Wednesday, May 30, 2007

The sweet smell of dirty little kids

A roommate of my sister's was an Elementary Ed. major. After working with kids for a while she came to the conclusion that all little kids smell like pancakes. Oh, come on, you know the smell: that sticky smell of Aunt Jemima syrup, left over from breakfast mixed with the "outside" smell that kids get. After having kids, I fought hard to make sure my offspring didn't get that smell--even if it meant avoiding eating pancakes.

When my first child was 1, we were visiting my brother and sister-in-law in Boston. We had pancakes for breakfast. Uh, oh. My daughter would now have her first taste of pancakes. But, to my surprise, we didn't have that normal, fake-tasting syrup. We had homemade buttermilk syrup. I discovered the secret to letting my kids eat pancakes without smelling like syrup (B. still didn't get syrup on her pancakes until she was 3 years old, but her brother has already been destroyed by 1).

The buttermilk syrup was delicious. I have passed on the recipe to my sister and she came up with the great idea of putting orange zest in it. It is so good, not just on pancakes and waffles, but crepes and ice cream, too. I tried it with lemon zest and it makes a great combination with blueberries and raspberries.

So, here's to helping your kids smell like roses...

Buttermilk Syrup

1/2 cup butter
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup buttermilk (can subsitute regular milk w/ 1 tsp lemon juice--let sit 5 minutes)
1 T light corn syrup

Combine ingredients in a saucepan over medium-high. Bring to a boil. Remove from heat. Add 1 teaspoon baking soda and 1 teaspoon vanilla. Combine. Add 2 teaspoons orange or lemon zest, if desired.

Whole Wheat Yogurt Pancakes


1 cup wheat flour (I love King Arthur's)
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
2 T sugar
1 egg
1 cup yogurt (vanilla or plain)
1 tsp lemon zest
1 tsp vanilla
1 T oil
1/8-1/4 cup milk

Heat a skillet to 350 degrees (or on stove heat over medium-low heat).

Combine flour, salt, baking powder, sugar in a bowl. Combine egg, yogurt, lemon zest, vanilla, oil and milk in another bowl and mix. Add dry ingredients until combined.

Pour the pancake batter on the hot skillet using a 1/2 measuring cup (add more milk if it thickens too much). Cook until pancake bubbles. Using a spatula, flip pancake over and cook for another 2 minutes, until lightly browned. Keep warm in a preheated 200 degree oven or tortilla warmer. Serve with buttermilk syrup and fresh berries.

8 comments:

Manda said...

Supper Yummy. I'm going to try this one for sure!!

Carrie said...

Hey! I love wheat pancakes...but Kristen's recipe I love isn't the same unless you grind your own wheat...it can be done in the blender...but I just never get around to it. And I also love flavored syrups...I've had a cider syrup recipe for years...and have been told by someone else it's yummy...but I also do love maple. Plus, it goes with fried eggs (steamed really) so well...and that's how I usually have pancakes. Point is....I must try this. The chicken I made was great...but I don't think I pulsed the walnut sauce long enough.

Stephanie said...

I'm intrigued by the buttermilk syrup because typically the buttermilk is in the pancakes...not the syrup! I'll have to give this one a try. I too don't enjoy the nasty high-fructose corn syrup Aunt Jemima either. It's so fake! I know it's expensive and we do have to cut back on other things to do it but buying the 100% maple syrup is the way to go. Just noticed it at Costco the other day. A HUGE container was only 17 bucks. Guess what I'll be picking up tomorrow?! Bonus, my kids love it and I don't feel guilty because it is all natural. That being said though, I love homemade syrups. I have one for Cinnamon syrup that's been in my family for decades and I love that one too.

Inspiration Station said...

Yum! Those look great! For some reason, it reminds me of what my grandmother from England puts on her pancakes. She sprinkles sugar on top then squeezes a fresh orange over it. It is delicious, but then I did grow up on it. I'll have to try your syrup with the berries.

Kelly McCants said...

What a lovely blog! I aspire to be a foodie. I am RSS ing your right now!

Thanks for your nice comment over at the Apronpalooza!


I thought you were my friend Julie so I kept clicking!

glad I found you!

Juliana Wina Rome said...

I do love pancakes. And I love this blog too. Food all the time.

Juliana Wina Rome said...

How can I be your follower?:-)

Juliana Wina Rome said...

There is no icon follower in your blog. I love to eat and I'm a food lovers.