Breakfast and Brunch Archives - Harvest to Table

Fluffy Blueberry Pancakes Recipe

Stephen Albert — Fri, 10 Jul 2015 16:51:07 +0000

Blueberry season starts in May in the South and moves north to New England in July and August. The peak blueberry season in the upper Midwest is August. On the West Coast, blueberry season begins in California in June and lasts into July and August in the Northwest.

Check at a farmers market for the best-tasting blueberry varieties growing in your region.

Fluffy Blueberry Pancakes Recipe

Author Steve Albert

Yield 4 servings

Choose blueberries that are firm with smooth skins that still have a misty waxy bloom. Fresh-picked blueberries will keep for up to a week in the refrigerator.

Ingredients

1 cup milk
4 eggs, separated
1 cup all-purpose flour
Dash salt
1 tablespoon sugar
1½ teaspoons baking powder
1½ cup or so of fresh blueberries, washed and drained (frozen blueberries can be used without defrosting)
Butter or canola or other neutral oil as needed

Instructions

Preheat a griddle or large skillet over medium-low heat while you make the batter.
Beat the milk and egg yolks together with a fork in a large mixing bowl. Sift together the flour, sugar, salt, and baking soda. Beat the egg whites with a whisk or electric mixer until stiff but not dry.
Gently stir the flour mixture into the butter and milk-yolk mixture, stirring to blend. The batter will be a just a bit lumpy. Gently fold in the beaten egg whites; they should remain somewhat distinct in the batter.
Add about 1 teaspoon of butter or oil to the griddle or skillet and, when it is hot, add about 3 tablespoons per pancake, making sure to include some of the egg whites in each spoonful. Sprinkle the blueberries on each pancake and press them into the batter with the back of a spoon. Cook the pancakes until lightly browned on the bottom—a few of the bubbles on top will have broken, 4 to 6 minutes. Flip them over and cook until the second side is golden brown. Serve, or hold in a 200°F oven for up to 15 minutes.

Notes

Have butter and maple syrup on the table.

Refrigerated leftover batter will keep for a day or two.

The post Fluffy Blueberry Pancakes Recipe appeared first on Harvest to Table.

Creamy, Large-Curd Scrambled Eggs with Flavor Choices

Stephen Albert — Sun, 17 Feb 2013 14:00:14 +0000

Make moist, large-curd scrambled eggs simply by taking it slow and being careful not to overcook. It’s easy to match flavor to the time of year by using seasonal herbs and vegetables and changing up cheeses and meats as you like.

Plan two eggs per person when making scrambled eggs. Keep scrambled eggs moist by adding 1½ tablespoons of liquid for each two eggs; add water, milk, or cream—cream, of course, for creamy-rich flavor. Add just a bit more liquid if you think the eggs are too dry and to avoid overcooking.

Large, fluffy curds come with long strokes of a wooden spatula or spoon—pushing the eggs from the bottom of the pan up and being careful not to let the pan grow too hot.

Creamy, Large-Curd Scrambled Eggs with Flavor Choices

Author Steve Albert

Yield 2 servings

Here is a recipe for moist, large-curd scrambled eggs along with thin slices of mushrooms and simply garnished with chives. Below this recipe you’ll find a selection of seasonal flavor add-ons—you won’t have to eat the same dish of scrambled eggs for some time.

Ingredients

Four large eggs
1 or 2 tablespoons of olive oil or butter
1 to 2 tablespoons water, milk, or cream
1 medium onion, chopped
3 or 4 medium cremini mushrooms, sliced
kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
½ tablespoon or a bit more minced garlic (about 2 cloves)
Chives—a small bunch or 2 green onions, chopped

Instructions

Warm a medium non-stick skillet over low heat for a couple of minutes; when the pan has warmed add the olive oil or butter and swirl it around until the oil has warmed or the butter just melted, about 1 minute. Add onion, mushroom, and salt and pepper to taste and stir often until the onion is translucent, about 5 to 10 minutes.
Meanwhile, crack the eggs into a medium bowl and lightly beat them until the yolks and whites are just combined. Beat in the liquid—water, milk, or cream.
Increase the heat to medium-low and add the eggs-liquid mix. Allow the eggs to cook for a few moments then begin to push them around the pan with a wooden spatula or spoon with long, slow strokes—don’t beat the eggs once they are in the skillet. Allow the egg-liquid mix to spill out over the skillet, but do not allow the eggs to stick. Curds will begin to form in about 10 minutes. Add fresh chopped herbs: tarragon, chervil, and parsley. Add additional salt and pepper to taste if you like.
Continue stirring breaking up long curds as they form until the mixture is a mass of soft curds; in all this will take an additional 15 to 20 minutes. Push the eggs from the bottom of the pan up in long strokes; increase the speed of your strokes as the pan grows hotter; lift the pan off the heat if it grows too hot.
Remove the scrambled eggs from the heat just before they are no longer runny or loose; they will continue to cook once off the heat. Add a bit of liquid if you fear they have overcooked. Spoon the soft curds onto warm plates for serving. Garnish with chopped chives. Serve with hot sauce if you like.

