Happy Pancake Day

Happy Pancake Day! 

I will be making some traditional pancakes with lemon and sugar for tea tonight.

But these beauties are also a favourite now.

So easy to make and can be made with soya milk for those who cannot eat dairy.

The butter is optional, but really makes the pancakes more fluffy too.

200g self raising flour

1 tsp baking powder

pinch of salt

1 egg

300 ml  semi skimmed milk or soya milk

 knob of melted butter

150g blueberries

oil to cook

Sieve the flour, baking powder and a pinch of salt into a large bowl. 

Beat the egg with the milk, make a well in the centre of the dry ingredients and whisk in the milk to make a thick smooth batter. 

Beat in the melted butter, and gently stir in half the blueberries.

Heat a small amount of oil a large non-stick frying pan. 

Drop a large spoonful of the batter per pancake into the pan. I use a tablespoon.

I start by making one at a time until I get used to timings and spread, then I make 3 or 4 at a time.


Cook  over a medium heat until small bubbles appear on the surface of each pancake, then turn and cook for 2-3 minutes until golden. 

Cover with kitchen paper to keep warm while you use up the rest of the batter. Serve with , maple syrup or sprinkle with sugar.

Pancake Day WHAT GOES UP MUST COME DOWN

Ocado discovers the formula behind the perfect pancake toss

ONLINE SUPERMARKET Ocado has cracked more than eggs ahead of Shrove Tuesday. Teaming up with one of the country’s top physicists, the innovative grocer has mastered the art of perfect pancake tossing.

With more batter expected to hit ceilings than the roofs of our mouths this Pancake Day, Ocado has created the ideal equation for a flippin’ good time. Working with Dr Mark Hadley, researcher at the University of Warwick’s Department of Physics, the formula behind the year’s trickiest culinary feat is:

Where v is the launch velocity; g is the acceleration; h, the height of the toss; a is the length of the forearm; w, the spin; is the number of pancake half turns; and p, the pan diameter

Don’t be daunted by the science though. Ocado has simplified things, claiming that the recipe for a splat-free landing rests on one key element - ‘perfect pancake altitude’. When tossed at the right height, the pancake’s launch velocity and spin are perfectly matched – much like a topping of lemon and sugar - for optimum results.

For a typical toss, Ocado suggests you aim for a pancake height of 0.5 metres. Your upwards arm swing will naturally give the pancake a velocity of 3m/sec, imparting a spin of five radians per second, resulting in a successful travel time of just over half a second, before landing safely back in the pan.

Ocado has created three toss techniques with Dr Hadley to ensure there is a flip for everyone - from the pancake showboater to the harassed host cooking crepes for a cast of thousands.

·         The Show Off

This mammoth two-armed throw is suitable for those looking to wow a crowd, or cooks wielding a cast iron pan. With arms outstretched and swinging from the shoulder, one should aim for a height of 0.7 metres

·         The Chef

This quick, efficient toss is ideal for pancake connoisseurs. Whilst holding the pan near the rim, with just a flick of the wrist this toss will require a height of just over half a foot. 16cm to be precise.

·          The Hungry Horde

Many mouths to feed? Avoid over-exertion and a nasty case of ‘pancake elbow’ with this toss. The upper arm hardly moves as the forearm swings upwards from the elbow. The distance from the elbow to the centre of the pan is typically 60cm; to achieve the perfect toss time after time, one should aim for a height of 0.47 metres, to be exact.

But what’s the real secret? Dr Hadley flips pancake convention on its head and brings it down to size: “The trick is to break the air pressure. To achieve the perfect flip, one must restrict the size of the pancake. The traditional Ocado pancake recipe provides the ideal consistency to retain a suitable thickness which will combat the impact of air pressure, whilst also being light enough to toss.”

