Yet another pancake

     Not the healthiest breakfast item in the world, since one shouldn't eat too many of these, particularly if eaten in the style that they should be, which is with plenty of butter and large quantities of syrup.
  A nother variation on the recipes already posted in this blog, because why not. I finally had a bit of success in recreating the flavor of a "49er flapjack" that I enjoyed at the Original house of pancakes. I think that this is created using a sourdough batter- which I have not really attempted, since I have little patience for growing, keeping, and feeding a sourdough beast in my home. But this is a reasonable facsimile. Simulacrum. Cake crumb.
     The key in this recipe is to begin it one or two days before cooking. At least a good 24 hours ahead of time.
     Yet another pancake
1/2 tsp yeast, active dry. Or one packet.1.5 cups water, warmish, like body temperature1/2 cup flour, all purpose 1 teaspoon sugar      Combine in a bowl, and whisk together. Allow to sit at room temperature for an hour or two- or if it's not too inconvenient, place bowl above a pan of hot water. Warmth will get the yeast going on it's way.
  After an hour or two of growth, at a cuddly warm temp, add to this:

one recipe Multigrain pancake batter (from a previous post)

1/2 Cup all-purpose flour
1 Cup multigrain cereal- I use "10 grain" cereal from Bob's red mill
1 Tb flax seed meal
~1/4 cup raw nuts--sunflower seeds or almonds work well
1 Cup milk
1 large egg
1 Tb sugar
1/2 tsp of active dry yeast-- OR one package yeast
1/4 tsp of kosher salt,  or more to taste
1/3 tsp of baking soda
1 to 1 1/2 cups water- as needed.
       Then just place in the refrigerator for at least 24 hours before cooking-- 48 is even better.  Cook as you would the multigrain pancakes.       Then just place in the refrigerator for at least 24 hours before cooking-- 48 is even better.  Cook as you would the multigrain pancakes.

Do soak your polenta

No photo yet, but use your mind's eye to envision a soft polenta with a lovely pooling mushroom broth flavored with beef bones and marrow.
     A useful tidbit suggested by David Chang in his Momofuku cookbook: soak your grits. The other day I decided to cook some polenta and considered his advice. Despite the fact that I only soaked the ground corn for ~3 hours, it did result in a very pleasing and smooth polenta.
     If you do choose to pre-soak--which is not absolutely necessary, but you really should-- you don't need to stand at the polenta pot and whisk it like some sort of martyr. In fact you'll probably find that after the initial soak, you can stir it a bit before the water gets boiling. Then just stir a few more times, and it'll be fine. Especially if you add some butter at the beginning.

Here is my recipe and method, roughly speaking. These are without strict measurements.

Polenta

1 Cup polenta (not instant)

3 cups water

1 tb unsalted butter, if desired.

pinch of salt, kosher

     For soft polenta, I generally use a 5:1 ratio of water:polenta. You can use more water, and don't hesitate to estimate if you're soaking the polenta first.

     First place the following in a cooking pot, and let sit for a few hours or even overnight. 2-3 hours is enough to do the trick.

About 45 minutes before you plan to serve it, place your pan of polenta over high heat. Add 2-3 cups more of water, and bring to a boil--either stirring or whisking when the mixture begins to simmer. Turn heat down to a low tick, and throw in a pinch of salt. Stir occasionally, every few minutes or so.
     After about 20 minutes of cooking and occasional stirring, it's OK to put a lid on the pot and turn the heat down to very low--so that it's still bubbling just a bit, very slowly.
     When ready to serve, whisk in 1-3 tablespoons butter and add maybe 1/2 teaspoon of salt, and more or less to taste.

Mushroom ragout with beef marrow bones

1 lb crimini mushrooms, quartered. Or an assortment of whatever mushrooms you'd like.
1 lb beef bones, preferably sawn to <1" thick, with a bit of meat intact, and hopefully a large diameter of marrow.
splash of brandy or bourbon or other brown alcohol--not scotch whisky, though, please.
1/2 cup red wine
1-2 carrots sliced into 1/2" discs
1 medium smallish onion, sliced
if you've some- fresh thyme
1-2 cloves of garlic, whole or chopped
kosher salt and pepper from a grinder, that you're grinding
water
olive oil and butter--a few Tablespoons of each
If you'd like a thicker sauce, add 1 Tablespoon of flour, but this is unnecessary.

