What's for Dinner?

Pancakes

• 2 c flour
• 2 Tbs sugar
• 2 tsp kosher salt
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 8 Tbs (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted
• 2 eggs, separated
• 1 c buttermilk (see tip below)
• 3/4 c milk

2. In a smaller bowl, whisk the melted butter into the egg yolks. (Be sure the melted butter has cooled a little so that it doesn't cook the yolks.) Then whisk in the buttermilk, milk, and egg whites.

3. Add the wet ingredients to the dry, mixing gently with a wooden spoon to combine them. Do not overwork the batter. Break up any large pockets of flour, but leave the batter thick and a little lumpy.

4. Heat the griddle (or a large cast-iron skillet) over a high flame until it becomes very hot. (Drops of water should sizzle and evaporate instantly.) Oil the griddle lightly and reduce the flame to medium.

5. Spoon the batter onto the griddle, being careful not to overcrowd the pancakes. Cook them until bubbles appear on top and the bottoms are pleasantly browned, about 2 minutes. Flip and cook until done.

Tips
* So you feel like making pancakes but don't have any buttermilk on hand? Here are two easy substitutes: First, add dry buttermilk to your pantry staples. It's powder that comes in handy one-cup envelopes. You just add the powder to the dry ingredients and use a cup of water (instead of the buttermilk) with the wet. Or you can substitute plain yogurt, using one cup of yogurt and one-half cup of milk for each cup of buttermilk.

Listener Feedback
* According to Bruce Hempel, a self-defined pancake expert, "You can't make good pancakes without using a little buckwheat." Bruce recommends replacing 25 percent of the regular flour with buckwheat flour. (In the case of this recipe, that would be 1/2 cup.) Buckwheat flour is available at some supermarkets and most natural food stores. "This improves the taste of pancakes so much," Bruce reports, "that we stop making pancakes when we run out of buckwheat flour and get some at our earliest convenience."

* Barbel Eggers recommends as a buttermilk substitute using Yogoat, a Coach Farm product that comes in 8-oz containers. It's not as thick as standard yogurts and milder in flavor.

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