I had three favourite teachers growing up. One was my fourth grade teacher Miss Adams who I was convinced was the most stylish lady in the universe. She wore platform heels, coloured bracelets and had a brunette version of the Farrah Fawcett hairdo. Apart from that, she spoke softly and kindly, wrote neatly and her classes were always fun. And that’s not because she taught a class of 30 kids how to cook.
I remember the day with much excitement. There was an electric frypan on each group of tables and an oven at the front of the room. I was assigned one recipe-the pikelets. Each child had a photostatted (this was before photocopiers) list of recipes and although I was never a glue sniffer, I loved inhaling the smell of those freshly printed stencils-does anyone else remember those? One each sheet, there was a range of other items to make including school fête classics like coconut ice, scones and butterfly cakes. Truth be told, I really wanted to make a butterfly cake. The pikelets seemed so boring in comparison.
Oh how wrong was I? Pikelets, in this incarnation, are an Australian item. Similar to American pancakes or hot cakes, they are a small round version that can be eaten hot or cold, unlike pancakes. They were usually with jam or cream or with a sauce. I came home that day with my recipe and begged my mother to let me make them again. My whole family loved them and this week I searched for Miss Adams’ recipe. Alas, I couldn’t find it and even my sister was so smitten by these that she searched for the recipe a couple of years back. All I remember is that there were five ingredients and that a pinch of salt was the last one.
After Christmas, I saw this idea on SavoryMoments and thought that it was a brilliant idea to use up Christmas leftovers. If you’re like us and have an excess of egg nog from Christmas, this is a great recipe to use. Not only do you not need eggs you can use up any leftover egg nog too. Eat these with the egg nog sauce or with jam and cream.
So tell me Dear Reader, did you have a favourite teacher growing up and what were they like? And what was one of the first things that you learned to cook?
Easy Eggnog Pikelets
- 1 cup self raising flour
- 1 tablespoon caster sugar
- Pinch of salt
- 1 1/4 cup eggnog
- A little extra nutmeg (optional)
- butter for frying
For sauce
- 1/2 cup egg nog
- 1/2 cup maple syrup
1. In a bowl, whisk the flour, sugar, salt and nutmeg together and make a well in the centre. Gradually pour in the eggnog, about half of it and then whisk and then pour the other half in and whisk until smooth. There might be tiny lumps but just make sure that there aren’t big lumps of flour.
2. Heat a frypan onto low to medium heat and add a little butter. Drop tablespoons of batter and when several bubbles form, turn them over and cook on the other side.
3. Serve with the sauce which is simply mixing the egg nog and maple syrup together.
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44 Comments | Add your own
Delicious! That is such a great idea.
Cheers,
Rosa
My favorite teacher was in 5th grade – Mrs. Miller. She let me go to the library if I got bored in class! How cool is that? The first thing I ever made was peanut butter cookies, but my first food memory is my mom’s German pancakes that look a lot like your Pikelets!
Hoping you have a Great New Year,
RMW
What a wonderful way to use up the Christmas leftovers Lorraine. Your pikelets look very fluffy, so I suspect the eggnog you use was home made. I wonder if it was the commercial nog, would they have been as fluffy?
My favourite teacher in grade school had to be Ms Johnson, she was so lovely. She had an interesting accent from having been born and raised in South Africa; she also had some wild stories that I remember to this day, even though she was my grade two teacher. Of course, all the boys loved Ms Cummings in grade three because she wore the shortest mini’s, you could see her underpants!
And yes, I do remember mimiographs (that’s what we called them on our side of the world), ours were purple and very alcoholy smelling.
I absolutely love the name “pikelets”! Just darling, I’d like a whole stack topped with some sauteed apples or pears!
Looks delicious, Lorraine! I love pikelets, one of the few “cakes” my mother ever made!
Such a sweet story. Our teachers effect us in so many different ways. We realize this long after that are done teaching. Wonderful recipe!
As cute as these are…all I can think about is my most favorite teacher ever. 5th grade. Mrs. Pearlstone. I loved her and I just loved her name; it was so fitting. She was elegant but still fun. I bet she would let us make pikelets!
