Buttermilk Pancakes with Apple Compote

I've been expecting hubby to get bored with Pancake Saturdays; he seemed incredulous when I first told him the idea, and I've just been waiting to hear a whine of "pancakes? again??"(not that hubby whines.. unless I ask him to wash some dishes). So imagine my surprise when this morning, after I awoke to yell at him for accepting one of the Olsen twin's invitation to a weekend in Maui (weird dreams, weird dreams) he "told" me to get up and make pancakes. He seems to be enjoying this tradition, which is quite nice! Also good to hear that your food audience actually wants the food you're making!

So I've started a list of pancake ideas in my planner. It's pretty small. For this Saturday, I decided to make an apple compote of sorts, similar to what I used when I made the apple coffee cake (which I purposefully didn't post, remember?). I kept the pancakes pretty simple (adapting Nigella's recipe again), so they wouldn't be overpowering, and the combination was great. Hubby and I both really enjoyed them! To balance the sweetness, I cooked up some bacon as well for its delicious salty, smokey taste. Yum yum.


Vanilla Buttermilk Pancakes with Apple Compote:
Pancakes

• 1 1/2 cups flour
• 1 tbsp baking powder
• a pinch of salt
• 2 tbsp butter, melted and cooled to room temp
• 2 eggs, slightly beaten
• 1 1/3 cups buttermilk
• 1 tsp vanilla extract

Compote

• 2 tbsp butter
• 3 medium, sweet apples, diced *
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• approximately 1 cup sugar

Preheat oven to 200F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and place in the oven. This is where you'll keep your completed pancakes so they'll stay nice and toasty while you make the rest.

For the compote, melt the butter in a large, nonstick skillet. Toss in the apples, cinnamon, and sugar. Cook over a medium-low heat, stirring occassionally, while you make your pancakes. You want the apples to soften and release some of their juice and the sugar to begin to carmelize. This will create a nice, thick syrup. I didn't cook mine long enough, but it was still good.

In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt. In a large measuring cup or small bowl, combine the buttermilk, eggs, butter, and vanille extract. Create a well in the dry ingredients into which you pour the liquid. Mix well. Let sit about 5-1o minutes.

Heat a small amount of vegetable oil in a large, nonstick skillet (cast iron is awesome) over medium low heat. You'll know the pan is warm enough when you splash a tiny bit of water into it and the water beads up, then sizzles.

Pour about 1/3 cup of batter into the center of pan. Use your spoon or measuring cup to spread the batter out with small, gentle circular motions. Once the pancake starts to show bubbles around the edges and into the center and the shiny sheen of it has dulled, flip it over. Gently pat the pancake. Let it cook for a few minutes, flipping it ever so often to see how the bottom looks. A great way to tell if its cooked enough is to gently press down (with a finger or spoon handle) and see if it springs back up. That is a finished pancake. Place the cooked pancake on your baking sheet in the oven. Repeat until batter is gone.

To serve, spoon apple compote on top of pancakes.

Devour.