No. That is NOT how you cook them!

[neadods]

Ever since I discovered that American iTunes has BBC 4 podcasts, I've been doing more or less the audio equivalent of stripping down and rolling around naked in them, luxuriating in the wide variety and the options.

Until a certain episode of "Cook the Perfect..."

The first problem is the same one all of them have; it's an audio description of a visual experience. Not too bad when you can look up a photo online, but when cooking it's necessary to know what the speaker means by "a little flour."

The episode that undid me was Cook the Perfect American Pancakes. Now, I didn't know until Gally of last year that there was a difference in pancakes between the US & the UK. "Fake Keith" described British pancakes as thin and flat, while the ultimate accolades for pancakes in these parts is "fluffy and buttery."

The speaker in "Cook the Perfect..." dealt with this by using what sounded suspiciously like the British recipe, only separating the eggs and whipping the whites to get the loft, and... no. Just no. Yeah, it will rise and it should taste more or less OK, but that is most emphatically not a proper American pancake, much less a perfect one! We, depending on the recipe and the region, use baking powder, baking soda, or even ginger ale to get that loft and you know the right time to flip it because the bubbles stop rising to the surface you're looking at. Egg whites don't bubble.

The icon is me having a bit of a lie down to get over the shock.


(Look, it was either rant over pancakes or guns and/or the Presidential race. Either way, I feel better for a bit of strop.)

Comments

[neadods.livejournal.com]

Of course you have bubbles - they come from the baking powder/soda. What do you use for a binder instead of egg? I adore eggs, but I eat too many of them.

[prof-pangaea.livejournal.com]

apple sauce!

[neadods.livejournal.com]

Interesting! What, about a quarter cup? Because if I could make oat-flour or sweet potato pancakes with applesauce, I'd be well on my way to pretending they're health food and not junk food. (I'm well aware that my circulatory system would appreciate me looking into vegan cooking.)

[prof-pangaea.livejournal.com]

this is pretty much the recipe i use except i always end up using way more applesauce and soy milk. probably closer to 3/4 cup applesauce and a cup of soy milk, but it varies.

and if you want to make them feel healthier you should probably avoid doing what nonelvis + i did, which was fry them in a quarter inch of hot oil :D


eta: now from my regular LJ account, and not the one i write questionable fic with!

[neadods.livejournal.com]

Now I'm totally going to go look at that fic!