Buttermilk Pancakes

Ahhh... summer vacation!!  Eagerly awaited by all in our family and arriving none too soon.  For weeks I've dreamed of sleeping until I simply awoke on my own without the help of an alarm clock, throwing our schedules out the window and enjoying leisurely breakfasts with the kids.

Liv's dreams are nearly the same, but but her idea of the ideal leisurely breakfast is not quite the same as mine.  While pancakes rate high on both of our lists, our concept of the perfect pancake varies.  Mine would be filled with whole grains including wheat germ, flax meal and rolled oats combined with a touch of brown sugar, then topped with nice layer of nuts and bananas - like these.  Liv however prefers her pancakes more along the simple line... simple white flour along with a decent amount of sugar combined with the nice tang of buttermilk.  Hers would be topped with fresh strawberries and then doused with maple syrup.

In the past I've taken the basic buttermilk pancake recipe and added a touch of wheat germ  or flax meal and then reduced the sugar in the recipe to make the pancake a bit healthier, however the first day of summer vacation is a special day deserving of a special treat.  With Liv's adorable smile and those long eyelashes batting my direction how could I resist her?  "Besides," she asked, "How often does one receive a 101.6% final score in math?"

Knowing right where to turn for the ideal recipe I pulled out a copy I had saved for just such an occasion.  In early June, Christiane, The Mom Chef - Taking on Magazines One Recipe at a Time, posted Buttermilk Pancakes from the Best of Fine Cooking - Breakfast, 2011.  Reading that these pancakes were Dudette approved was the only stamp of approval we needed and Liv and I got to pulling ingredients from the pantry.

Basic flour, sugar, salt, baking powder and baking soda are mixed with buttermilk and eggs for pancakes that puff up to some of the lightest and fluffiest pancakes we've had in a while - just like the Mom Chef said!  Topped with fresh strawberries and maple syrup we had a treat fit for the first day of summer vacation.  I think we just might make them tomorrow too...

Chocolate Chip Scones

A few weeks ago we were in Las Vegas for Liv's dance competition and had the "pleasure" of breakfast at Starbucks.  While I wasn't overly thrilled with my burnt coffee and untoasted bagel, Olivia and her brother made a new discovery... Scones!  Now I'm not sure Chocolate Chip Scones from Starbucks count as traditional, but the kids are thrilled with their new revelation and are now avid scone fans.

Since we have come home, Liv has asked numerous times to try to repeat her Chocolate Chip Scone from that morning.  Today we finally had an unscheduled morning and took to the computer to look for a recipe.  I'm amazed at the number of scone recipes out there, Fruit Scones, Chocolate Scones, Whole Wheat Scones, Gluten Free Scones, Scones with frosting, and even savory scones.  Epicurious provided an appealing Chocolate Chip Scone recipe that seemed to suit our taste and with some adaptations, we got to baking. 

The ingredients come together easily and quickly.  Liv was careful not to over mix her dough as she put everything together and was rewarded with a lovely, tender, light chocolate chip scone.  Although the recipe did not call for extra sugar on top, she felt that it would be a welcome addition (good call!) and we sprinkled raw sugar over the milk glaze for a nice added crunch.  

The dough was a tad sticky, but not difficult to work with on a lightly floured surface.  Once the dough is patted into the round, I found that my pizza cutter, sprayed lightly with cooking spray, made a wonderful cutting tool.  A wide spatula or bench scraper works well for transporting the fragile dough to the prepared pan.

Frankly, I prefer fruit scones (blueberry will be up next!), but these were truly good.  This recipe would work well with just about any variation that you can think of, and I'm thinking that it will remain our base for future scone projects.