Notes

Seasonal Flavors Add-Ons for Scrambled Eggs:

Sausage: Before adding eggs to the heated pan, cook about 1 cup (about 6 ounces) of thinly sliced Andouille sausage on medium-high heat, stirring often until the sausage has browned slightly and released some fat, about 5 minutes. Pour off the fat then stir in the eggs and follow the direction from step x above.
Bacon or Ham: Add ½ cup crisp bacon bits or finely diced ham.
Chipped Beef: Strips of chipped beef, blanch 3 minutes in boiling water before adding.
Cheese: ½ cup grated Cheddar or Swiss cheese
Sour cream, cream cheese, or goat cheese: ⅓ cup
Fish: 1 cup flaked, cooked codfish
Shrimp: ½ cup diced, cooked shrimp
Herbs: chopped fresh herbs, one teaspoon for stronger herbs, one tablespoon for milder herbs
Tomatoes: 2 ripe tomatoes, chopped; sauté in 3 tablespoons butter, and add salt, and better and basil to taste before adding to scrambled eggs.
Peeled, seeded and diced tomatoes up to one cup; one-quarter cup reconstituted sun-dried tomatoes
Corn: 1 cup whole kernel corn and 3 tablespoons melted butter in addition to butter in pan; prepare before adding eggs.
Spinach: ½ cup cooked spinach (about 6 ounces fresh spinach–wash well, dry thoroughly, and remove stems before cooking); press all the liquid out of the cooked spinach and chop fine before adding to eggs.
Red peppers: ½ cup roasted and chopped
Scallions or onions: ½ cup minced
Salsa: ½ cup prepared salsa
Sun-dried tomatoes: ¼ cup reconstituted sun-dried tomatoes
Pickled jalapenos: minced, add to taste
Tabasco, Worcestershire or other sauce

Courses Breakfast

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Sweet Potato Pancakes

Stephen Albert — Fri, 28 Dec 2012 14:00:46 +0000

Serve sweet potato pancakes with bacon and eggs at breakfast or as a side dish with chicken or ham at supper time.

These pancakes aren’t too far a cry from sweet potato pie but just enough. And they aren’t the boiled and mashed sweet potatoes you serve alongside turkey and mashed potatoes.

Maple syrup or honey are great toppings for sweet potato pancakes; I like a dollop of whipped cream—not just on top but between each pancake. I’ve got a friend who won’t eat these without sour cream.

Peak season for sweet potatoes is early winter. These tubers will keep for up to a month after harvest. Store them in a cool, dark, and well-ventilated cupboard; store them loose, not in a plastic bag. The refrigerator is a tad too cold for sweet potatoes and will likely harm the flavor. A root cellar is ideal.

Sweet Potato Pancakes

Author Steve Albert

Ingredients

1cup whole-wheat pastry flour
1 cup unbleached all-purpose flour (here you can substitute a whole-grain flour such as cornmeal or buckwheat)
3½ teaspoons baking powder
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
2 cups milk
4 teaspoons melted butter
2 large eggs lightly beaten
1 medium sweet potato, cooked until tender, peeled and mashed (about 1½ cups)

Instructions

In a medium saucepan of boiling water, cook sweet potato until tender but firm, about 15 minutes. Drain and quickly immerse in cold water to loosen the skin. Drain again, remove the skin, chop, and mash.
In a medium bowl, sift together flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg. In a second bowl, mix mashed sweet potatoes, eggs, milk, and butter. Blend sweet potato mixture into the flour mixture to form a batter. If the batter is too thick, add more milk (it should be thick but still pourable).
Place buttered skillet on medium-high heat or preheat a lightly greased griddle over medium-high heat. Spoon batter onto skillet or griddle and cook until surface of pancake is covered with bubbles, 2 to 3 minutes, then turn with a spatula and cook until dark golden brown, 1 to 2 minutes more. Cook a single pancake first to be sure skillet or griddle is the right temperature.

Notes

Serve, topped with flavored butter and a little maple syrup, honey, applesauce, bananas, or a dollop of whipped cream. Something different: serve sweet potato pancakes with sour cream.

Courses Breakfast

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