Pancake pig-out

You know the Boyds are feeling much better when they have a big pancake pig-out and are still looking forward to eating more all week long.

We love this recipe, modified from Martha Stewart’s “original”:http://www.marthastewart.com:80/recipe/basic-pancakes?xsc=stf_MSLO-RECIPE, because it makes a giant quantity for a weekend breakfast and still provides lots of leftovers for freezing — and weekday consumption! At least, this is true for our family of four, including two half-pints — but I must say, the girls definitely put away their fair share!

h3. Pancake Pig-Out

3 c flour
6 T sugar
2 T baking powder
1½ t salt
1 t vanilla
3 c milk
6 T melted butter
3 eggs
canola oil
butter
real maple syrup (which we totally think is worth the price)

Preheat oven to 200° and put a couple of plates in there to get warm, plus a cookie sheet to keep cooked pancakes toasty. Pour some maple syrup in a small pitcher and warm in the microwave for about 45 seconds. (Nobody ever complains if you cook some bacon to go along with things, either.)

Whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. In a separate bowl, whisk together milk, eggs, and vanilla. Add milk mixture to flour mixture and whisk together (but don’t overdo it, a few small lumps are fine). Then add melted butter to the batter and whisk a bit more.

Heat a large griddle over medium heat. Pour some canola oil in a small bowl, then dip a folded paper towel in the oil and use it to rub some on the griddle.

For each grown-up-sized pancake, pour a scant ¼ cup of batter onto the griddle. (For kiddie-sized pancakes, use half of a ¼ cup measure of batter.) Cook until the surface of the pancakes have popping bubbles, then flip and cook about another minute, give or take. Transfer pancakes to cookie sheet and keep warm in the oven, or eat right away if the rest of the family is finally sitting at the table with their bibs on. Serve topped with more butter and some warmed maple syrup. Keep on cooking the pancakes, oiling the griddle between batches and eating your own while standing up, if necessary (although I totally recommend waiting to eat until you can actually sit-down, if you can stave off your hunger that long).

This morning, the recipe made about 32 big-person pancakes and 10 tiny-person pancakes. I think we stuffed ourselves with about half the batch.

To freeze: Take the pancakes out of the oven and let cool completely. Place single layers of pancakes on waxed paper, then put in a big resealable plastic bag or a tupperware-type container and pop in the freezer. To reheat, warm the pancakes in the toaster oven, or use a regular oven at 350° — it should only take a few minutes for them to get nice and hot again. Sometimes, during the week, we eat these with butter and cinnamon-sugar sprinkled on top. Yum!