Begin Your Cooking Adventure by Making American Pancakes

You love cooking but had never made an effort to cook with your mother around .You want to surprise your partner with good breakfast dish this Sunday. In this case you have to learn more about preparing American pancakes.

What is an American pancake?

An American pancake is a thin layer of cake made from a batter and cooked on low heat in a pan from where it derives its name. American flapcakes can be served with various toppings made from sweet savories like bacon to simple fresh fruits and creams and syrups made from maple sap.

What is the difference between American flapcakes and other pancakes?

Pancakes are usually made from three main ingredients which are flour, eggs and milk. The batter is usually watery and the flapcake are like French crepes. The pancakes might also have dark spots in them which are air bubbles and are very tasty to eat.

American pancakes are also made from eggs, flour and milk. But they use baking powder to make the texture of the pancakes fluffy and soft. The batter used to make the American pancakes is thicker. Americans always eat pancakes for breakfast.

What is the recipe to make delicious American pancakes?

Here is a simple method to prepare delicious American pancakes for breakfast. For the syrup you can use maple syrup that is available in the supermarkets. The basic cooking elements needed to prepare American pancakes are:

135 grams of plain flour

130 ml. milk

1 egg beaten to a fluffy mixture

2 tablespoons sugar

1 tablespoon baking powder

1 pinch of salt

30 grams butter

Here is the actual process of preparing American pancakes.

In a large mixing bowl add the sifted flour with the sugar and salt.

In another bowl add the milk and the egg and mix them to a fluffy consistency.

Introduce the liquid mixture into the flour mixture and beat till there are no lumps in the pancake mixture. The best method is to gently fold in and then beat it up in one direction.

On a warm saucepan heat a small portion of the butter and let it warm on a low heat. The butter should not burn. Add a small quantity of the thick American pancakes batter and spread it in a round circle.

Do not make the pancakes thick. They should be around 1 cm in diameter. Slowly cook one side of the pancake till it's brown and flip the other side. You should not quicken the cooking process and the American flapcake should be lightly browned. If you do quicken it they would become dark brown and bitter.

You can repeat the process until you have used the batter. Before serving you can warm it in an oven.

Serve these warm American flapcake with warm butter coated lavishly over it and add some maple syrup.

You can also add fresh fruits like strawberries and blueberries with cream as side toppings.

Using this American flapcake recipe will surprise your partner. But remember that now that you have started your cooking adventure, cooking regularly would bring you more joy and satisfaction.

American pancakes (Amerikanske pandekager is the term in Danish) is one of the best ways to start your cooking journey.More recipes you can find on this website .

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Variations on a Bread Making Theme

You know how sometimes even the best cook can get distracted and forget an ingredient? That happened to me once many years back, and I completely forgot to put in the 3 eggs called for in my bread recipe. I was so distracted that even when I had only added 7 cups of flour and the dough already looked too dry, I still didn't realize what was wrong. I made the bread, baked it and we were eating the first loaf. There was a difference in color that I wondered about. That was when I realized that I had utterly forgotten to add the eggs.

Things like this can happen to the best of us, but what I want to demonstrate with this story is that bread making is a forgiving art. Add a little more of this, a little less of that, and you still have a very good loaf of bread. After that episode of forgetfulness, I got thinking. I tried making the bread with only a half stick of butter and two eggs. It turned out great. I substituted 2 cups whole wheat flour for part of the flour and it was great. I wondered what other things I could do with this original recipe.

Remember that when making a substitution or using a different ingredient, the total amount of flour needed will vary. If substituting 2 cups of whole wheat flour, do this at the beginning of the recipe. This way, toward the end of adding flour, you will know that since whole wheat is a thirstier flour, you will likely need less than the full amount. This holds equally true with flax seed. I often mix 1 cup of ground flax seed into the original 2 cups of flour, mixed with the powdered milk and yeast and add it at the beginning. Flax seed soaks up liquid, so the ultimate amount of flour will be less by nearly a cup.

