Wholemeal Pancakes

Our neighbours daughter lives in Canada and after a recent trip to visit, they gave us a tin of proper maple syrup - I think we must have mentioned our love of it to them at some point - and as soon as we heard my Dad shout to say that we’d just been given some, both my Mum and I turned to look at each other and said ‘pancakes!’. We were patient enough to wait for Sunday morning to come around, and while Mum was out walking the dogs, I made our pancakes for breakfast. These pancakes are great – they’re so easy to make, and as they’re thick and fluffy, it’s a million times easier to flip them than the thin crepe like pancakes we eat on Shrove Tuesday. If you’re not a fan of maple syrup, try topping them with crispy bacon and a knob of butter, or fresh fruit and a dusting of icing sugar – what ever takes your fancy. And here’s a tip – make the batter in a jug. It’s a lot easier to pour small round pancakes with the spout of a jug than it is with a ladle! To give you an idea of serving size, I made 15 pancakes with this batter, and we had 5 each in a stack.

Ingredients:
200g plain wholemeal flour
1 tbsp baking powder
Pinch of salt
1 tbsp sugar
Few drops vanilla essence
1 large egg
300 ml milk
Vegetable oil for frying

Put all the ingredients, apart from the oil, in a large mixing jug and whisk until thoroughly combined.
Heat about a tablespoon of oil in a frying pan over a medium heat and get a spatula ready for flipping.
Pour small rounds of batter into the pan – I managed to fit three pancakes of about 3 ½ inches in diameter in my pan – and fry for about 30 seconds. Flip the pancakes and fry on the other side for another 30 seconds, or until both sides are golden and it’s cooked through.
Add another tablespoon of oil and repeat the above step until all the batter is used up. I made 15 pancakes in total, but the amount will depend on the size you make them.
Stack your pancakes on your plate and add your topping before devouring the lot!