Hearty Breakfasts!

Hello Foodies,

It seems we are no longer being globally warmed in NYC and are back to winter. This cold makes me hungy in the morning for hearty breakfasts...how about you? Today I had a craving for pancakes and I found this marvelous recipe in the New York Times. Here's the link...NY Times I haven't had the chance to make these pancakes yet but I intend to. I wanted to share the recipe with you and then we can compare notes.

Here it is:

Cornmeal-Cranberry Pancakes

For the compote:
2 gala apples 2 Granny Smith apples ½ cup packed light brown sugar
½ teaspoon salt 3/4 teaspoon pumpkin-pie spice 2 cups apple cider
2 teaspoons cornstarch
For the caramel-butter sauce:
2 teaspoons cream cheese 2 tablespoons sugar ½ cup heavy cream
½ tablespoon butter Salt

For the pancakes:
10 tablespoons butter, cut into chunks, plus more for greasing pan
2 cups milk 4 large eggs 2 cups flour ½ cup yellow cornmeal
2 tablespoons sugar 2 tablespoons plus 2 teaspoons baking powder
1 ½ teaspoons salt 1 ¼ cups chopped fresh cranberries Maple syrup, optional.

1. Make the compote: Peel, core, quarter and cut the apples into 1-inch pieces.
Place the apples, sugar, salt, spice, cider and 1/3 cup water in a saucepan and
bring to a boil. Lower the heat and simmer until the apples are soft and the juices
thick, about 75 minutes. In a small bowl, dissolve the cornstarch in 2 teaspoons water.
About 5 minutes before the compote is done, stir the cornstarch mixture into the apples.
Keep warm.

2. Make the caramel-butter sauce: Place the cream cheese in a bowl and set aside. In a small saucepan, cook the sugar over medium-high heat to a dark caramel, swirling the pan as it
begins to brown to distribute the sugar. Do not stir. Off the heat, carefully whisk in the cream and butter. Return to low heat, add a pinch of salt and simmer until the solids dissolve. Stir 3 teaspoons of caramel sauce into the cream cheese. Mix until the cream cheese dissolves, then whisk this mixture back into the caramel sauce. Keep warm.

3. Make the pancakes: In a saucepan over medium-low heat, heat the butter and milk
until the butter melts. Set aside until lukewarm, about 15 minutes. Beat the eggs in a
medium bowl. Slowly stir in ½ cup of the warm milk mixture (it cannot be hot, or it will
cook the eggs). Pour in the remaining milk mixture and stir to combine.

4. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, cornmeal, sugar, baking powder and salt. Pour
the egg mixture into the flour mixture a little at a time, stirring slowly, just until the dry ingredients are well moistened. The batter should be lumpy and will start to bubble.

5. Heat a griddle or skillet over medium-high heat until a few drops of water sprinkled
on it sizzle. Lightly grease the pan with butter, then add 3 to 4 tablespoons batter to
make a 4-inch pancake. As soon as the batter sets, sprinkle the top with cranberries.
Cook until bubbles break on the surface. Flip and cook for another 30 seconds, or until
the bottom is lightly browned.

Repeat, buttering the pan and adjusting the heat as needed. Serve topped with apple
compote and lightly drizzled with caramel-butter sauce or maple syrup. Makes about
24 4-inch pancakes. Toppings adapted from John Latino at the Bongo Room.
Pancakes adapted from “The Breakfast Book,” by Marion Cunningham.

Enjoy,

the Forks