For most of us here in Denmark and around the globe, the last two months have been a whirlwind of insecurity and upheaval of our regular day-to-day routines. Juggling the new stresses of home-schooling, working from home, not seeing (or hugging) your dearest friends or family, and continuously questioning If? When? How? What? can take a toll on anyone. During these times, it’s essential to hold on to our old routines of “weekend”.
Photographs: Erin Chapman / iStock
Text: Erin Chapman
Weekends, or “slow days” are a necessity to our mental and emotional health. They allow us to relax and renew, creating space and separation from work-time and off-time. During this new era of blurred lines between work, school, and staying home, it helps to designate weekend routines.
In my family, the weekend routine is centred around a slow breakfast that is always a bit more decadent than the Monday through Friday breakfast routine. It helps us to acknowledge “now the weekend has begun”, and since we can’t (yet) go out to enjoy brunch at our local cafes, we can create that relaxed brunchy slow feeling at home. Here’s one of my go-to weekend favourites.
Blueberry cornmeal pancakes
Makes 10-12 pancakes
Adding cornmeal to pancakes gives an extra nutty, unexpected sweet flavour, plus a slightly heartier texture. In my family, we are wild about blueberries in our pancakes, but we have also made this recipe with other fruits. See some alternative recipe ideas below!
Ingredients:
200 g cornmeal 225 g flour 2 tablespoons muscovado sugar (dark brown sugar) 2 teaspoons baking powder ½ teaspoon baking soda ½ teaspoon salt 500 ml buttermilk* (kærnemælk) 2 eggs 60 g butter, melted 1 teaspoon vanilla essence or extract 200-300 g fresh blueberries, rinsed and dried butter or oil to grease the skillet
Method:
In a mixing bowl, whisk together the cornmeal, flour, muscovado sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
In a separate bowl, whisk together the buttermilk, eggs, melted butter, and vanilla.
Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and whisk just until the dry ingredients are mixed in – the pancake batter should be slightly lumpy.
At this point, you can gently fold in the blueberries**, or you can wait and add the blueberries to the pancake once you’ve poured the batter onto the pan.
Heat a skillet or griddle over medium heat. Grease the pan with butter or oil. Using a small measuring cup or scoop, pour small rounds of batter onto the pan. Allow to cook for a few minutes until bubbles start to appear on top of the pancake. Flip the pancake and cook for a couple of minutes more until done. Remove and repeat!***
Enjoy with maple syrup and extra blueberries!
TIP 1: This recipe uses buttermilk. If you don’t have buttermilk, simply take 500 ml of regular milk, and add 2 tablespoons of lemon juice. Whisk together and allow to curdle a bit. Voila! You’ve made a perfect substitute for buttermilk!
TIP 2: There are different camps of thought on whether one should stir in blueberries/fruit to the batter, or add them once you’ve poured your batter onto the skillet. This can be your choice, however, adding the berries while the pancake is cooking on the pan will simply mean that the blueberries are exposed once flipped. This will cause the blueberries to soften and release juice on the pan, making things a bit messier during cooking time.
TIP 3: I like to keep my finished pancakes warm while I make several batches on the pan. Heat your oven to a low heat 100-125 C, and place the finished pancakes on a platter in the oven to stay warm while you cook the others.
ALTERNATIVE FLAVOUR COMBINATIONS
Apple cinnamon cornmeal pancakes
Substitute berries with thinly sliced apples, and add a ½ teaspoon of cinnamon to the batter. Continue as directed.
Banana nutmeg cornmeal pancakes
Substitute berries with banana slices, and add a 1teaspoon of nutmeg to the batter. Continue as directed.
Peach ginger cornmeal pancakes
Substitute berries with thin slices of fresh peach or nectarine, and add 1 teaspoon of ground ginger to the batter. Continue as directed.
