Chocolate Chunk Pancakes

Chocolate Chunk Scottish Pancakes

Traditional Scottish Food with a chocolate twist that is good for just about any time of day.

I grew up in England so pancakes were made with Yorkshire pudding batter and were thin and large and rolled up with lemon juice and a sprinkling of brown sugar. In Scotland however, pancakes are so much more than that. We have taken this traditional recipe and embellished it a bit in ways that will have you coming back for more, every single time. The question is, how many pancakes is enough?

Ingredients:

225g self raising flour

1 tsp baking powder

55g caster sugar

2 large eggs

300ml milk

100g good quality chocolate cut into small chunks

Method:

Sift the flour and baking powder into a bowl and add the sugar.

In a separate bowl, use a hand held electric mixer to beat the eggs until they are well mixed and frothy. Add the milk and whisk again, getting as much air into the mixture to keep it light and frothy.

Combine the wet and dry ingredients together and whisk again until fully mixed together. You are looking for a thick batter that is smooth and a little fluffy.

Place a pancake pan or griddle on a medium to low heat and place a tiny amount of butter into the pan to melt. Once melted, and the pan is hot enough, place a small ladleful of batter into the pan, you will probably be able to do two or three at a time.

Allow the bottom to start cooking, just for a minute or two. Once the bottom of the pancake is starting to firm sprinkle over a few of your chocolate chunks onto the uncooked top of the pancake. Continue to cook until bubbles appear (a bit like a crumpet top) your pancake is now ready to turn over. Cook for a minute of two on the other side until golden brown.

My top tips are: don’t add the chocolate chunks to the batter - you will regret try to cook them this way - its just messy. Don’t try to turn too early. Avoid using too much butter, the pancakes are best cooked as dry as possible. If the chocolate does start to mess up the pan just give it a wipe out. Keeping it clean gives the best pancake. don’t be tempted to have the heat too high, the pancakes will likely burn and not be cooked through in the middle. patience is key.

Stack your pancakes, keeping a clean tea towel over them to keep them warm.

Enjoy every mouthful.