When it comes to cooking up a pancake storm, be sure to follow Ocado’s fundamental tips so the finished article is ready for a terrific toss:

·         Lubrication Use one teaspoon of oil to ensure the pancake does not stick, yet isn’t too lubricated, resulting in ‘pancake slip’

·         Cooking time Cook the pancake until it bubbles and blisters, to roughen the bottom surface. This allows the air to rapidly fill any void under the pancake and equalise the pressure

·         Circumference Make it manageable - for bigger pancakes, the area increases much faster than the air can creep in. By increasing a pancake from 10cm to 30cm diameter, it becomes three times harder to toss

·         The Strength Test Use a spatula to lift the edge of the pancake – if you can lift it 2cm away from the pan, then it is strong enough to toss

Jason Gissing, co-founder of Ocado comments: “Ocado strives to deliver more than a just broad range of groceries; we want to make people’s lives easier where their kitchens are concerned. As such, we’re proud to work with a diverse range of experts and suppliers to provide fun, new and exciting ways to celebrate the country’s tastiest occasions.”

For further information on Ocado pancake recipes and ingredients, visit www.ocado.com/webshop/recipes/

Mrs Crimble’s Pancake Mix

Well with Valentines Day a distant memory there is another to cooker great day coming up next week, Pancake day and we always have to cook and eat them, its the chance to try and coax Paige into having a go and flipping one, I wait in vain I expect, she is too nervous! 

Last year I tried the Mrs Crimble's Pancake mix and remember wondering if they would taste different as its a gluten free recipe, but they are gorgeous, light and taste as you expect a pancake to taste.

You get a good eight pancakes from the batter and they cook perfectly, lovely golden with crispy edges!

Try the chocolate sauce recipe on the Mrs Crimble's website!

You will need:

For the crepes:

Mrs Crimble’s Pancake mix

400ml / ¾ pint milk

2 eggs

For the chocolate sauce:

250g good quality plain chocolate

15g butter

50g caster sugar

50ml boiling water

Optional

25ml orange liqueur (or an alternative could be brandy or rum).

1. Make up the pancakes following the instructions on pack.

2. Place the chocolate and butter in a bowl over a pan of hot very lightly simmering water

and melt together, stirring until smooth.

3. Dissolve the sugar in the hot water and stir into the chocolate until smooth.

4. Add the orange liqueur, stirring continually to make a smooth chocolate sauce. If the

sauce is too thick, add more hot water.

5. Place a spoonful of sauce on each pancake and roll up.

6. Serve warm with cream or ice cream.

If you fancy some delicious pancakes on Shrove Tuesday, but you’re worried about your batter being a soggy disaster, don’t panic!  Mrs Crimble’s Pancake Mix guarantees quick, easy and rewarding results.  The only challenge will be deciding whether you prefer your pancakes with lemon juice and sugar, chocolate spread and whipped cream, sliced bananas and maple syrup or doused in a flaming orange liqueur! 

You’ll find some other great recipe ideas, including a delicious chocolate sauce, on www.mrscrimbles.com.  Better still, they all happen to be gluten free so everyone can enjoy a delicious Shrove Tuesday!  

Suitable for sweet or savoury pancakes this deliciously gluten-free mix is too good for only once a year.

See our recipe section for some ideas.

See Nutrition Information

Panic free pancakes:

Use a largish, clean, non-stick frying pan.   A shallow-edged pan makes it easy to get your flipper under your pancake.  Always make sure your pan is spotless before cooking the next pancake.

Wait until your pancake starts to bubble evenly throughout and starts turning up at the edges before you flip it. Flip the perfect pancake by getting your flipper under as much of the pancake as possible and then as you lift it, turn your wrist so that the pancake lands in the same spot as it was – in the middle of the pan.

Three things you didn’t know about Pancake Day:

The oldest pancake race in Britain, in the village of Olney in Buckinghamshire, dates back to 1444.  The event originated after a local housewife was still busy making pancakes when she heard the church bells calling her to the Shriving Service on the evening before Lent.  Eager to get to church, she ran out of her house still holding the frying pan complete with her pancake, still wearing her apron and headscarf – both of which are mandatory for anyone taking part in the race today!

Folklore claims that if you make a wish at the moment you flip a pancake it will come true – but only if you are also holding a coin in your hand. 

Pancakes have a long history in almost every part of the world.  For example, they were an important part of pagan traditions and feasts in Russia that stretch back more than 1,000 years.