Wednesday, September 23, 2009

Breakfast for Dinner


Sometimes I just can't come up with a good, quick idea for dinner. I was feeling in a bit of a lazy culinary mood. Chicken wasn't floating my boat. It was too late (and still too warm) for pot roast. The pork chops weren't defrosted. And pasta? Well, let's just say Mr. Doughboy isn't exactly a pasta afficionado like I am. I decided to have my favorite meal bail me out. In case you were wondering, my favorite meal is breakfast.

Since our kitchen is still blessed with the presence of fresh peaches, I decided peach pancakes were in order. Yum! I found this recipe on Hot off the Garlic Press. (Can I just say? That's a delicious site.) She cooked hers up as waffles -- a fabulous idea -- but I didn't have time, so I did pancakes. And since it is my belief there's no such thing as too many peaches, I decided to use a peach compote along with maple syrup.


These were a big hit. As Mr. Doughboy was biting into his stack, he had a bit of a time warp and began reminiscing about early fall mornings and the peaches his mom would serve for breakfast. This recipe definitely has his stamp of approval.

The pancakes cook up so beautifully with the pieces of peach in them. I'm including a close-up shot of an unadorned pancake so you can see those tempting peach pieces just calling your name. And if you aren't into lumpy, compote type toppings, try this with peach syrup. That would be divine, I'm sure.


Sour Cream Peach Hotcakes (from Hot Off the Garlic Press)
1 1/2 cups flour
3 tablespoons sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
1/2 cup sour cream
3/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon milk
2 extra-large eggs
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 teaspoon grated lemon zest
Unsalted butter
2 peaches, peeled and diced, plus extra for serving
Maple syrup

Sift together the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. In a separate bowl, whisk together the sour cream, milk, eggs, vanilla, and lemon zest. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ones, mixing only until combined.

Melt 1 tablespoon of butter in a large skillet or griddle over medium-low heat until it bubbles. Ladle the pancake batter into the pan to make 3 or 4 pancakes. Distribute a few pieces of diced peaches on each pancake. Cook for 2 to 3 minutes, until bubbles appear on top and the underside is nicely browned. Flip the pancakes and then cook for another minute until browned. Wipe out the pan with a paper towel, add more butter to the pan, and continue cooking pancakes until all the batter is used. Serve with hot peach compote/syrup, butter and maple syrup.

Peach Compote
5 large peaches, peeled and sliced
1/3 C granulated sugar
1/3 C brown sugar
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp butter
1 C water

Combine all ingredients in a medium saucepan. Cook over medium heat. When peaches begin to release their juices, mash them into the sauce. Continue to cook until it begins to thicken.

Note: Mr. Doughboy used just the peach compote on his pancakes. I, however, drizzled just a bit of maple syrup on top of the pancakes as well. Oh baby! It was SO GOOD.

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