1. Season your soup bones with a sprinkling of salt and pepper. Place under a broiler in your oven or just fry in a pan with a bit of olive oil until nicely browned. Don't allow to burn at all, slow and steady wins the race. If you'd like to, add a bit of flour at this time. Stir flour into fat that's at the bottom of the pan, adding ~1 teaspoon of oil or butter if you'd like.
2. When brownish, add a splash of whisky or brandy, if desired. After a minute or so of bubbling away, add 1/2 cup of red wine to the pan. Allow to reduce for a minute or two. Next add about 6 cups or so of water. Then add onions, carrots, a couple sprigs of thyme, and garlic. Bring to a boil and cook at a low simmer for ~90 minutes to 2 hours.
3. Take another pan, and add 1 tablespoon olive oil or butter. Add to the pan quartered mushrooms, and sauté over medium heat. Add a pinch of salt. Allow to cook for 5-6 minutes.
4. While mushrooms are cooking, remove beef bones and thyme sprigs from broth. Discard thyme sprigs. Take broth and blend using an immersion blender, then strain back into pan or into pan containing mushrooms. Press as much as you can through strainer with the back of a large spoon.
5. Add beef bones back to mushrooms and broth, and simmer for a minute or two, until mushrooms are cooked thoroughly. Taste broth, and add a bit of salt and pepper to bring out the flavors.
     If desired, you can add a bit of butter or even heavy cream to this...but remember, pair a glass of red wine with your saturated fats. Or at least a tumbler of whisky.

And please, serve with a teaspoon or so of Gremolata

1 cup  flat leaf parsley, rinsed, dried, large stems removed
`4-5 cloves of garlic, chopped
1 lemon, zest of

   Chop the parsley, then chop a bit more with chopped garlic and lemon zest. This is a refreshing digestive, generally served with osso bucco. The bright, zesty addition contrasts with the rich, amazingly beautiful bone marrow.

     Best served into one of those bowl-like plates, or plate-like bowls, polenta, broth, marrow bone, and a spoonful of gremolata on top or on the side.
     Make sure you've got a utensil suitable for removing the marrow from the bones. Have a glass of cotes du rhone handy, and serve to your non-vegetarian companion.

Multigrain Pancakes

Multigrain Pancakes

Although my paternal grandmother wasn't the friendliest of grandmothers, she was an excellent cook. I don't remember her ever making anything that wasn't delicious. But, now chuckling at this, she never allowed me to touch anything-- her favorite word was No. Not her fault- she was from a generation taught to keep children at arms's length, eschewing the idea of kind words of encouragement or physical love and affection.

But I digress. She made excellent pancakes, with a grainy and spongey texture that was quite lovely. Here is a recipe that I've developed that attempts to replicate that rather flat, grainy cake that really soaks up syrup and butter.

*Note: this recipe calls for ground cereal and ground nuts. A coffee grinder works for this, or a food processor can work. Or a vitamix blender. Or if you can find pre-ground grains and nuts.

Recipe:

1/2 Cup all-purpose flour
1 Cup multigrain cereal- I use "10 grain" cereal from Bob's red mill
1 Tb flax seed meal
~1/4 cup raw nuts--sunflower seeds or almonds work well
1 Cup milk
1 large egg
1 Tb sugar
1/2 tsp of active dry yeast-- OR one package yeast
1/4 tsp of kosher salt,  or more to taste
1/3 tsp of baking soda
1 to 1 1/2 cups water- as needed.
Oil or butter for cooking
butter and syrup for serving and eating

1. First, you need to grind your multigrain cereal and nuts. I use my coffee grinder for this- grinding the cereal and nuts in small batches. It's probably not the best idea, and I've gone through about 5 coffee grinders in ~10 years.


2. Combine 1/2 cup water and yeast in a medium-sized bowl. Allow to sit for a few minutes.

3. Add ground cereal, flax seeds, ground nuts, milk, egg, sugar, salt, 1/2 cup more water, and whisk to combine. Allow to sit for 30-60 minutes, preferably in a warm place. I generally place the bowl over a simmering pot of water for a couple of minutes, whisking. But take care not to heat the batter too much--you just want to take the chill off, getting it to about body temperature.

4. If batter seems too thick, add a bit of water to thin it down. Whisk in your baking soda.

5. Too cook, heat your pan to medium high heat. Add a bit of butter, oil, or a combination of the two to the pan. Pour in the batter, cook until bubbly, then flip.  About a 3-4" cake works best.

--You can keep a warm plate in the oven at about 180˚ and place pancakes in the oven for holding.

Then serve with lots of butter and syrup! Also, butter and little sprinkle of maple sugar is tasty.