What did you do? We celebrated at our favourite French restaurant and then stopped in at a party at Kim’s (neighbour, boss, friend) place. I had had the 24 hour stomach bug the day before, so I was a little tentative to party, but it all worked out in the end.
Did you make any resolutions? I evaluated my resolution from last year and by George I did OK. I resolved to use fewer zip lock baggies and I DID! I am using reusable containers instead, mostly glass but for the freezer I still use plastic. So what’s my resolution this year? I’m going to work out more regularly even though I tend to be good about it, I will resolve to go to the gym even when I don’t feel like it. Did you know it takes 21 days of repetition to become a habit? So all I have to do is work out for 21 days and I won’t have a choice. Hmmm.
As most of you have seen by my comments, Christmas was a bit of a wash for my side of the family; my brother’s kids came down with the stomach flu and Christmas Eve dinner was cancelled. That was a real bummer and the kids felt so terrible, so I told them we would recreate Christmas dinner when they all felt better in January. JT stepped out in the morning and bought us a Seafood feast we were going to enjoy instead of a traditional Christmas turkey dinner. Late afternoon we popped over to Barb‘s for some Christmas cheer and they had a gorgeous Charcuterie spread that was so moreish, we couldn’t stop eating. And then of course, we weren’t hungry for our seafood feast. It went back into the freezer and we’ll enjoy it another time!
Santa was very good to me this year and it was extra special because I participated in Charles’ Secret Santa. My not-so-secret Santa was Charlie over at Hotly Spiced. She sent along the greatest kitchen gadgets made by a 100 year old English company Tala which is very cool because it’s Taylor and Law! There was a great retro looking sifter and a really cool measuring cup and Charlie also added a beautiful Christmas ornament and the cutest festive napkins! Little did she know I’m a bit of a cocktail napkin collector! All much appreciated and already put to excellent use. Thank you Charlie.
We’re still in holiday mode over at Kitcheninspirations and we made gingerbread pancakes that were just so yummy I had to sneak in one more holiday recipe. Remember the fluffiest buttermilk pancakes I made on Thanksgiving weekend at my brother’s cottage? Well, I reinvented them into gingerbread pancakes.
Festive Gingerbread Pancakes
Makes 6 pancakes 10cm (4.5in) in diametre
Ingredients:
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 cup milk
- 1 tablespoons butter, melted
- 1 egg
- 1 tablespoons sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/8 teaspoon cream of tartar
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 nonstick cooking spray
- 1/4 teaspoon ginger
- 1/4 teaspoon all spice
- 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
Directions:
- In a large bowl or Tupperware container for travel, sift flour, baking powder, baking soda, sugar, spices and salt. Set aside.
- Separate egg yolk from egg white and beat egg white and cream of tartar on high speed until stiff peaks form but not dry.
- Beat the egg yolk until light yellow in colour and thick, add milk, vanilla and melted butter and beat until smooth on a slow speed. (For this small quantity, I find my immersion blender with whisk attachment a perfect size for both egg white and egg yolk).
- Fold in flour mixture, but don’t over mix as we don’t want the glutens activated.
- Add 1/3 of the egg white to the batter and mix together gently then fold in the remaining egg white carefully, do not over mix!
- Spray your skillet with non-stick spray set to medium temperature (or 350°F).
- Drop about 1/3 cup of batter on pan for each pancake and spread out to about 4-5″ and cook until you see a few bubbles on the surface of the batter. Flip your pancakes and cook for about another 1-2 minutes.
- Keep warm until you have made all the pancakes and serve warm with butter, maple syrup!
Note: recipe was updated December 2019.
Hi Eva, we make pancakes pretty much every weekend and yesterday I modified my usual recipe to include the spices you suggested in yours and it turned out great! Kevin especially loved them and asked that I make your pancakes more often! Thanks! Happy 2013!
LikeLike
Very happy to hear that Michela, the spices sure add a festive flavour to the pancakes. Glad your family enjoyed them.
