Today it's pancakes to the rescue!
I have been running around like a chicken with my head cut off all morning and have about 45 minutes before I have to run out the door again. As much as I love using seasonal fruits and vegetables as much as possible and we seem to be suffering an overload of oranges in the fruit bowl.
I also have 2 rather sorry looking bananas that beg rescue. I love it when my bananas begin to look battered and bruised because for me its a sign to get baking or in this case, fix pancakes. I have no real recipe in hand and I'm in such a hurry that I have no time to pull out cookbooks - so I'm on my own. Whew!
Now normally, I'd start pancakes with flour etc etc but on days like this, its Bisquick to the rescue. So here's the plan, measure out some Bisquick, add milk, egg, orange rind, mashed bananas & chopped oranges. To this add sugar, give it a whirl & off to the griddle.
On the griddle, I'm going to drop spoonfuls of yummilicious Ricotta cheese and I think we're onto something - don't you?
So here goes - I'm going to fix about 14 #, 4-5" pancakes. Gather together the Bisquick, oranges, over ripe bananas, eggs, ricotta cheese & sugar.Oranges - Using a fine grater, grate the orange rind.. Keep turning the oranges as you grate so you uniformly grate all around the orange. Also do not grate any of white pitch or it will lend a bitter taste to the dish.
Peel the oranges and remove membranes & skin. Chop the oranges into little chunks.
Bananas - Peel, remove the banana threads and mash well with a fork.
In a mixing bowl, add the Bisquick, eggs, milk, orange rind, & sugar. Using a whisk stir till blended. Add mashed bananas & oranges. I realize that I did not whisk up the mix before adding the fruit but I really ought to have done that first to break up the eggs.
Add the chopped oranges and stir with a spatula. By now you should have the scent of oranges and bananas fill the air. Lovely!
Here's why - To get a nice uniform golden brown on the non-stick pan or griddle, one must use very little if a non-existent amount of butter or non-stick spray.
I find, when I add the oil in the batter directly, I can get away with simply spraying on some non-stick spray to the pan, giving a good wipe around the pan with a kitchen paper towel and the pan's ready for use.
The oil in pancake is enough to allow for fluffy pancakes that do not stick to the pan and also brown uniformly.
Heat a non-stick pan or griddle on medium heat and use the non-stick spray and paper towel as just described.
Pour 1/4 cup batter (this is a thin batter) and since I don't mind the rustic look with the amoeba shape, I am not using a circle mold but if you wish go ahead. Make sure that you spray the mold with non-stick spray on the inside rim before using.
As soon as bubbles begin to appear around the edges of the pancake, take 1/4 tsp of ricotta cheese each time and drop 4 spoonfuls on each pancake.
Using spatula, pull in some of the irregular edges so you get a more rounded shape, though it won't be a perfect circle, you'll get rid of the irregular jagged edges.
Flip over and cook for about 30 seconds or so. I usually press down on the pancake with my fingers to test if the batter underneath has cooked. Its quite squishy when the batter is still raw but gets firmer as it cooks.
Flip over onto a plate.
Repeat the process until all the pancake batter is utilized.
The pancakes seem really soft & fluffy. Its because of the all the citrus and cheese, they don't have the firm texture that floury pancakes do & are much more delicate.
Pile all the pancakes onto serving plates about 3-4 per person. Top with butter or ricotta cheese, orange rind, sprinkle of powdered sugar & serve. You could also serve with honey but personally, I would stay away from the strong flavored pancake syrup or even maple syrup for that matter.
The scent & flavors of the bananas with the oranges is such wonderful a blast of flavors. I was a little apprehensive of how the kids are going to react but both my 8 & 3 year old kept asking for more and told me again and again how good they were!
You know, I'm not much of a blueberry fan even though I love ricotta cheese and more often than not, I'd either fix blueberry & ricotta pancakes at home or that's how I'd eat them restaurants.
But I really think I'll be doing this orange banana combination now on. Also, I've tried doing my own pancake mix and I think I'll stick with the Bisquick at least until I come across a better recipe. It just seems to work well without the added stress!
Recipe for
ORANGE BANANA & RICOTTA PANCAKES
Preparation time- 20 minutes
Cooking time - 25 minutes
Serves 4
Shopping list:
2 cups Bisquick
1 cup milk
2 eggs
2 navel oranges
2 over ripe bananas
1 tsp Ricotta cheese/ pancake
2 tbs sugar
3 tbs vegetable oil
Non-stick cooking spray
Preparation -
Oranges - Using a fine grater, grate the orange rind.. Keep turning the oranges as you grate so you uniformly grate all around the orange. Also do not grate any of white pitch or it will lend a bitter taste to the dish.
Peel the oranges and remove membranes & skin. Chop the oranges into little chunks.
Bananas - Peel, remove the banana threads and mash well with a fork.
Cooking method -
In a mixing bowl, add the Bisquick, eggs, milk, orange rind, & sugar. Using a whisk stir till blended.
Add mashed bananas & cut oranges. Add the chopped oranges and stir with a spatula.
To the batter,add vegetable oil. Stir till blended.
Heat a non-stick pan or griddle on medium heat and spray on some non-stick spray to the pan, giving it a good wipe around the pan with a kitchen paper towel.
Pour 1/4 cup batter (this is a thin batter) and since I don't mind the rustic look with the amoeba shape, I am not using a circle mold but if you wish, go ahead. Make sure that you spray the mold with non-stick cooking spray on the inside rim before using.
As soon as bubbles begin to appear around the edges of the pancake, take 1/4 tsp of ricotta cheese each time and drop 4 spoonfuls on each pancake.
Using spatula, pull in some of the irregular edges so you get a more rounded shape, though it won't be a perfect circle, you'll get rid of the irregular jagged edges.
Flip over and cook for about 30 seconds or so. I usually press down on the pancake with my fingers to test if the batter underneath has cooked. Its quite squishy when the batter is still raw but gets firmer as it cooks.
Flip the pancake over onto a plate.
Repeat the process until all the pancake batter is utilized.
Pile all the pancakes onto serving plates about 3-4 per person.
Top with butter or ricotta cheese, orange rind, sprinkle of powdered sugar & serve. You could also serve with honey but personally, I would stay away from the strong flavored pancake syrup or even maple syrup for that matter.
Enjoy!