Middle Eastern Pancakes with Dates

These pancakes are a bit different than usual as I decided to give them a Middle Eastern/Arabic touch by adding ingredients such as rose water, orange blossom water and also sweet spices such as aniseed and cardamom. I made these for breakfast, they were very filling and very very tasty and as an accompaniment I stewed some dates which added a lot of sweetness. Give them a go, they are a different delicious take on the classic pancakes. For 4-6 pancakes you will need...

• 1 cup (about 125 g) plain flour
• 1 cup (about 235 ml) whole milk
• ½ tsp baking powder
• ½ tsp bicarbonate of soda
• 1 ripe banana, mashed
• Pinch of salt
• 1 large egg, beaten
• 1 tsp orange blossom water
• ½ tsp rose water
• ¼ tsp ground aniseed
• ¼ tsp ground cardamom
• 100g chopped dates
• 2 tbsp water
• Small knob of butter

How to...

1. In a large bowl put all ingredients apart from the dates & 2 tbsp water and mix well until you get a smooth batter.
2. Grease a non stick pan with a knob of butter and spread across the pan with a piece of kitchen towel.
3. Heat up the pan on a medium heat until well hot, drain any excess butter.
4. Always on a medium heat, ladle the batter into the pan and leave to cook until the pancake starts producing bubbles on top. When the surface is bubbly and pancake looks set, flip the pancake and cook for a couple of seconds. Repeat until all batter is used.
5. Keep pancakes warm and in the meantime, prepare the dates by adding the dates and 2 tablespoons of water to the same pancake pan and warm enough until dates are soft and mushy.
6. Spoon the date mixture on the piled pancakes and serve warm!!

Enjoy!!

R&A

Classic Pancakes

Pancakes are surely everyone's favourite. They can be served and eaten with a myriad of ingredients from savoury to sweet. In Canada & the USA they like to take theirs with maple syrup & butter, whilst here in the UK the tradition is to have them with lemon juice and sprinkled with sugar. We always like ours sweet and amongst our favourite toppings are Nutella™, sliced bananas, chopped nuts, honey, maple syrup, marshmallow fluff, strawberry jam/conserve, chocolate flavoured syrup and loads of others. If you prefer them savoury you can fill them with chopped cooked ham or bacon, grated cheese and whatever your taste is. Very easy to do prepare and cook, the secret is to have a very very hot lightly greased pan. The consistency of the batter should not be runny but should not be stiff. For 4 small thick pancakes you will need...

• 1 cup/115g plain flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
• Pinch salt (optional)
• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
• 1 large egg, beaten
• 1 cup/240ml whole milk or water
• Butter or a little oil to grease the pan

How to...

1. Sift the flour, salt & baking powder...mix them up in a bowl with a fork.
2. Add the milk, beaten egg, and oil and beat well with a whisk by hand  until all the ingredients are well incorporated.
3. Grease a non stick pan with a knob of butter or by adding a tiny bit of oil to the pan and spread across the pan with a piece of kitchen towel.
4. Heat up the pan on a medium heat until well hot, drain any excess oil.
5. Always on a medium heat, ladle the batter into the pan and leave to cook until the pancake starts producing bubbles on top. When the surface is bubbly and pancake looks set, flip the pancake and cook for a couple of seconds. Repeat until all batter is used.
6. Serve while still hot with the topping of your choice.

Enjoy!!
R&A