Another variation I use often is with oatmeal. When the boiled water is poured over the stick of butter, honey and salt, I add in a cup or so of old fashioned rolled oats to the hot liquid to soak. Once cooled enough, proceed with the recipe as stated, knowing you will need less flour than called for. Keep an eye on the texture of the dough, noting that if the dough starts trying to climb up the dough hook, it is more dry than needed. Softer dough will yield more tender bread.

If you like nuts, such as walnuts or pecans, they can be added either finely ground or coarsely chopped, as desired. The amount of flour should not vary widely with the addition of nuts. Use raisins the same way, for that variation. For cinnamon raisin bread, when patting out one loaf of dough, and prior to rolling up, brush the dough with melted butter and sprinkle with cinnamon, or cinnamon and sugar. If raisins have not been added to the dough itself, they may be sprinkled on before rolling up the loaf.

If you choose a less sweet dough, lower the amount of honey by half, and add in another half cup of water, to keep the amount of dough approximately the same. If you want to use only egg whites instead of whole eggs, that is acceptable. If you have leftover egg yolks and need to use them, just yolks in the recipe will work fine. Either way, remember that slightly less liquid is being used, so either compensate by adding a little more water or a little less overall flour. Eggs, either whole or just the yolks give the bread a lovely golden color. If you want to increase the golden color even more, use saffron. Take a pinch of saffron and either grind to a fine powder or crumble finely and add to the boiling water at the beginning of the recipe. Alternatively, soak the saffron threads in the boiled water, then remove the threads before pouring into the mixer bowl.

If you want to make dinner rolls such as cloverleaf, one loaf of dough will yield a dozen rolls, made in greased muffin tins. Baking time is approximately 12 to 15 minutes. If you would like to make buns, one loaf will make about 6 to 8 buns. Divide one loaf worth of dough into the appropriate amount of equal sized pieces. Take one piece and make a nicely formed ball by tucking under repeatedly. Then either with hands or a rolling pin flatten the dough to an exaggeratedly wide and flat round. It may take some work. Lay these onto a greased baking sheet and allow it to rise. Bake for about 15 to 18 minutes.

These are some of the many ways to make changes and alterations. Get familiar with the dough and how it works and there is no limit to what can be done.

Thank you for taking the time to read my article. I hope it was informative and helped you along your own culinary journey. You will find many more recipes and helpful tips on my web site. I am on Facebook at A Harmony of Flavors and share a recipe or tip each day to the fans that have liked my site. I hope to see you there soon.

My name is Chris Rawstern and I have been on a cooking and baking journey for 42 years. Many people have asked what A Harmony of Flavors means. Have you ever had a meal where the visual presentation was stunning, the smells were incredible, the taste was so remarkable that you ate slowly savoring every bite, wishing the experience would never end? Then you have experienced what a truly harmonious meal can be like. My passion is to teach people how to create a Harmony of Flavors with their cooking, and help pass along my love and joy of food, both simple and exotic, plain or fancy. I continue my journey in ethnic and domestic cuisines, trying new things. I would love to hear from you, to help me continue my journey to explore diverse culinary experiences and hopefully to start you on a journey of your own. Visit my Web site http://www.aharmonyofflavors.com/ my Blog my Marketplace or Facebook page A Harmony of Flavors

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My Bread Making Tradition, My Mothers Recipe

By now I am sure you have read a lot about the theory of making good bread from scratch. Start with a recipe that I have been using for the last 40 years and enjoy your results. I had to learn to make bread at age 21, in a foreign country, without an oven. With all the modern conveniences today, bread making is a snap. It is my recommendation that it be made completely by hand at first so the look and feel of the dough becomes known. Later on, using a machine or mixer, you will understand better what you are seeing, and instinctively know how to correct, if things go awry.