What a great way to use up that eggnog! The nutmeg is a lovely touch too- yummo.
I always got on well with my teachers at school… it was just the other kids I had trouble with
I think basic cooking is such an important skill to learn, and wish it was part of every curriculum, but the poor teachers have so much on their plates already. My littlej makes a mean pancake, I’ll get her to give these a go, yummo!
I have fond memories of coming home from school to pikelets when I was in primary school. This was before my mother hit her healthy phase and pikelets were never seen again. I still remember the feeling of thinking how nice to come home to this
I make pancakes so frequently and yet I have never made pikelets. Thanks for bringing back the memories 
I have a memory of cooking at school, although it wasn’t a good one, my grade 4 teacher brought in two rabbits that were skinned and we had to make these rabbit meat balls, I remember nothing except for looking at these poor skinned rabbits on the table and my teacher telling us we had to eat them….
Fresh purple stencil smell!
Oh my goodness – thank you – you’re a savour!! I was copping a lot of flack for having bought egg nog in my pre Xmas madness and no one knew what to do with it, or really why we had it in the fridge… As soon as I saw your recipe in my inbox this morning I yelped and made them straight away… The house awoke to the smell and came into the kitchen “yum what’s that” I proudly served them up with Greek yoghurt and vanilla rhubarb jam – gobbled down happily by all. Thanks again for saving me
Hi Sheena! I’m so glad that you liked the recipe and hehe I had the same problem when I looked in my fridge and saw all of the egg nog!
The Greek yogurt and vanilla rhubarb jam sounds divine! You’re so welcome, anytime! 
Glad you liked this idea! Yours look yummy and I love the eggnog sauce idea you had. Pikelets makes them sound much more fun, too!
Hi Amy! Thanks so much for the clever idea! I love delicious breakfast recipes!
Yum…..gunna give this a try too.
My favourite teacher was 3rd grade, Mr Nance….who I found out part way through was my 3rd cousin removed. My 4th grade teacher was a hottie, kinda like Lady Diana.
My first go at baking was in year 5 and it was a family size custard tart…..turned out perfectly. I’m not sure if it was that mum cooked another one in the evening while I was sleeping and chucked mine, but I’ll still claim it
Dear NQN
I’ll bet that your 4th class teacher found her recipe in “The Commonsense Cookery Book”a textbook compiled by the Public School Cookery Teachers’Association. It was the gift de rigeur for new brides in the 60s. It’s recipes would have featured at the shower or the kitchen tea.Ah those were the days of gills & pints ounces & pounds!
The pikelets do look appetizing and very like the pancakes I ate in my childhood! Don’t use eggnog, none in the house, so just have to look and let others enjoy
! I managed to love biology for all the 16 years of my schooling, and, coming to Australia, naturally totally ‘fell’ for my biology teacher whose name now escapes me. As in Europe we had been way ahead in the syllabus I kind’of did pretty well and that brought us wonderfully close. Remember my pride when she wrote the school a long letter from her sabbatical in Europe and specifically asked me to read it out at the Monday Assembly! Could not keep the grin off my face!! And when the final two years came I hate to think of how much time before and after school she was willing to devote [and this was a state school!] for my Honours studies for the Leaving. I came second in NSW by 1/2 a point! Darn it – but we were both pleased. Lovely memory . . .
My favorite teacher s were Mrs, Cole in Grade 3, through her I was given a gift of love of reading. The other teacher was Mrs. Girtman, who taught me the difference between an outfit that says home made and a garment that says Handmade. My sewing skills even out passed my mother and that is saying a lot as my mother was the person who really taught me to sew.
I remember the photostats! Purple ink smelling of methylated spirits, printed on a revolving drum. We made a condensed milk lemon slice in grade 3 on a morning coffee biscuit base – no cooking involved, but that slice was delicious. Good memories!
I remember in our first cooking class we made crepes, TRUE!
To this day, the recipe will always be special too!
LOVE the pikelets photo, makes me want some now! They look like fun!
I recently (through EXTRAORDINARY circumstances!!!) reconnected with my TWO favorite teachers after more than 35 YEARS!!!
When IT happened, I was filled with the most momentous tears!
