Hello,

It’s Pancake Day again already and we hope you’re already on your second stack of these tremendously traditional treats and enjoying every mouthful. If you haven’t made your batter yet, or if you’d totally forgotten what day it is, don’t panic – we come bearing the recipe for perfect pancakes. There are some ideas for weird and wonderful toppings to try too.

Like to keep yours simple? You’re not alone, we love nothing more than a squeeze of lemon and a sprinkle of sugar on ours. It’s a good job we’ve got something sensationally stylish to store our citrus on at Omlet HQ then, isn’t it!? Is it an Egg Ramp? Is it a fruit bowl? You’ll just have to wait and see…

Record Breaking Pancakes

Largest Pancake - In 1994, the Co-Operative Union cooked a 15m pancake in Rochdale. The pancake measured 1 inch thick, weighed 3 tonnes and took some serious machinery to flip over.

Highest Pancake Toss - The highest pancake flip measured a whopping 9.47m. It was accomplished by pancake pro Dominic Cuzzacrea, in New York, 2010.

Most Expensive Pancake - The Manchester Radisson Blu Edwardian’s Opus restaurant will be serving a painfully expensive pancake dish today. At £800 a serving, it contains lobster, caviar, truffles, mussels, langoustines and a dollop of Dom Pérignon Rosé hollandaise sauce.

Recipe for Perfect Pancakes

Ingredients:
110g/4oz plain flour, sifted
pinch of salt
2 eggs
200ml/7fl oz milk mixed with 75ml/3fl oz water
50g/2oz butter

Method:

1. Sift the flour and salt into a large mixing bowl. Make a well in the centre of the flour and break the eggs into it, then begin whisking the eggs, incorporating any bits of flour from around the edge of the bowl as you do so.
2. Gradually add small quantities of the milk and water mixture, still whisking. When all the liquid has been added, give it another whisk until the batter is smooth, with the consistency of thin cream. Melt the butter in a pan. Spoon 2 tbsp of it into the batter and whisk it in, then pour the rest into a bowl and use it to lubricate the pan, using a kitchen paper to smear it round before you make each pancake.
3. Get a frying pan really hot, then turn the heat down to medium and do a test pancake to see if you’re using the correct amount of batter. 2 tbsp is about right for an 18cm/7in pan. It’s also helpful if you spoon the batter into a ladle so it can be poured into the hot pan in one go. As soon as the batter hits the hot pan, tip it around from side to side to get the base evenly coated with batter. It should take only half a minute or so to cook; you can lift the edge with a palette knife to see if it’s tinged gold as it should be. Flip the pancake over, cook for a few seconds, and slide it out of the pan onto a plate.
4. Stack the pancakes as you make them between sheets of greaseproof paper on a plate fitted over simmering water, to keep them warm while you make the rest.
5. Serve with your choice of topping.
   

Weird and Wonderful Toppings

Peanut Butter and Jam – An American classic, and the perfect combo for a pancake filling.

Melted After Eights – Complete heaven, according to one our Twitter followers.

Banana and Bacon – With a touch of maple syrup too. A surprisingly popular choice of topping.

Green Eggs and Ham – Very odd. Very Dr. Seuss. Kids will love it. Colour and fry the white separately from the yolk to achieve the look.

Hot Dogs – This makes sense. Hot sausages on pancakes, with a dollop of ketchup, mustard or apple sauce, and rolled up.