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Saturday, March 24, 2012

Sourdough Pancakes

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As much as I like homemade bread, the thought of sourdough scared me. I hadn't done much research, but I wasn't sure I could handle caring for a starter...Ryan will tell you that the only reason our herbs stay alive all summer is because he heads out to water them daily! Then we had a wonderful meal at my brother-in-law and his lovely wife's house where I had the chance to sample their fresh sourdough. With a little convincing, I was sent home with my very own sourdough starter.


It turns out, I can handle sourdough! It doesn't require daily feeding, just a "refill" when you remove some starter to use in a recipe. I'm getting the hang of making the bread, a rather lengthy activity that is so worth it, but even before I tried bread, I made two batches of these pancakes. These are thin, my preferred density of pancake, and have that unmistakable sourdough flavor. Top them with berries, syrup, or eat 'em plain...I liked them every which way!
No awesome sis-in-law to hook you up with a sourdough starter? Don't worry, there are tons of tutorials online about making your own...check out Annie's Eats or Joy the Baker or any of the others you see on google. OR, if you're a local (St. Louis) reader, I'd be happy to share some of mine with you!
One Year Ago: Vacation Eats (Charleston Part II & Asheville)

Sourdough Pancakes

Ingredients:
-1 cup sourdough starter
-1 1/2 cups warm water
-2 1/2 cups flour (can use a mix of wheat and white)
-1 egg
-2/3 cup milk
-1 tsp baking soda
-1 tsp salt
-2 tbsp brown sugar
-2 tbsp vegetable oil

Directions:
1. The night before, mix the starter, warm water, and flour in a large bowl. Stir to combine, cover with foil, and let stand overnight.
2. The next morning, in a small bowl whisk together egg, milk, baking soda, salt, brown sugar, and vegetable oil. Whisk into the flour mixture and let stand for five minutes. 
3. Drop pancake batter onto hot, greased griddle. Flip after 2-3 minutes, when lightly browned and air pockets begin to form on the surface.