Hey! It’s Pancake Day! Why, you ask? Well, it’s the last day of Carnival (Mardi Gras or Pre-Lent, all that) and this day has historically been used (apparently since the 1400s?) to use up sugars, eggs, and fat before Lent. Not being the religious sort myself, it was just an excuse for me to make pancakes. 🙂 And because it is citrus week, I went with my absolute favorite pancake recipe: Lemon Ricotta Pancakes with Syrup and Berries. Light, fluffy, just sweet enough but not too tart (lemony) to overpower.
Ingredients
1 cup whole-milk ricotta cheese
1 cup whole milk
3 large eggs, separated
1/4 cup sugar
Zest and juice of 1 lemon
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 cup corn starch
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
Blueberry syrup and berries, for serving
Directions
In a large bowl, whisk together the ricotta, milk, egg yolks, sugar, lemon zest and juice until smooth. Sift together the flour, baking powder and 1/8 tsp. of the salt over the ricotta mixture and stir with a wooden spoon until just combined.
In another large bowl, using a whisk, beat the egg whites until frothy. Add the remaining 1/8 teaspoon salt and continue beating until soft peaks form. Using a rubber spatula, fold one-third of the egg whites into the ricotta mixture, then gently fold in the remaining whites.
Preheat a griddle or large pan over medium heat. Spray with nonstick cooking spray. Ladle 1/3 cup batter onto the griddle for each pancake. Cook until bubbles form on top and the pancakes are golden underneath, 1 to 2 minutes. Flip the pancakes and cook for 1 minute more. Transfer to a warmed plate. Repeat with the remaining batter. Drizzle with raspberry syrup and garnish with fresh berries.