cheers!

Ana