Skip the sweet toppings this year and give your Pancake Day a healthier (and more sophisticated) twist!
Many of us grew up celebrating Pancake Day with sweet crêpes sprinkled with lemon and sugar (or some other similarly sweet combination of ingredients) and may even have a mouthful of fillings to prove it! This year, why not start a new, healthier tradition for your family by moving pancakes away from the breakfast table and serving a savoury version as a stunning dinner instead?
As the more adventurous eaters among you already know, the world is covered with savoury pancakes, from the thin, spongy Ethiopian injera, which is used as we would bread to mop up saucy foods, to the hearty Japanese okonomiyaki, which is often filled with octopus and cabbage. If you’re up for a challenge, you can take your pick from one of these exotic savoury pancakes and easily find a corresponding recipe online. We’d love to hear about how you get on – why not tag us (543Dental) when you post your creation online?
However, if you’re looking for something that’s a bit less of a departure from tradition, we have a recipe for what the French call a galette – essentially a savoury crêpe made with buckwheat flour (but you can substitute plain or wholemeal). Again, the choices for fillings are almost endless. To start you off gently, we’ve put together a recipe for a simple ham and cheese pancake:
For the pancake:
- 150g buckwheat flour
- 50g plain flour
- 2 eggs
- 500ml milk
- 150ml water
- ½ tsp salt
- melted butter to grease the pan
For the filling:
- Cooked sliced ham
- Grated emmenthal or gruyère cheese
Preparation:
Whisk the flours and salt together then add the eggs, milk and water. Chill the batter for 2 hours or overnight.
Cooking:
Heat a large pancake pan over a medium heat. Lightly grease the pan with butter, then ladle on about 25g of batter (a soup ladle works well). When the pancake has browned on one side and large bubbles are coming up, gently flip it over. Remove it from the pan and keep it warm under a dishtowel while you repeat the above steps to cook the others.
Filling:
To fill the pancakes, lay each one top-side down, sprinkle with cheese, place a slice of ham on top and fold into quarters. Put the folded pancakes back into the pan for about 30 seconds on each side to melt the cheese.
Serve with a green salad and savour the compliments you’ll receive (along with the secret knowledge that you’ve helped save your family’s teeth from yet another sugar attack)! Don’t forget to take a picture and post your creation so we can all be impressed, and then start thinking about what fillings you’ll use next time… spinach and egg? Ratatouille? Cheese and mushroom? What other ideas can you come up with?
