Cinnamon Roll Pancakes

I made these when my friend, Michele, was in town from the UK, and luckily, she grabbed a quick iphone photo!

These pancakes are really good. Like really good. The perfect combo of cinnamon rolls & pancakes- brilliant RecipeGirl! Unfortunately, although I have made these twice, I have not taken any pictures of the final result! I guess I was really hungry & impatient. Regardless, I wanted to share the recipe with you so you can enjoy them too. The cinnamon filling & frosting last for a while in the fridge, so all you need to do is whip up another batch of pancake batter (Feel free to use your favorite recipe instead) & heat up the cinnamon sugar mixture in the microwave to make it softer- add some melted butter if needed.

For the final result, you don't NEED to add syrup. Or chocolate chips. I think the syrup adds a little extra something. And hey, you need the glaze too!


Cinnamon Roll Pancakes
Recipe from RecipeGirl
For the pancakes:

• 1 cup all purpose flour
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 cup milk ( I used skim)
• 1 TBSP canola or vegetable oil
• 1 large egg, lightly beaten

For the cinnamon sugar filling:

• 1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted
• 3/4 cup light brown sugar, packed
• 1 TBSP cinnamon

For the cream cheese glaze:

• 4 TBSP unsalted butter
• 2 oz. cream cheese
• 3/4 cup powdered sugar
• 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
• sprinkle of salt

Make the pancakes:

Whisk together dry ingredients in a medium bowl. Measure the milk in a large measuring cup, add egg & oil and beat slightly with a fork. Whisk in wet ingredients until batter is just moistened. (lumps are A-OK).

Make the cinnamon sugar:

Mix together all 3 ingredients until well combined and scoop into a plastic bag. Set aside to set up. You don't want it to be too runny or too hot- the consistency of toothpaste is just right. You can put it in the fridge for a few minutes, if needed.

Make the cream cheese glaze:

In a small heatproof bowl, heat butter in microwave until almost melted. Add cream cheese until melted. Be careful, the cream cheese will "pop" in the microwave. Whisk in remaining ingredients until smooth. Set aside. 

Assemble the pancakes: 

Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat and spray with butter cooking spray. Scoop 3/4 cup batter into pan. Wait 1 minute and snip small amount of corner of bag and squeeze spiral of filling on top of pancake. Once lots of bubbles begin to form on the top, flip pancake and cook a few more minutes until both sides are cooked through. Top with cream cheese glaze and maple syrup, if desired. Chocolate chips are a nice addition too if you're feeling crazy.

Enjoy!

Fluffy Blueberry Pancakes

I used to always want to go out to brunch on the weekend mornings, but now I always have a recipe I want to try-especially pancake recipes! Yumm.

I had some organic blueberries hibernating in the freezer that were begging to be used so I dug up this recipe from Todd. No runny pancakes in sight- just fluffy, bundles of goodness filled with juicy berries!

This was the perfect excuse for a lazy, New Years day breakfast! :)

*UPDATE* The bf requested these for a second day in a row- BIG HIT!!

I'll make you banana pancakes, pretend like it's the weekend now...

Since this is a short week with a LONG weekend- you know you will probably need some pancakes! I know I kind of already have a banana pancake recipe on here (made from leftover waffle batter), but this one is really good- so good that it deserved its own special post. It's made specifically for pancake perfection. I used to not like pancakes (too soggy), but lately I've been a pancake fanatic! I think I only like pancakes with special goodies inside (bananas, chocolate chips, pumpkin). I even had some leftover pancakes for dinner last week! DELISH! :)

A lot of times pancake batter can be runny. This is not good in my book. I like thick, puffy pancake batter. This makes it easy to flip and easier to shape. The best pancake recipe I've come across so far is this pumpkin spice one. I used this as a guide and came up with my "Pretend like its the Weekend Banana Pancakes." The bf's verdict? "These are really good. Perfect. Thanks Babe!" Mission complete. The thing you need to know about this recipe is that your banana should be VERY ripe- so ripe that you only want to pick it up with two fingers and toss it in the trash. Those bananas make perfect pancakes and banana muffins.

Pretend like its the Weekend Banana Pancakes

• 1 1/4 cups AP flour
• 2 TBSP brown sugar
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
• dash of ground nutmeg
• dash of ground cloves
• 1 cup milk
• 1 very ripe banana, mashed
• 1 large egg
• 2 TBSP melted butter

Preheat oven to 200- keep pancakes warm on a baking tray until you're finished making the whole batch- love this trick! :)

Whisk together dry ingredients in small bowl. Mix wet ingredients in larger bowl. Slowly incorporate wet into dry until just combined. Lumpy is OK! :)

Heat skillet/griddle over medium heat and spray with non-stick cooking spray. Pour batter by 1/3 cup-fulls and cook until top and sides bubble. Flip over and cook a few more minutes until both sides are golden brown.

