Pancake House Tribute Ricotta Pancakes

It was about 6 years ago when a friend of mine invited us to see his band play in a restaurant on what “I thought” was just down the road. What I had planned on just being a 10-15 minute drive, wound up taking over and hour and a half to get to. Even though I consider myself a southerner now, I still have a hard time grasping the concept of “country miles”. I mean c’mon if down the road translates to 50 miles down the road I would appreciate the heads up. Anyway by the time we got to the restaurant the band was well into their second set. Unbeknownst to me all my friends had eaten before we left on this fantastic voyage, and of course the kitchen was closed when we got there. Now I love a rousing rendition of “When a Man Loves a Woman” as much as the next person but the only tunes I was focusing on was the sound of my gut rumbling.

Once the band got thru with their 45 minute mega mix of “Free Bird” we called it a night and headed back to the beach. Even during tourist season 12am is about the latest restaurants stay open. With the summer traffic it was well past 2 by the time we got close to home. By then the rest of my crew decided “Hey man Im getting kinda hungry too”. The first restaurant we found open was a 24hr Pancake house.

My Friends and I consumed enough pancakes to span the Great Wall of China. Im not sure what it was about those light and fluffy buttery disks of cake piled all high on a plate; glistening with butter and syrup that sent us into a state of euphoria. But every since that night pancakes have been one of my go to indulgences.

The pancake amore seems to be running in the family. Everytime I keep my 6 year old cousin he always has the same request “ Will you make me the pancakes with the chocolate chips pleeeease!!!!!!!!!”

Im past over due for a posting paying tribute to the Pancake House. So for all of you out there working frantically over a hot griddle 24 hrs a day, I applaud thee. It is only by means of your valiant efforts that truckers, college students, hipsters coming home from soirees, and those who get the midnight cravings for blintzes are able to stay nourished.

So here is my Pancake recipe with a twist…..

The addition of ricotta cheese is going to yield both a rich and fluffy pancake. Do not worry about trying to totally incorporate the Ricotta, personally I prefer having a few clumps of it dispersed through out the pancake. These are fantastic with a plethora of fresh fruits. Total cost for everything was $8.64 Yields 8-12 pancakes

Ricotta Pancakes

1 cup ricotta cheese
1 cup flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 1/2 tablespoons sugar
pinch salt
3/4 cup milk
3 eggs
1/2 teaspoon vanilla

Whisk together flour, baking powder, sugar, and salt in a bowl. Combine ricotta, milk, eggs, and vanilla in a separate bowl.

Beat the egg mixture with an electric mixer. Fold the dry ingredients to the ricotta and milk mixture, stirring gently until just combined.

Heat a griddle or large skillet over medium-high heat, and brush the surface with butter or nonstick spray. Use a ladle to pour batter onto the griddle. Cook pancakes for about 3 or 4 minutes, then flip, cooking until both sides are golden brown.

Notes/Tips: Set ricotta in a fine mesh strainer about 30 minutes before you start cooking, to drain off excess liquid. If mixture is too thick thin it with 1 tsp of milk at a time until desired consistency is achieved. As mentioned earlier just about any kind of fruit topping will work on these. I topped mine with strawberries sauteed in butter and honey.