strawberry vanilla bean pancakes

These pancakes came about on a whim. It was one of those nights. I was tired. Pancakes seemed easy. We were out of blueberries, but we had strawberries. So I chopped them up, and threw them in. Out of the corner of my eye I remembered about my vanilla bean sugar. Some of that went in, too. I cooked them up, and could barely speak they were so good.

We were hooked. And they've been highly requested. Mostly by me, but, still. And, can I let you in on a little secret? Ever since I started weighing my flour, my pancakes have turned out so light and fluffy, every time. It was like a little miracle in our house.
So if you can't decide about dessert dinner tonight, here you go.





 Strawberry Vanilla Bean Pancakes
Adapted From America's Test Kitchen

If you don't have buttermilk on hand, you can make your own by whisking 1 tbsp fresh lemon juice with 2 cups of milk and set aside a few minutes to thicken. Pancakes can be held in a 200 degree oven until all are cooked. Other berries can also be substituted in this recipe; raspberry-cardamom might be a nice combination. 

2 cups [10 ounces] all purpose flour
2 tbsp sugar
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 salt
1 vanilla bean, seeds scraped
1 egg
3 tbsp butter, melted and slightly cooled
2 cups buttermilk
1 cup strawberries, diced
1-2 tsp vegetable oil

Whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, vanilla bean seeds and salt in a large bowl. In a separate bowl, whisk together the egg and melted butter, and then the buttermilk. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients, pour the buttermilk mixture into the well, and whisk very gently until the buttermilk mixture is just incorporated [a few lumps should remain]. Be careful not to over mix the batter. Let the batter sit for 5 minutes while the skillet heats.

Heat a 12 inch skillet over medium heat for 3-5 minutes. Brush pan bottom with vegetable oil. Using 1/4 cup of batter per pancake, add batter to the skillet [only 2-3 pancakes will fit at a time]. Sprinkle 1 tablespoon strawberries over each pancake [about 3-4 diced pieces per pancake]. Cook until large bubbles begin to appear, about 2 minutes. Flip the pancakes and cook until golden brown on the second side, about 1 1/2 minutes longer. Repeat with remaining batter, brushing the skillet with oil as needed between batches.

Serve with syrup or bourbon whipped cream.