Orange Ricotta Pancakes with Vanilla Honey Syrup & Hazelnuts
We're pancake people. Always have been, always will be. Except for my daughter but I'm pretty sure that's a fluke.
Because who doesn't love pancakes? Those fluffy, light clouds of soft, extraordinary sweetness.
I have a really fabulous buttermilk recipe that produces mile high pancakes with lots of tang. But when Easter rolled around, I wanted to dig into something more inventive for the holiday.
I'd been dying to try an Orange Ricotta Pancake recipe from Two Peas and Their Pod, which is a blog I follow and adore. I'm pretty sure I've never tried a recipe from Maria and Josh that didn't dazzle, so I knew I'd be in good hands. But I left out the chocolate chips in favor of other flavor profiles in the syrup and garnish that would compliment the pancakes without sacrificing texture.
I don't like THINGS in my pancakes. Garnish away but don't embed. Nothing should disrupt the miracle of pillowy batter that is a well made pancake.
And these do not disappoint. The ricotta makes a dense, rich flavor and consistency while the orange zest brightens every springy bite. The syrup on these was just gorgeous. A vanilla honey base with orange zest made a perfect compliment to the stack. My favorite addition was the chopped hazelnuts and shavings of dark chocolate, which gave just the right touch of complexity without distracting from the wonder that is pancakes.
We begin with an ingredient roll call. It's mostly your typical crew for pancakes with the exception of ricotta in place of the buttermilk or milk. This makes a VERY dense batter.
Whisk your dry ingredients together. As you may notice, I'm using a new camera and I'm getting all adventurous and artsy with my shots. Bear with me while I dork out a bit.
Next up you want to whisk together the wet ingredients. It may feel a bit thick for a whisk to manage but you'll get through it. Promise.
This is the essential part of pancakes. If no one has shared this secret with you, I will fill you in.
Don't you dare over mix. You basically just fold the wet ingredients into the dry. Seriously. It goes against every instinct you have, but you want to leave those pockets of unmixed flour.
It's called the muffin method. So give your spoon a few turns around the bowl and then restrain yourself. It ought to look something like this.
While your griddle is warming, go ahead and boil up the syrup. It's pretty easy and it'll be done and still warm when you're ready.
See that amazing syrup pourer? If you don't have one, you're missing out. I've convinced myself it makes the pancakes taste better. Grab yours here.
Thunder Group GLTWSY014 Syrup Dispenser with Cast Zinc Top, 14-Ounce
Split open that vanilla bean to get all the goodies inside and boil this for a few minutes until it thickens.
Those clouds of honey and sugar look pretty amazing. They're gonna taste even better.
Butter that griddle and start flipping.
This recipe produces really lovely pancakes that have a fluffy profile and toasty tops and bottoms. My griddle is also well seasoned, which helps. I've had it for about ten years and I pretty much can't live without it. If you don't own an electric griddle, I recommend picking one up. They are a bit of an investment but they last forever and you can get pancakes done in two or three batches tops. I always end up making double recipes and freezing the pancakes so we can enjoy them later. Pancakes for days... it's the way to go.
Broil King PCG-10 Professional Portable Nonstick Griddle
So there you have it, folks. A show stopper of a pancake recipe with citrus, nut and chocolate notes that'll start your weekend with a whole lotta wow.
Orange Ricotta Pancakes with Vanilla Honey Syrup & Hazelnuts
For the pancakes:
1 1/4 cups all-purpose Gold Medal flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons granulated sugar
Zest of 1 orange
1 cup ricotta cheese
1 large egg
2 large egg whites
1/2 cup fresh orange juice
1 tablespoon canola oil
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
chopped hazelnuts, chocolate shavings (optional)
For the syrup:
1 cup water
2/3 cup granulated sugar
1/3 cup honey
Pinch of salt
Vanilla bean, split
1 Tbsp. orange zest
Directions:
In a large bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. In a small bowl, combine sugar and orange zest. Rub together your fingers until fragrant. Add the mixture to the flour mixture and whisk until combined. Set aside. In a medium bowl, whisk together ricotta cheese, egg, egg whites, orange juice, canola oil and vanilla extract. Gently fold this mixture into the dry ingredients until flour disappears. Don't over mix. The batter will be thick.
Heat a griddle or a nonstick skillet over medium heat. Spray with cooking spray or coat with butter. Drop about 1/3 cup of batter onto the hot griddle or skillet. Cook the pancakes until browned on the underside and beginning to set, about 2 minutes. Flip and cook the pancakes on the other side, about two minutes longer.
In a thick-bottomed sauce pan, add granulated sugar, honey, pinch of salt, split vanilla bean and water. Over medium-high heat, slowly stir until the sugar is completely dissolved. When the syrup reaches full boil with big bubbles, just let it boil for about 5 minutes. Reducing the syrup by boiling will make the syrup thicker. Cool slightly. Add orange zest and stir until combined.
To serve, garnish pancakes with syrup, chopped hazelnuts and chocolate shavings. Enjoy!