Serve with hot maple syrup or PB syrup (my fav). To make PB syrup, heat 1 part smooth PB and 2 parts maple syrup in the micro until melted. Mix well and enjoy!

P.S. You've probably noticed that I've been showing off my cute little ceramic bird couple lately. Aren't they the cutest salt and pepper shakers you've ever seen? I spotted them at Pier One a while back and my mom picked them up for me for about $2- what a sweet deal!

-Marissa

Amazing Pumpkin Spice Pancakes and Vacation Jars

Must. make. more. pumpkin. recipes. After posting about so many delicious recipes, I woke up Saturday morning thinking about these pumpkin pancakes from Pennies on a Platter. I normally prefer waffles, but the waffle iron I have does not know how to make good waffles. It's OK- I was able to suffer through eating these pancakes! :) They're delicious!!! So much better than I expected. The pumpkin flavor is not overpowering at all, and the cinnamon sugar really makes this dish! Please make these soon!

The bf said they were "good" and "nicely cooked"... and then informed me that he does not like pumpkin... WHAT?! He didn't tell me this until now, but he has not had a problem eating the pumpkin muffins or these pumpkin pancakes. Hmm.... I thought I might have needed to find someone else to come over and eat these when I used the leftover batter Sunday morning. But, surprise, surprise the bf gobbled them down again..hmmm all that pumpkin must be killing him!

I also wanted to share our vacation jars with you. I saw this idea at someone's house years ago and couldn't wait to start this tradition! While vacationing, I collect small souvenirs, ticket stubs, etc. in a bag and when I get back I arrange them in a jar to put on display. Tada! Decor AND special memories. It took me while to find the cheap canning jars I had envisioned, but I finally found them last week at the Container Store for around $5! I wish I had remembered this idea sooner, because I've already missed several trips. One of the best parts of making these jars is that you're always on the lookout for fun things to put in your jar and its so cheap compared to buying other souvenirs, since most of the things you put in are FREE. The bf gave me a big thumbs up!

Riviera Maya,Mexico- August 2010

London, England- October 2010.

This jar is just waiting to be filled. Any suggestions on where I should go to fill this baby up? :)

Amazing Pumpkin Spice Pancakes

• 1 1/4 cups AP flour
• 2 TBSP brown sugar
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 3/4 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
• dash of ground ginger
• dash of ground cloves
• 1 cup milk
• 1/2 cup pumpkin puree
• 1 large egg
• 2 TBSP melted butter (or vegetable oil)

Preheat oven to 200. Set aside baking sheet or oven-safe platter. Whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder, salt and spices in a large bowl and set aside. Make sure to squish any brown sugar chunks.

In a separate small bowl combine milk, pumpkin, egg and butter.

Slowly incorporate wet mixture into dry mixture. Mix until just combined. The batter may look lumpy- that's OK!

Heat a greased skillet/griddle over medium heat. Pour the patter onto the skillet in 1/3 cup increments. If you want a perfect pancake shape, use the back of a spoon or bottom of measuring cup to shape. As you can tell, I was way too hungry for this step! When bubbles start forming on the top, carefully flip over with spatula.

Let cook a few more minutes until golden brown. Transfer to baking sheet and keep warm in oven while you make all the pancakes, re-greasing pan as needed.

Serve with cinnamon sugar (I made my own) and maple syrup! Mmmmm

And then go back for seconds!

Hope you had a great weekend!

Repurposed Banana Pancakes with Peanut Butter Syrup

I did not use someone else's old pancakes to sponge the walls or anything...ha I just used the leftover batter from these delicious Waffles last Saturday morning to make some yum yum banana pancakes! (It's OK- it was only 6 days old and the original recipe said it would be good for 10!) Note- this works best if you refrigerate the plain batter and add your banana right before you use it again.

Anywho, after reading all about my friend Sarina's peanut butter obsession over at Veggies and Beanz day after day, I've been craving lots of PB lately- yum!!! :) I remember reading one post of hers that talked about making your own PB syrup. What goes better with bananas than PB? So i mixed a little up for myself in the microwave and enjoyed it on top of my banana pancake. The bf snarled up his nose at the sound of PB syrup and used the regular kind-BORING! That's OK- I didn't have to share.

PB Syrup:

• 1 TBSP creamy peanut butter
  
• 1/4 cup maple syrup

Place together in heatproof container. Heat in the micro for 1-2 minutes, stirring in between. Stir until smooth and enjoy!

DELISH!!!! Seriously you must try this soon!