Oh! My late grandma used to make me pikelets, and we’d eat them warm or cold, but always topped witha slice of butter. Thank you, Lorraine.
Oh Yum! I will have to make these with Anais! Including eggnog is a great idea!
I’ve never heard pancakes called “pikelets” before, but I love the name. And the recipe. And the story. Any teacher who takes an interest in you and makes you feel special is to be remembered. It’s so important when you are growing up. Brownies. From a mix. Yikes! That may have been the first thing…or cornbread.
Lorraine, I admire you: cooking those pikelets (we have something similar too) in the hot summer month is a brave thing to do!
Nice to have good teachers to remember, I may have a few, but mostly strange types!
. And picklets are never boring, especially these ones!
Ciao
Alessandra
photostatted worksheets… OMG I can still smell their fabulousness.
They should make a cologne of that scent.
One of the first things I learnt was pancakes, unfortunately for my family I use to serve them up not quite cooked through…thankfully my cooking has improved !
Actually the first thing I’ve learned to cook (apart from fried eggs and instant noodles) was Pancakes!
I love the look of these cute pikelets! I suppose your eggnog was not alcoholic (not in this recipe anyway)? 
Now this is definitely a recipe I think I can tweak. We haven’t got any eggnog here where I am, but we do have rose milk-tea leftover. I think it’ll give the pikelets a lovely floral aftertaste.
I will never forget my class adviser/English Lit. teacher from my freshman year in high school. He was a lovely gay fellow who would quote from Filipino and American tear-jerker flicks and still manage to relate them to the subject/assigned reading. He was the one who encouraged me to be a writer. I miss the old fellow; he passed away a few years ago.
I love the term pikelets which we call crumpets and what a great way to use up left over egg nog
Love your story & recipe … Happy New Year!
Isn’t it strange how the very ordinary things can often be the best. My favourite teacher was my history teacher, she was so enthusiastic and picked the horrific from the facts, making her lessons unmissable. These pikelets look wonderful, perfect for Sunday breakfast. Happy new year! GG
Definitely a great idea
I don’t have any egg nog leftover but will use this for next year ~
My favourite teacher was a lecturer from Uni who was so intelligent and kind
He’s the reason why I chose to do a marketing major hehe
The recipe in the 1944 version of “The Commonsense Cookery Book (”the textbook compiled by the Public School Cookery Teachers’Association) is :
1/2 lb flour, 1 tablespoon sugar, 1 tspn cream of tartar, 1 beaten egg, 1/2 tspn bicarb of soda dissolved in part of 1 cup of milk…use enough milk to make a thick batter.
The recipe finishes by saying “serve on a doily on a plate. Sprinkle castor sugar over them”. mmmm..my household, pikelets are mostly eaten at the bench as they come out of the frypan!!
What a treat. I’ve never made nor eaten a pikelet. ever. I’ve seen them and heard people talk about them and they always say the same thing, “like American pancakes” but they don’t look anything like what I remember eating.
I’m going to give these a go and see what I think.
what a fine use for eggnog! i like the name ‘pikelets’ too–much better than silver dollar pancakes or something similarly silly.
Ooh what a clever recipe to use leftover eggnog! I wish I’d read this earlier – I simply drank our excess eggnog by myself
another great recipe idea! i never know what to do with left over eggnog
I wish my cooking class was more exciting… the best we made was Apple Brown Betty and I was so nervous and shy I couldn’t even enjoy that. Lucky you. And now I have the image of you inhaling photostatted copies…. these pikelets look wonderful and now I want to make them.
Good teachers are fabulous! It’s funny what you remember it’s it! These pikelets sound delicious, although I’ve never had egg nog.
I had tried drinking eggnog but next time I want to make this instead. My kids probably enjoy these than drinking eggnog itself.
Would you believe me if I told you I had never heard of photostats or pikelets? You live and learn…
What a great recipe. Wish our cookery teacher did something like that. Remember we learnt how to poach eggs, about 12 of them in a big boiler…the smell was terrible and to me they looked like they were going green. Nearly put me off cooking for life, and I have never poached a egg since.
Yes, remember photostats, I used to colour mine in for projects. Noela
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