I got another one a week ago. It was a postcard with a picture of a road
sign that read, “Kangaroos Next 50km”.
Showing posts with label hotcakes. Show all posts
Showing posts with label hotcakes. Show all posts
Saturday, July 13, 2013
Monday, August 8, 2011
Coming Full Circle
It was 7AM on a Monday morning when I found myself in the kitchen with my sister and her 5 year old daughter. My sister thought it would be a good idea to teach her daughter the rudiments of preparing hot cakes for breakfast. Out came the bowls, measuring cups and measuring spoons. Out came the flour, the salt, the eggs and milk. And in the center of it all was my mother’s hot cake recipe pulled out from my sister’s recipe notebook. My niece being a take-charge person, soon had flour on the kitchen counter after sifting the dry ingredients together.
Memories of similar scenes came rushing through my mind. I see my mother first preparing and then teaching us the same hot cakes recipe. Then I see myself teaching my daughter. Flash forward and I see my sister teaching her daughter.
I brought this up to my sister and we both smiled at how our lives had come somewhat full circle because of a recipe.
*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/
Before the flooding of the market with hotcake mixes and fast food chains serving breakfast pancakes, every mother had her own hot cake recipe. Even the syrup that came with it was made from scratch. Sure, commercial mixes are breezy to make but they would contain preservatives so as to last long on the grocery shelves. Plus, there’s nothing like hot cakes made from scratch to build fond memories on.
My Mom’s Hotcake Recipe
2 c all purpose flour
2 t baking powder
2 eggs
1/2 c sugar
1/4 c melted butter or margarine or cooking oil
1 1/2 c milk
1 t vanilla
Sift together the dry ingredients. Set aside.
Mix sugar with eggs; then add milk, melted butter or oil and vanilla.
Add wet mixture to flour mixture. Stir until blended but somewhat lumpy.
Pour about ¼ c of this batter in a heated non-stick pan that had initially been oiled. You may also use butter.
When you see lots of bubbles bursting on the surface, turn pancake to cook on the other side.
Serve with butter, your favorite syrup and some slice fruits on the side.
Memories of similar scenes came rushing through my mind. I see my mother first preparing and then teaching us the same hot cakes recipe. Then I see myself teaching my daughter. Flash forward and I see my sister teaching her daughter.
I brought this up to my sister and we both smiled at how our lives had come somewhat full circle because of a recipe.
*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/
Before the flooding of the market with hotcake mixes and fast food chains serving breakfast pancakes, every mother had her own hot cake recipe. Even the syrup that came with it was made from scratch. Sure, commercial mixes are breezy to make but they would contain preservatives so as to last long on the grocery shelves. Plus, there’s nothing like hot cakes made from scratch to build fond memories on.
My Mom’s Hotcake Recipe
2 c all purpose flour
2 t baking powder
2 eggs
1/2 c sugar
1/4 c melted butter or margarine or cooking oil
1 1/2 c milk
1 t vanilla
Sift together the dry ingredients. Set aside.
Mix sugar with eggs; then add milk, melted butter or oil and vanilla.
Add wet mixture to flour mixture. Stir until blended but somewhat lumpy.
Pour about ¼ c of this batter in a heated non-stick pan that had initially been oiled. You may also use butter.
When you see lots of bubbles bursting on the surface, turn pancake to cook on the other side.
Serve with butter, your favorite syrup and some slice fruits on the side.
Wednesday, May 25, 2011
Where do the raindrops go?
Now where could she have gone?
I looked for her in the bedroom
and I called out loud from the kitchen door.
I thought I saw her hiding
behind my mother's aparador.
Where are you sister dear?
The rain has stopped pouring
and there're lots we could be doing.
The wet lawn beacons our feet be bare
to feel the mud ooze through toes it dares.
Finally from behind me
My sister’s laughter tingles with glee.
She said she had gone where the raindrops go.
Falling from heaven she told me so
Every ripple in the puddle, a happy entry into fairyland.
The onset of the rainy season has inspired me to put into rhyme an incident told to me by my sisters (6th and 7th in line-- Family planning was unheard of then).
When they were about 7 & 8 years old, M, the older of the two, related that she would hide from V whenever it rained hard. M would not come out of her hiding place no matter how loud V would call for her. When the rain stopped, M would suddenly reappear. When asked by V where she had been, M would then bring V to a puddle that had resulted from the rain.
M would explain to the wide-eyed V that the ripple produced by the rain in the puddle was a signal that the raindrop had entered an enchanted fairyland. M continues that she had just come back from this fairyland. So whenever V calls out to her, Maria is not around to hear her.
Maria and Vanessa now hold important jobs that they seriously pursue with intense passion. But I can assure you that this does not mean they have forgotten where the raindrops go.
♪ ♫ ♪ ♫ ♪ ♪ ♫ ♫ ♪ ♫ ♪ ♪ ♫ ♪ ♫ ♪ ♪ ♫ ♪ ♫ ♪ ♫
The following signature recipes of my sisters are real and family taste-tested. One bite and you will be transported to fairyland.
