Bacon pancake dippers.

I found this idea whilst searching Pinterest for pancake day inspiration and recreated it as a Sunday morning brunch for the whole family to share. The combination of sweet pancake and savoury bacon is new to me, I only tried it recently at a local Frankie and Bennies and fell in love instantly! It just works! I also recently found the perfect recipe for making the most fluffy American buttermilk pancakes so had to try this idea out.

For this recipe you will need:

• 100g of plain flour.
• 2 tsp of baking powder.
• 1/2 tsp of bicarbonate of soda.
• 1 tbsp of golden caster sugar.
• 2 large eggs separated.
• 250ml tub of buttermilk.
• Knob of butter for greasing. 
• A pack of non smoked streaky bacon rashers.
• Maple Syrup, Golden Syrup or Honey to dip.

Firstly grill or fry the bacon rashers until nice and crispy, place to one side on some kitchen paper to drain any excess oil.

For the pancake batter add all dry ingredients into a bowl, there is no need for sieving it doesn't matter if there is lumps in your mixture as you do not want to over work the batter. Separate the eggs adding the yolks into the bowl with your dry ingredients, now with a whisk mix in the tub of buttermilk without over working it just until it comes together into a think batter. With your separate egg whites use an electric hand mixer to whisk them until they form stiff peaks. Gently fold your whisked egg whites into the thick batter being careful not to beat out any of the air, folding motions are best for this. The batter should be extremely light and fluffy at this point! 

Heat a frying pan on a medium to high heat greased with a little butter then place 2-3 rashers (depending on the size of the pan) of cooked bacon back into the pan and quickly spoon a thick layer of the batter over the top covering the whole rasher.

After a few minutes test by lifting up the corner of the pancake, if it is a nice golden brown it is ready to flip! Do the same for the other side then remove from the pan onto a plate.

Serve with a pot of your favourite sweet and sticky syrup to dip, this sweet and savoury combination makes the most delicious brunch.

Will you be trying these on pancake day? Thank you for reading!

Loulou.