Pumpkin Pancakes

I am not good at making pancakes.  They seem simple, but I’ve always had such bad luck with them.  I think one problem is that I only have one small heavy good-quality nonstick skillet (I think it’s only 6 or 7 inch diameter) – I don’t cook nonstick much, and don’t have a big flat pan or griddle.  I’ve heard cast iron is good for pancakes too.  Since I only have this one good pan where the pancakes come out well, I usually try to multitask and use a few different skillets on different burners, so I’m cooking pancakes in multiple pans simultaneously.  I get flustered, forget about which pancakes I’ve flipped and let some pancakes burn, etc.  It’s not a pretty sight.  Needless to say, I don’t make pancakes often.

But sometimes, you just want a stack of pancakes for Saturday brunch.  Especially when it’s fall and everybody else is making pumpkin pancakes while you’re copping out with boring old bacon and eggs (albeit in stromboli and fry-up form!).  So I decided to grit my teeth and make a big stack of pancakes for our Saturday brunch this past weekend.  I took the patient approach.  I would use my one trusty skillet and patiently make one pancake at a time, keeping the cooked pancakes warm in a 200 degree oven until ready to serve.

I cheated a bit – I stopped halfway through my bowl of batter and served what I had made so far – which was plenty for the two of us; and then returned to the one-pancake-at-a-time routine after eating, when a full stomach of fluffy and deliciously spiced pancakes kissed with maple syrup makes the task a bit less tedious.  Yes, I could have made a smaller batch, but I wanted to use as much of my can of pumpkin as possible, as I always have trouble using the rest.  I ended up stirring the leftovers into my morning bowl of steel cut oats for a delicious pumpkin oatmeal.  Plus, who doesn’t love leftover pancakes as a snack the next day? 

I combined a few different recipes.  I loved the idea of separating the eggs and beating the whites into soft peaks before folding it into the batter.  This made the pancakes (okay, I have to admit that I actually just typed pumpcakes instead of pancakes just now) light and fluffy, like cakey souffles.  A generous dose of homemade pumpkin pie spice (I combine cinnamon, cloves, ginger, nutmeg, and cardamom) made these taste like fall.

Pumpkin Pancakes makes 3 generous servings, or about 12 6-inch pancakes

• 1 cup pumpkin puree
• 1 1/4 cup milk (I used whole milk but you can use lowfat or skim)
• 4 eggs, separated
• 2 T sugar
• 1 t vanilla extract
• 1 t canola oil or other neutral vegetable oil
• 1 1/3 cups AP flour
• 1 t baking soda
• 1 t baking powder
• 1/2 t salt
• 1 1/2 – 2 t pumpkin pie spice (depending on preferences)

Combine the pumpkin puree, milk, egg yolks, sugar, vanilla extract, and oil in a medium bowl.

In a (separate) large bowl, whisk the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and pumpkin pie spice.

Make a well in your dry ingredients and pour the wet ingredients into them.  Mix only until just incorporated.

In a clean bowl, beat the egg whites until soft peaks form (I used an electric handheld mixer and this took about 7 minutes).  Use a rubber/silicone spatula to gently fold the beaten egg whites into the batter.

In a large pan or griddle (or, if you’re in my position, your one small pan), heat a bit of butter over medium heat and ladle 1/4 or 1/3 cups of batter for each pancake.  Cook for 2-3 minutes, until you see bubbles forming on top.  Flip pancakes and cook for another 1-2 minutes, until browned and cooked through.

If you need to cook multiple pans of pancakes, keep the cooked ones warm on a lined baking sheet in a 200 degree oven.

Serve with maple syrup.