M’s No-fuss Zuchini Bread
You will need:
3 C Flour
1 tsp salt, baking soda, baking powder
3 tsps cinnamon
3 eggs
1 C canola oil
2 1/4 C white sugar
3 tsp vanilla extract
2 C grated zucchini
Mix wet ingredients (except the zucchini) and then add the dry ingredients. Add in zucchini.
Grease and flour two 8 x 4 pans. Preheat oven to 325. Bake for 40-60 minutes. Stick fork thru center and if it comes out clean then it is ready. Cool for twenty minutes.
V’s Luxurious Pancakes (adoptation of Chef Wolfgang's recipe)
You will need:
2 large eggs
1/2 cup whipping cream
11/2 cup buttermilk
1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 1/2 cup unbleached AP flour
1/4 cup sugar
2 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/8 teaspoon salt
In a small bowl, whisk together the eggs, buttermilk, whipping cream and melted butter, vanilla.
In a large bowl, sift together the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. Make a well in the center, pour the egg-milk mixture into the well, and whisk just enough to incorporate into the dry ingredients.
Heat the griddle and butter lightly. Over medium heat, using a 1/4-cup measure, pour the batter onto the griddle. When each pancake is golden brown on one side, and small bubbles appear on the surface, turn with a wide spatula and brown the other side. As the pancakes are cooked, transfer to a tray lined with a clean towel and keep warm in a low oven.
Note: Makes 12 3 1/2-inch (petite) pancakes
Presentation:
Arrange 3 or 4 pancakes on a warm plate. Serve with warmed pure maple syrup or fruit syrup. Garnish with a few slices of seasonal fruit and serve immediately. To make fruit syrup, combine 1 part fruit (blueberries, sliced strawberries, or any other berry, sliced peaches, or plums) with 3 parts maple syrup and a little grated orange rind. The fruit can be pureed, if desired. Serve warm.
I looked for her in the bedroom
and I called out loud from the kitchen door.
I thought I saw her hiding
behind my mother's aparador.
Where are you sister dear?
The rain has stopped pouring
and there're lots we could be doing.
The wet lawn beacons our feet be bare
to feel the mud ooze through toes it dares.
Finally from behind me
My sister’s laughter tingles with glee.
She said she had gone where the raindrops go.
Falling from heaven she told me so
Every ripple in the puddle, a happy entry into fairyland.
The onset of the rainy season has inspired me to put into rhyme an incident told to me by my sisters (6th and 7th in line-- Family planning was unheard of then).
When they were about 7 & 8 years old, M, the older of the two, related that she would hide from V whenever it rained hard. M would not come out of her hiding place no matter how loud V would call for her. When the rain stopped, M would suddenly reappear. When asked by V where she had been, M would then bring V to a puddle that had resulted from the rain.
M would explain to the wide-eyed V that the ripple produced by the rain in the puddle was a signal that the raindrop had entered an enchanted fairyland. M continues that she had just come back from this fairyland. So whenever V calls out to her, Maria is not around to hear her.
Maria and Vanessa now hold important jobs that they seriously pursue with intense passion. But I can assure you that this does not mean they have forgotten where the raindrops go.
♪ ♫ ♪ ♫ ♪ ♪ ♫ ♫ ♪ ♫ ♪ ♪ ♫ ♪ ♫ ♪ ♪ ♫ ♪ ♫ ♪ ♫
The following signature recipes of my sisters are real and family taste-tested. One bite and you will be transported to fairyland.
M’s No-fuss Zuchini Bread
You will need:
3 C Flour
1 tsp salt, baking soda, baking powder
3 tsps cinnamon
3 eggs
1 C canola oil
2 1/4 C white sugar
3 tsp vanilla extract
2 C grated zucchini
Mix wet ingredients (except the zucchini) and then add the dry ingredients. Add in zucchini.
Grease and flour two 8 x 4 pans. Preheat oven to 325. Bake for 40-60 minutes. Stick fork thru center and if it comes out clean then it is ready. Cool for twenty minutes.
V’s Luxurious Pancakes (adoptation of Chef Wolfgang's recipe)
You will need:
2 large eggs
1/2 cup whipping cream
11/2 cup buttermilk
1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 1/2 cup unbleached AP flour
1/4 cup sugar
2 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/8 teaspoon salt
In a small bowl, whisk together the eggs, buttermilk, whipping cream and melted butter, vanilla.
In a large bowl, sift together the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. Make a well in the center, pour the egg-milk mixture into the well, and whisk just enough to incorporate into the dry ingredients.
Heat the griddle and butter lightly. Over medium heat, using a 1/4-cup measure, pour the batter onto the griddle. When each pancake is golden brown on one side, and small bubbles appear on the surface, turn with a wide spatula and brown the other side. As the pancakes are cooked, transfer to a tray lined with a clean towel and keep warm in a low oven.
Note: Makes 12 3 1/2-inch (petite) pancakes
Presentation:
Arrange 3 or 4 pancakes on a warm plate. Serve with warmed pure maple syrup or fruit syrup. Garnish with a few slices of seasonal fruit and serve immediately. To make fruit syrup, combine 1 part fruit (blueberries, sliced strawberries, or any other berry, sliced peaches, or plums) with 3 parts maple syrup and a little grated orange rind. The fruit can be pureed, if desired. Serve warm.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)