#Spicychat Has Two Words For You: Maple. Pancakes. Yeah, It’s That Good!

Since my AMA-zing dining experience at Chef Picard’s Restaurant Au Pied de Cochon in Montreal, it would be fair to say I am obsessed with Maple Syrup.  The minute I landed back home,  literally the first thing I did was to purchase my own hard copy of Chef Picard’s Sugar Shack. While eagerly awaiting delivery, I couldn’t help myself but try to recreate some Montreal classic dishes.

Now that I got my hands on the book, my first experiment – Maple Pancakes. Why? Curiosity got the better of me so I scoured the book to make a recipe with ingredients already in my pantry. Of course since I am the self-proclaimed ‘spice goddess’ or #spicychat goddess, I couldn’t resist adding some extra touches to Chef Picard’s original recipe.

Don’t get fooled by the list of only few ingredients. Chef Picard’s Maple Pancakes are far too special to confine them to breakfast but after you’ve tried them you’ll probably want them at every meal! They kind of remind me of the Indian dessert called Malpua.

Maple Pancakes

Deep brown in appearance, crisp exterior, with a fluffy interior, these pancakes are as decadent as they go. For once butter is unnecessary. All you need is a generous drizzle of pure maple syrup and a fork. Chef Picard cooks these decadent babies in duck fat but I cooked them in olive oil and they were still finger licking good!

Ingredients:

• 2 cups milk
• 3 large eggs
• 2 cups (plus 1.5 tbs) all-purpose flour
• 1 oz (plus 1 tbs) cornstarch
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp kosher salt
• 1/2 tsp sugar
• 1/2 tsp green cardamom powder or star anise powder
• 1 tsp kewda or almond or rose essence
• Duck fat or oil of your choice

Directions:

1. Beat the eggs and milk until well blended. Add flour, cornstarch, baking powder, salt, and sugar. Whisk vigorously until batter is smooth. Refrigerate for 1 hour.
2. Remove the batter from the fridge and whisk in cardamom and essence.
3. In a large skillet or pan heat the oil to 350 F. There should be at least 2″ inches of oil in the pan.
4. Using a ladle, fry two portions at a time until the pancake is golden brown and crisp on both sides.
5. Serve hot with pure maple syrup.

Feel free to multiply the recipe for more servings. This recipe should yield 6-8 small pancakes. Recipe adapted from Chef Picard’s cook book ‘Sugar Shack’.

Now that I have the cook book in my possession, stay tuned for more maple syrup inspired deliciousness.

Join Us Thursdays at 8 PM EDT for #SpicyChat Twitter Chat to bring some spice in your lives! We Love to share ALL recipes. Simply add the #Spicychat hashtag to your link, we will RT and also add your recipes to our Pinterest Board. For more spicy inspirations, join our #SpicyChat FB Page.

 

About Author