My Mom's Bread Recipe

3 cups milk, scalded (just when tiny bubbles start forming at the edge of the pan)

1 stick unsalted butter

1/2 cup sugar

4 cups bread flour

2 - 3 teaspoons salt

2 packets Instant Rise or Rapid Rise yeast

3 eggs

4 cups more flour, or more, as needed

In a saucepan, scald the milk. Once the tiny bubbles begin, remove from the heat and put in the stick of butter and the sugar. Allow the milk to cool and the butter to melt or soften until a pinkie finger inserted into the milk will not feel hot. In a very large bowl, place the flour, salt and yeast and stir to combine. Add in the lukewarm milk mixture and stir with a wooden spoon. Add in the eggs, beating well after each addition. Begin adding in more flour, a cup at a time. Once it is too difficult to stir with the spoon, use hands and continue mixing. Once 7 1/2 cups of flour are incorporated, begin counting the 10 to 12 minutes of kneading time.

The bread may be turned out to be kneaded on a floured surface. This allows for two hands to be used, making it easier, but also

affords the possibility of adding too much more flour. The bread should be smooth and elastic after the kneading period. Adding too much flour will toughen the dough unnecessarily. Kneading is nothing more than manipulating the dough, by pushing it with the heels of the hands, flipping, rotating and pushing some more. If the dough is left in the bowl, there is no need for too much more flour to be added, but requires one hand to do all the kneading. Lift the dough, pulling and twisting, press back down, pull and twist and continue until the 10 to 12 minutes have elapsed. Set the bowl aside is a warm place to rise until about doubled in size.

Grease 4 medium loaf pans, about 4 x 8 inches. Turn the dough out onto a floured surface and knead gently to remove the large air pockets. Divide the dough in 4 sections. Press one section flat; beginning at one end, roll the dough into a log, tucking ends and edges as necessary. Place into one of the prepared pans; repeat with the other three sections of dough. Set the pans aside to rise in a nice warm area of the kitchen. It will take 30 to 45 minutes. Just as the dough is above the edge of the pan height, preheat the oven to 350 degrees. When the oven is hot, put the pans in and time for 30 minutes.

The finished loaves should have a hollow sound when tapped on the bottom, once turned out of the pan. All ovens vary. If you have convection, I recommend using it, setting the oven at 325. Convection, which blows the heated air, bakes more quickly and efficiently. In my present oven, the bread takes 28 minutes to come out perfectly, and not too dry. Learn your oven.

It is best to wait until the bread is cool to slice, though the temptation to cut immediately is great. My Mom always cut the heel off, buttered it still steaming, and let us all have a bite. Complete nirvana. Do try this out. I guarantee the satisfaction is well worth the time. The loaves can easily be frozen until needed. Remember: this is homemade, with no preservatives. These loaves will not last a week on the counter. But then, one of these loaves rarely lasts a day or two.

Thank you for taking the time to read my article. I hope it was informative and helped you along your own culinary journey. You will find many more recipes and helpful tips on my web site. I am on Facebook at A Harmony of Flavors and share a recipe or tip each day to the fans that have liked my site. I hope to see you there soon.

My name is Chris Rawstern and I have been on a cooking and baking journey for 42 years. Many people have asked what A Harmony of Flavors means. Have you ever had a meal where the visual presentation was stunning, the smells were incredible, the taste was so remarkable that you ate slowly savoring every bite, wishing the experience would never end? Then you have experienced what a truly harmonious meal can be like. My passion is to teach people how to create a Harmony of Flavors with their cooking, and help pass along my love and joy of food, both simple and exotic, plain or fancy. I continue my journey in ethnic and domestic cuisines, trying new things. I would love to hear from you, to help me continue my journey to explore diverse culinary experiences and hopefully to start you on a journey of your own. Visit my Web site http://www.aharmonyofflavors.com/ my Blog my Marketplace or Facebook page A Harmony of Flavors.

reade more... Résuméabuiyad