I love pancakes. They're a seriously simple and delicious food, and as I found out recently...completely versatile too! Just after Christmas, I was sent an invitation by Eggs Australia to come along and learn how to make the ultimate family pancake...with a promise like that, how could I resist? Seth was my date for the event, and we had a fabulous time learning pancake cooking techniques and experimenting with different flavours with Chef Adrian Richardson.
Pancakes in our house are usually a sweet affair, smothered in nutella, or kept simple with sugar and lemon juice. The ingredients laid out on the kitchen bench looked anything but sweet...chili, garlic, nuts, deep fried eschallots and been sprouts...this was going to be interesting! Btw - can you spot the son of a blogger? lol. Seth recorded the whole event on his iPod so that he could follow the recipes later.
Time for a little food envy! This is one of those times that you wish your computer monitor emitted smells. Our first pancake cooking adventure with Chef Adrian was this little number...a thai-style prawn pancake. Seriously delicious and definitely a recipe I will be recreating in our home. The pancake batter was so light and thin, with a splash of soy sauce for extra flavour. The plate was piled high with savoury pancake goodness, and would be a great accompaniment to an asian-themed dinner, or as a family dinner. In my house, this would probably feed the whole family...or shared between two...or (who am I kidding) one seriously hungry adult.
ADRIAN RICHARDSON’S THAI-STYLE PRAWN PANCAKES
Makes 4 – 5 pancakes
4 eggs, beaten
¼ cup flour
¼ cup water
450 g prawns, cooked or fry raw prawns in a little oil and allow to cool
½ cup bean shoots
½ cup coriander, roughly chopped
2 spring onions, thinly sliced
1 long red chilli, thinly sliced
½ cup Vietnamese mint (can use any mint)
¼ cup cucumber, peeled, deseeded & thinly sliced (matchsticks)
sesame seeds, toasted
salt and pepper
¼ cup fresh lime juice
1 tablespoon fish sauce
1 tablespoon palm sugar (brown sugar is also ok)
½ cup roasted peanuts, roughly chopped
1 tablespoon grated ginger
½ tablespoon grated garlic
Olive oil for frying
Here's how...
1. Mix flour, egg and water together in a bowl until smooth (no lumps).
2. Allow the batter to rest for 5 to 10 minutes.
3. Ladle the mixture into the pan, making a 20cm pancake.
To make the prawn salad:
1. In a frying pan, cook prawns in butter and salt and pepper to taste. Set aside to cool.
2. In a bowl, add coriander, spring onions, chilli, cucumber, mint and sesame seeds. Toss with hands.
To make the dressing:
1. In a bowl, add lime juice, fish sauce, palm sugar, peanuts, ginger and garlic. Mix together.
Place a little of the prawn salad in the centre of each pancake & fold over. Drizzle a little dressing over the pancake and serve hot.
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Now for something sweet...blueberry pancakes...the lightest, fluffiest pancakes you'll ever feast your eyes on. Chef Adrian shared his secrets with us, and now I can pass them onto you! For this recipe, the egg whites where whipped into soft peaks before combining with the batter, then allowed to rest. This gives the gluten time to relax, so that your pancakes will be tender (hmmm...this explains past rubbery pancakes at our house! lol.). Now, as if blueberry pancakes aren't yummy enough; it was topped with fresh berries, maple syrup, cream and a berry coulis. YUM!
ADRIAN RICHARDSON’S BLUEBERRY PANCAKES
Makes 4 – 5 pancakes
2 cups self-raising flour
4 whole eggs separated
¼ cup castor sugar
2 ½ cups milk
1 punnet (250g) blueberries
Maple syrup, to serve
Sour cream, to serve
Icing sugar, to serve
Sprig of mint, to serve
Here's how...
1. Whisk egg whites to firm peaks.
2. Mix flour, egg yolks, sugar and milk together in a bowl until smooth (no lumps).
3. Fold in egg whites
4. Allow to batter to stand for 10 to 15 minutes.
5. Add the blueberries to the batter.
6. Place a knob of butter in a pan, on a low to medium heat.
7. Ladle the mixture into the pan, to cover the base of the pan.
8. Cook the pancakes until golden brown on one side then flip over and cook until golden brown.
Serve with yoghurt, fresh berries, maple syrup, a sprig of mint and dust with icing sugar.
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The cooking lesson was over...and the whisk was handed over to us, along with some mystery ingredients! Oh dear. Panic set in. I never panic when I cook at home, but then, I NEVER cook for a professional celebrity chef! We've been fans of Adrian Richardson's cooking for years, watching Good Chef Bad Chef, and Secret Meat Business...such a thrill to meet him in real life! Talk about stress...
Stay tuned to see what we created...
For more tasty egg-based recipes, visit...
Disclaimer: I was not obligated to blog about this event. No money was offered, nor accepted for this post. All opinions expressed are purely my own.
