• Choose a category
• All
• Classic-Fiction

Scoop up ¼ cup batter and pour it into a neat circle in the pan. Add more ¼-cup circles, as many as can fit without crowding. Cook just until permanent bubbles dot the surface of the cakes, about 2 minutes; then flip with a nonstick-safe spatula and continue cooking until lightly browned, about 1 more minute. You can transfer the cooked pancakes to a heat-safe platter and keep them warm in a 225°F oven while you make more (but for no more than 10 minutes).

Note: You may need to regrease the skillet or griddle between batches.

Blueberry Pancakes: You’ll need a little less than 1 pint of fresh berries in total. Once the batter is scooped into the skillet or griddle, dot each cake with 6 to 9 fresh blueberries. Cook as directed. (Frozen berries are too wet and mushy; they will turn the pancakes blue.)

Nutty Pancakes: Coarsely chop about 1 cup walnut pieces, pecan pieces, or skinned hazelnuts. Stir these into the dry ingredients before you mix in the wet ingredients.

Banana Nut Pancakes: Before mixing the wet into the dry, chop 1 peeled ripe banana and stir it into the wet ingredients. Also, stir about ¾ cup chopped walnut or pecan pieces into the dry ingredients.

* * *

Maple Syrup

Although maple syrup may call up images of autumn in New England, maple trees are actually tapped when the sap first runs, while there’s still snow on the ground. Early in the season, it takes about 20 gallons of sap to make a gallon of syrup. As the season goes on and the sap gets diluted (more ground water, spring rains), it can take more than 50 gallons to make a gallon of syrup.

Maple syrup is sold by grades, marked on the bottle. In Vermont, the largest U. S. producer, it’s divided into five grades: Grade A fancy light amber, Grade A medium amber, Grade A dark amber, Grade B (only for baking), and Grade C (almost like molasses and sold to commercial manufacturers). Although light amber is prized for its delicacy, we prefer medium amber, slightly stronger and more herbaceous.

Canadian syrup—85 percent of the global supply—is graded like Vermont’s with Grade 1 divided into three subsets, followed by Grades 2 and 3. Most other U. S. states grade with fewer categories, but those marked Grade A or AA are always preferred. Breakfast demands the best. Why else would anyone get out of bed?

* * *

Apple Upside-Down Skillet Pancake

Use a cast-iron skillet or a high-sided sauté pan to hold this large, puffed pancake as it rises. Makes 4 servings

2 large eggs plus 2 large egg yolks

½ cup milk (regular, low-fat, or fat-free)

3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled, plus 1 additional tablespoon unsalted butter

½ teaspoon vanilla extract

½ cup plus 1 tablespoon flour

3 tablespoons sugar

½ teaspoon baking powder

½ teaspoon baking soda

¼ teaspoon salt

4 tart apples, such as Rome or Granny Smith, peeled, cored, and thinly sliced

½ teaspoon ground cinnamon

Maple syrup for garnish

Position the rack in the center of the oven and preheat the oven to 400°F. Whisk the eggs and egg yolks, milk, melted butter, and vanilla in a medium bowl. In a large bowl, stir the flour, 1 tablespoon sugar, the baking powder, baking soda, and salt until uniform. Set both bowls aside until step 4.

Melt the remaining 1 tablespoon butter in a 10-inch cast-iron skillet or high-sided sauté pan set over medium heat. Add the apples and cook just until they begin to soften, about 2 minutes.

Stir in the remaining 2 tablespoons sugar and the cinnamon; reduce the heat to medium-low and continue cooking until the sugar melts, forms a sticky sauce, and starts to caramelize, about 5 minutes.

Use a fork to stir the egg mixture into the flour mixture—there should be no flour visible, but the batter may still be grainy with undissolved flour. Pour over the apples, then place the skillet or sauté pan in the oven and bake until puffed and brown, about 20 minutes. Cool for 5 minutes before cutting into quarters and passing the syrup on the side.

Variations: Add ½ teaspoon rum extract or maple extract with the vanilla.

Add 1 teaspoon finely grated