Pancakes: Trois ans plus tard / Pancakes: Three years Later

The first American culinary experience that I had coming to the United States, about three years ago, was pancakes. My husband was telling me about them all the time, how fluffy they are, how you can eat them with whatever you want and how tasty they are.
I taught: “I love crepes! I might as well love pancakes”.
He used one of those pancake mix boxes: The taste was good but not enough to make me jump off my seat and the texture was fluffy but you have to drench the pancake in syrup to make it soft to your palate.
Three years later, it was time for me to renew the experience and to give the pancake another chance, but this time by doing it my way.

I have heard about ricotta pancakes and how good they are, and since I love ricotta I taught I will give it a try.
I browsed the internet to look for a recipe and I came across a ricotta and blueberry pancakes with a blueberry compote that had my name all over it. A quick run to the market to buy some blueberries and I was ready to take on the pancake challenge.
The result: It was completely different from the box experience that I had before; the mixture felt rich and a little heavy so I added more milk but other than that, after cooking it: it was light as a feather and so moist and flavorful. The ricotta balances the acidity of the blueberries, and the compote is not too sweet; just the right amount of sweetness.
The verdict: Pancakes are back in my kitchen and in my breakfast and this recipe is definitely a keeper.

Ricotta and blueberry pancakes with blueberry compote

Recipe: from Curtis Stone
- 4 eggs, yolks and white separated
- 11oz ricotta
- 8 fl oz milk
- 9oz all purpose flour
- 1 tsp baking powder
- Pinch of salt
- 11oz blueberries
- 4oz sugar
- 3oz butter

Mix the egg yolks with the ricotta and the milk and set aside. Sieve in the flour, the baking powder and the salt and stir well to combine. Whip the egg whites to a soft peak. Add a third of the egg whites to the ricotta mixture and stir in to loosen the mixture then gently fold in the remaining egg whites.
Add one third of the blueberries to the batter and put the rest in a pan with half the butter and the sugar. Simmer for a couple of minutes until some of the blueberries have collapsed.
Melt the remaining butter in a frying pan and add a ladle of the batter to the pan. Cook them until golden brown on each side.
Serve them with a drizzle of the warm blueberry compote.

Pancakes de ricotta et de myrtilles avec compote de myrtilles

In francais please: recette de Curtis Stone
- 4 oeufs, jaunes et blancs séparés
- 310g de ricotta
- 225ml de lait
- 255g de farine
-1 c.c de levure chimique
- Une pincée de sel
- 310g de myrtilles
- 110g de sucre
- 85g de beurre

Mélanger la ricotta, les jaunes d’oeufs et le lait. Ajouter-y la farine, la levure et le sel tamises. Battre les blancs en neige. Mettre le tiers des blancs dans le mélange ricotta et mélanger pour assouplir la pâte puis incorporer délicatement le reste (vous devez obtenir une pâte onctueuse mais pas aussi liquide que celle des crêpes).Ajouter le tiers des myrtilles a la pâte et mettre le reste dans une casserole avec le sucre et la moitié du beurre. Laisser cuire quelques minutes jusqu’a ce que quelques myrtilles «éclatent ».
Faire fondre le reste du beurre dans une poêle et mettre une louche de la pâte a chaque fois. Faire cuire des deux côtés jusqu’a ce qu’ils soient bien dorés.
Servir sur une assiette arroses de la compote de myrtilles tiède.