Raspberry-Blueberry Pancakes with Cinnamon-Cream Syrup

My love, my dove, my fair one, my sweet... I've heard these words whispered many times by my one true love. With Valentine's Day just around the corner, I started thinking of how best to return the sentiment. Inevitably, my thoughts turned to sweet little treats. Dinner we do together almost every day, and lunch on the weekends. Breakfast, however, is largely unconquered territory. While there have been pancakes and biscuits 'n' eggs, usually it's utter simplicity with cereal and milk.

My mind strayed back to the pancakes. Cute, fluffy and a tabula rosa, for sure! They were certain to be the perfect platform for a berry-tinged labor of love.

The blueprint is simple as can be, and adapted from the pages of "The Joy of Cooking." These basic pancakes are a classic recipe that utilize common cupboard ingredients for very tasty results. I tweaked the recipe a bit by adding the juice of one smallish lemon to the whole milk, and letting it sour for about twenty minutes before preceding. It added the perfect tang to the fluffy cakes.

There are many ways to jazz up pancakes, and blueberries are one of my favorites. As a nod to this special day, I decided to use a combination of blue and raspberries, easy enough to find mixed in the freezer section. Once thawed and drained, don't add them into the batter! Doing so results in uneven distribution, and irregular-shaped pancakes. Keep the bowl griddle-side, and plop them into the freshly poured batter rounds individually. Fiddly? A little. But isn't true love worth it?


Raspberry-Blueberry Pancakes

1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
3 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups buttermilk (I used regular milk, soured with the juice of 1 small lemon)
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
2 large eggs
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
frozen blueberries and raspberries, thawed and drained
additional butter, as needed

Thoroughly combine dry and wet ingredients in separate bowls.
Mix batter together quickly, but do not overbeat.
The dry ingredients should barely be moistened with a few quick whisks.
There will be lumps, but these will cook completely out.
Griddle is ready when test drops of cold water bounce and sputter up.
Place about 1/4 cup batter onto hot, lightly buttered griddle.
When bubbles have appeared on the surface, after 2-3 minutes, check to see if undersides have browned.
Turn and cook on second side, which will go more quickly than the first.
NOTE: To keep pancakes warm, place, covered, in a 200-degree oven.

Since you've already come this far, don't reach for that dated bottle of maple! It's easy enough to make a batch of cinnamon cream syrup while the pancakes are griddling away. Corn syrup, sugar, milk, and nice kick of cinnamon combine into an enticingly sweet and intense topping. It's just different enough to make any mouth curve into a smile.

Cinnamon Cream Syrup

1 cup sugar
1/2 cup light corn syrup
1/4 cup water
3/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 cup whole milk (or 1/2 cup evaporated milk)

In a small saucepan, combine sugar, syrup, water and cinnamon.
Bring to boiling over medium heat, stirring constantly.
Cook and stir 2 minutes.
Remove from heat and cool 5 minutes.
Stir in milk.
Serve warm over pancakes, waffles, or French toast.
Leftover syrup may be gently re-heated.

from 'James River Kitchen'

Bonus photos! Here's the shot for the paper:

And here's what was really going on behind the scenes: