Yes, Chef!

Koda Bear and I were mixing up bread dough this afternoon.  He was talking to me about how wet it was and then I added the flour.  He asked me what it should be like and I said it should be pancake batter.

Koda Bear, who only wishes to eat fish and chips (halibut is preferred), wanted pancakes for dinner.  The planned loaf of bread became the pancakes.  Pancakes even fed company!

I was making oatmeal bread so I was not sure how these pancakes were going to turn out.  I was pleasantly surprised  I  served them with sugared berries instead of syrup.  Everyone seemed very pleased and no one went away hungry.  I would say that was successful.  And Koda Bear did not eat his weight in fish!

Now, particulars.  These are yeasted pancakes.  There is no other leavening.  I have mentioned it before but I do not really like the taste of baking powder.  I would have used baking soda here because of the sourdough but I still do not like the flavour.  I also do not like cakey pancakes.  These are much less cakey.  With the leftover batter, I added some more makings and have dough rising for bread.  Two for one is about my speed right now.  

oatmeal pancakes

Note:  if you want a cakey pancake, add 1 teaspoon baking soda to the batter.  I was working with Koda Bear on this.  He really likes the scale but we were more in a dump mode which is why the volumes.  I also do a lot of bread by feel and eye anymore. 

sourdough starter

3/4 cup water

1 cup flour

1 cup flour

1 cup old fashioned rolled oats

1/2 cup brown sugar

2 eggs

2 cups flour 

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup melted butter

butter for frying.

In a large bowl hours before needed, mix the sourdough, 1 cup flour, and 3/4 cup water together.  Let sit covered until bubbly.  Reserve a couple tablespoons and store in the refrigerator for next time.

To the starter, mix in the rest of the water, the oats, and the brown sugar.  Give it a good stir.  Mix in the eggs.  Mix in the flour.  It should be the consistency of a thick pancake batter.  Cover, and let sit at least one hour.  

After the hour, the batter should be bubbly and you should be able to see the gluten stretching.  Heat a frying pan or griddle of medium low heat.  When hot, melt butter on it.

Mix in the salt.  Mix in the butter.

I used a third cup measure to pour the batter on the pan.  Wait until bubbles have formed and popped, and the top is dry looking before flipping.  There should be some golden brown.  Flip and cook the other side for a minute or two or until there is some brown.  I fry these on cast iron which continues to heat.  I have to slowly turn the heat down as I fry pancakes.  I get three in my pan at a time.

Fry pancakes until the batter is gone or bellies are full.  Extra pancake batter can be stored in the refrigerator or made into bread.

I served these with sugared berries.  You could use maple syrup but Koda Bear did not need that.  I was thinking that I would have also liked roasted apples with cinnamon and ginger.  But the heat index was 109 degrees Fahrenheit today so roasting apples was not high on the list.  Maybe when it cools off.  

The title of the post is due to Koda Bear starting to say "Yes, Chef!" everytime I asked for his help.  It made me laugh.  

sourdough waffles

The boyos really like sourdough pancakes.  They are really easy for me so I have no problems making pancakes for them.  Or setting it up so they can add eggs and make them themselves when I am off at work.  But once in a while I do like a nice waffle.  I had been thinking that it would not be that hard to take my sourdough pancake recipe and switch it to waffles.  I have noticed that waffle recipes seem to increase the amount of fat in them.  I have always thought that is to try to limit sticking to the waffle iron.

I was on instagram last week and @local_milk had posted a picture of her sourdough waffles, giving an outline of what she did and saying she used Rhulman's ratios for pancakes as a base.  Like I thought, the basis was to increase fat and there I would have it.  I was actually thinking the flavors from my cornetti would also be good in a waffle, the orange and vanilla.  I was out of orange so vanilla it was.

May I say these were some of the lightest waffles I have had?  And I let them bake a bit so there was a crispness to them.  You do not have to do that but that is what I like.  Next time, I hope to have an orange in the house to give try.  That with "black sugar" (sugared berries, talk to Koda Bear about that name), so good it would be (we have a lot of Yoda around here).

sourdough waffles

sourdough starter

3/4 cup water

1 cup flour

1 cup buttermilk

1/4 cup melted butter

1/4 cup sugar

1 tablespoon vanilla

1 teaspoon salt

2 cups flour

2 eggs

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

At least a day ahead of when you wish to make the waffles, freshen the starter by mixing the starter, 3/4 cup water, and 1 cup flour in a medium bowl.  Cover and let sit at least 8 hours until bubbly.  Remove about 2 tablespoons of starter for your next sourdough experience.

In the starter, mix in the buttermilk, melted butter, sugar, vanilla, salt, and two cups flour.  Cover, let sit over night until you are ready to bake.

In the morning, heat up your waffle iron and oil they way that works the best for you.  While the iron is heating, mix the two eggs and the baking soda into the batter.  Let sit a minute.  It will grow on you.  Pour about a cup of batter per waffle into the iron.  Bake until it is what you like.  Like I said, I like crispy which is longer then most people like.

Serve with "black sugar" (sugared cut strawberries, raspberries, and blackberries).

Enjoy.

Update on my Grandmother.  The last I heard she was actually doing better but I have not received the latest update yet.  My Mother was supposed to go down and see here yesterday.  I do not know if no news is good or bad but prayers are still appreciated very much.