Raspberry & Vanilla Heart Shaped Pancakes
An Original Recipe by Not Quite Nigella
Preparation time: 10 minutes
Cooking time: 25 minutes
Serves 2
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1 cup/150g/5ozs plain flour
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3 teaspoons baking powder
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a pinch of salt
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1 1/3 cup/325ml/11.5flozs milk
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1 egg
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2 teaspoons of vanilla extract
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1/2 cup of frozen raspberries, thawed and mashed (will reduce down to less then 1/2 cup once thawed and mashed)
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a few drops of red food colouring (optional)
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Oil for frying and non stick spray
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You will also need a large round metal cutter and a heart shaped cutter
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Icing sugar and cherry or raspberry jam to serve and cream if you're feeling indulgent!
Step 1 - In a bowl mix whisk the flour, baking powder and salt until combined. In a jug, measure the milk, vanilla and add the egg and whisk together. Made a well in the centre of the flour mixture and then slowly pour in the milk mixture whisking to avoid any lumps. This should make 2 cups of batter.
Step 2 - Separate batter in two halves-I measured 1 cup back in the jug and left the remaining cup in the bowl. Into one of them, whisk in the raspberries and food colouring if using-without the food colouring the colour will be a purple shade.
Step 3 - Heat a frypan on medium to low heat and spray the inside of the cutter generously with non stick oil spray. Add oil in the frypan once hot and place the round cutter in the pan and pour in half of the plain white batter-you should get two fluffy, thick American style pancakes with this batter. Put the lid on and watch that it doesn't burn. When bubbles appear, pick up the pancake, cutter and all and using an egg flip, turn it over and cook on other side. Test for doneness by pressing down gently in the centre-if it feels squishy like there is still raw batter there, keep cooking it. The centre should spring back to the touch.
Step 4 - Turn down the heat a touch lower and repeat the process for the raspberry flavoured pancakes but this time you'll get three pancakes out of the mixture with the extra amount of raspberry in the batter. Take your pancakes and using the heart cutter, cut out a heart from the centre of each round and slot it in the centre of the other. Dust with icing sugar and serve with jam and cream!