Usually I fall back on an old faithful pancake recipe handed down from my mom, but recently I had a culinary epiphany, that has forever changed the way I will greet my sleepy little Dickens' and their friends when they finally make their way into the kitchen after a night of giggles, ghost stories and gossip....I substituted Cherry Pie Rooibos tea for water in my pancake mix. The results were almost magical!!! Here's where I'm going with this....
I will be the first to claim that I am a wannabe foodie, but hardly a food snob - frozen pizza, freezer fries and grocery store roasted chickens are staples at our house during the week. However, come weekends, there's nothing I love more then perusing my ever growing cookbook collection and dreaming up new dishes to try out.... I am probably one of the few people in the world who actually ENJOYS grocery shopping. Wherever we travel, a stop into the local grocery store or market is a must on my to do list, and my pantry is full of exotic spices and seasonings. There's nothing new about this - I've been doing it ever since I came back from a trip to India in the early 1990s. That said, over the years I've noticed there are fewer and fewer new flavours that I haven't at least sampled yet, until now..... TEA!!!
I've just discovered the JOY of cooking with TEA - not just tea as a liquid base for a sauce or soup, but tea as a SEASONING and tea as a SPICE and tea as a FLAVOUR ESSENCE for a whole world of dishes!!!
Needless to say, I'm only a little excited about this, which is why I referred to the little pancake episode above as a being such an epiphanic moment for me.
Since that fateful Saturday morning, I have since experimented with other tea-y recipes... Earl Grey de la Creme pancakes, Dark Chocolate Chai Crepes, Smoky Lapsang Souchong Baked Beans, Smoky Tea-aki Rub on BBQ Steaks, Chocolate Oolong Cake.... other then that cake exploding out of the pan (serves me right for doubling a recipe first time out) everything has been a marvellous success!!
I plan to use this blog to post all my favourite recipes with tea, once I've tested them a time or two, but in the meantime let me sign off on this post with the inaugural recipes for tea-based pancakes and invite you to stay tuned for more Steeped Tea deliciousness....
Check this out:
Cherry Pie Rooibos Pancakes
1 cup flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 Tbsp sugar
pinch salt
1 egg beaten
1 Tbsp canola oil
1 tsp vanilla flavour
1 cup room temperature Cherry Pie Rooibos Tea (tea leaves included)
2 mixing bowls
In first mixing bowl, sift together dry ingredients and set aside.
In second, larger mixing bowl, mix together beaten egg, canola oil and vanilla. Add Chery Pie Rooibos tea and mix thoroughly.
Add dry ingredients to wet ingredients and stir just until mixture is wet. Try not to over mix or your pancakes will be heavy. It's ok if the batter is a bit lumpy.
Pour the batter by large spoonful, onto a hot non-stick griddle. Flip pancakes when top starts to dry and bubble - keep an eye on them so they don't burn - some griddles cook hotter than others.
Serve warm with vanilla yogourt or whipped cream and fresh berries.
Heard at the Kitchen Table:
"Honey, slow down, don't you want some syrup or whipped cream for your pancakes?"
"MMMRMph MMMrmph MMrmph"
"Honey, please don't talk with your mouth full."
(swallow)
"No, these are the best pancakes ever!!! Can we have these every weekend mommy???"
FAMILY TASTE TEST VERDICT: These pancakes are a nice light pink/peach colour. The vanilla flavour compliments the Rooibos perfectly and they almost don't need any topping.
A definite new addition to the Dickens family cookbook.
Earl Grey de la Creme Pancakes
Same recipe as for Cherry Pie Rooibos Pancakes, only substituted Chery Pie Rooibos tea for Earl Grey de la Creme tea.For this version, I ground the Earl Grey de la Creme tea leaves to a fine powder in a spice grinder before steeping them. Once the tea reached room temperature, I added it, leaves and all into the mix.
Prepare as you would the Cherry Pie Rooibos Pancakes.
Serve with Vanilla Yogourt or Real Whipped Cream.
FAMILY TASTE TEST VERDICT: The distinctive essence of Earl Grey was complimented by the vanilla flavouring in a way I've never tasted before. Sitting down to eat these pancakes with my family made me feel like I was actually dining in an elegant high-end bed and breakfast, rather than in my busy kitchen surrounded by clutter. My 10 year old son actually liked these pancakes better than the Cherry Pie Rooibos ones I made the day before. Another winner for the Dickens family cookbook.
No comments:
Post a Comment