Ricotta Pancakes

A couple of weeks ago Vicki and I were down for the first football game of the year at Cal and the morning after the game we revisited the Cock-a-Doodle Cafe with our friends Dan and Sandy. We hadn't been there since last year, but the food was still outstanding. Once again, Vicki had the Lemon Ricotta pancakes and loved them so much I decided to try them at home. I used a recipe from Giada De Laurentis and varied it a little bit, adding blue berries and vanilla, rather than lemon zest. The result was two huge yummie pancakes served with a couple of slices of organic apple smoked bacon. Vicki was so anxious to eat it, she took a bite before I could take the picture!

Here's the recipe:

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Ricotta Pancakes


Prep Time: 10 min
Cook Time: 30 min Level: Easy
Serves: 4 servings (16 pancakes)

Ingredients:

2 cups water
1/3 cup sugar
1/3 cup honey
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 cups pancake and waffle mix (recommended: Krusteaz)
1 cup whole milk ricotta cheese
2/3 cup frozen blueberries
Melted butter

Directions:

Stir 1/3 cup of water and sugar in a small saucepan over medium heat until the sugar dissolves, about 5 minutes. Stir in the honey. Set aside and keep the honey syrup warm.

Using a rubber spatula, stir the remaining 1 2/3 cups of water and vanilla in a large bowl. Add the pancake mix and stir just until moistened but still lumpy. Stir in the ricotta into the pancake mixture, then stir gently to incorporate the ricotta but maintain a lumpy batter. Fold in the blueberries.

Heat a griddle over medium heat. Brush with the melted butter. Working in batches, spoon 1/4 cup of batter onto the griddle for each pancake. Cook until golden brown, about 3 minutes per side. Serve with the honey syrup.

Recipe courtesy Giada De Laurentis