pancake

A world without lemons would be a very sad one. The world would be sad without blueberries, too, but this recipe is good with our without. Rather than a griddle cake you need to stack high then load up with butter and syrup, I wanted one that was both light and custardy, rich and reserved -- immediate gratification. This recipe uses cream cheese and egg whites to pull that off, I think. Honey or jam would be just as good as maple syrup. Or you could eat them plain.

Very lightly adapted from Clotilde Dusoulier's

Indulge yourself in Kutabi. These traditional Azerbaijani Savory Pancakes will delight your senses and appeal to your taste buds! Served with sides of yogurt, sautéed onions, mushrooms in cream sauce, it’s a family favorite! They are as close to divine as you can get! Pan fried oil free, thin and filling, Kutabi flavor is truly unsurpassed! You won’t even miss the meat in vegetarian Kutabi. Filled with fresh scallions, green garlic, sorrel, parsley, and dill, they’re “healthy” and absolutely scrumptious. Two is never enough!

Celery root, or celeriac, can be a pain to work with and is not very exciting by itself. Combined with potatoes, it gets a chance to shine. Nana would have loved it.

It works better with ingredients at room temperature. Traditional recipe calls for lemon and confectioner sugar as garnish but with fresh fruit, whipped cream and ice cream it's yummy!

I found the recipe for these pancakes in an old cooking book from 1972. The title of this book is “Culinary Wisdom”. The illustrator was my close friend’s father. Although I was then only 18 years old, he new how much I was interested in culinary and he gave me one of his copies as a gift when the cook book was published. This cook book has recipes from all over the world but it is written in Russian and it took me some time to translate and adjust all measurements. The recipe for the Avocado Cream is inspired by one of my former colleague, who is from the Philippines. When we used to have lunch together at work, Ethel told me many times that in her country they use avocados in desserts. I decided to use as a sweetener condensed milk because it keeps the color light, then added sour cream and lemon juice to prevent oxidation and to make it as a real dessert, add vanilla and cinnamon.

These are not only the the best tasting pancakes I’ve ever had, but also the healthiest, and I’ve tasted way more than my fair share of pancakes.

This is an adaptation of a Mark Bittman recipe that appeared in the Minimalist column a few years back and quickly became a favorite of mine. This recipe, which could not be easier to make or more versatile, turns out terrific crispy pancakes that make great appetizers (or a main dish, if you're cooking for a few people). For the veggie filling, I've listed one of my favorite combinations here, but you can substitute literally anything you can grate or dice up, so feel free to experiment! You can also experiment with dipping sauces- I'm partial to a mix of sriracha, soy sauce, and ketchup, but anything with sesame oil is also terrific.

Honey cloud pancakes with fruit. Light, eggy and sweet, they're the perfect cross between a pancake and a Dutch baby .

With just a few ingredients .. these gluten-free pancakes make for a simple & healthy breakfast or snack idea .