LikeLike
Happy New Year Eva! I’m so happy you got over your stomach bug so quickly. It’s definitely not fun. Your pancakes look fantastic! And they sound delicious. I like your New Year’s resolution. I’m going to get better about the same thing as well. Last year with work getting so crazy my workout regime took a backseat. Not this year though! 😉
LikeLike
Thanks Kristy, it’s usually the first thing we forfeit and it should be the last. I’m really going to make an extra effort this year, being a benchmark birthday and all.
LikeLike
Voluptous pancakes, oh la la these look terrific!. I guess the baking powder, baking soda & 1/8 teaspoon cream of tartar helped make them so big and fluffy?. I want them. Thanks for stopping by my blog.
LikeLike
Thanks Bonnie, I think it’s beating the egg whites and folding them into the batter that makes these babies look like they’re on steroids! And they were very tasty too.
LikeLike
Hi Eva! Happy New Year to you! wish you all the best for 2013!! These pancakes are a great start to the year! 🙂
LikeLike
Thank you kindly Sammie, they were very tasty indeed!
LikeLike
Thanks so much for the mention, Eva and it’s so lovely to see those gifts sitting in your kitchen all the way over in Canada – they made it! I had a feeling you might collect cocktail napkins because you blog so many appetiser-type recipes. I like to have some on-hand too so I’m ready when I need to serve pass-around food. What great looking pancakes – I can see I’m going to have to try this recipe. And I’m so sorry to hear your Christmas was severely altered by illness. What bad timing xx
LikeLike
Thank you Charlie, what a wonderful secret Santa gift it was! We’ll do a re-do Christmas in January when they get back from Arizona, it’ll be nice because we usually don’t get to have turkey in January. Happy New Year to you.
LikeLike
I love how thick and fluffy these look …with a spicy twist? LOVE!
LikeLike
Thank you kindly SM. Happy New Year!
LikeLike
Mmmmm! Pancake breakfast is a great way to start out the new year! Love the gingerbread spices you’ve added.
LikeLike
Thanks Amber, they were very tasty with real maple syrup.
LikeLike
Another tempting dish Eva. Especially as I’m a bit under the weather too, I could do with these drenched in the bottle of maple syrup I received over Xmas.
LikeLike
Thank you kindly David, they are definitely a lovely treat particularly with real maple syrup. I hope you have a chance to indulge. Happy New Year to you and yours.
LikeLike
These pancakes look fabulous! And whilst on holidays, there are plenty of these late morning rise brunches being made 😀 How fabulous to be part of that Secret Santa fun! 😀
LikeLike
Thanks Lorraine, yes, the lazy morning brunches are rather fun during the holidays. Hope you had a wonderful Christmas and a Happy New Year.
LikeLike
Wonderful pancakes, Eva!! I’m so glad you’re all on the mend and feeling better now!! I read about Charles’ Secret Santa and was waiting for the big reveals.. I think he will be back to share with us after his break. So I was pleased to see your present.. what pretty gadgets, indeed!!! I will have to join in next year.. it was just too much for me to take on this year. Wishing you and yours the most wonderful 2013!!! xx Barb
LikeLike
Happy New Year to you and your family too, Barb. The secret santa was quite fun and mine arrived in the nick of time! The pancakes were a tasty treat.
LikeLike
These looks delish!! Happy New Year 🙂
LikeLike
Thanks Judy. Happy New Year to you too.
LikeLike
And of course I wish you a Happy and Prosperous New Year!
LikeLike
And to you too, Sissi. Thank you.
LikeLike
Gorgeous pancakes, Eva. One of my new year’s resolutions should be preparing pancakes for the first time in my life (I mean the North-American pancakes which I have never even tasted).
Congratulations for keeping your resolutions this year and good luck with new ones! You have reminded me I still haven’t made mine…. (I’m already scared to think I will not keep most of them).
LikeLike
Thank you for your lovely words Sissi. I hope you enjoy the pancakes when you make them, but make sure you have real maple syrup, the fake stuff is not worth it. Good luck with your new year’s resolutions. Happy New Year to you and your family.
LikeLike
Thanks a lot, Eva. Surprisingly we have Canadian maple syrup sold in my local, standard supermarket, so I am sure to have the real thing 😉 I once bought it out of curiosity and used instead of honey in cakes (in some cases I’m not a fan of strong honey taste).
LikeLike
Goodness, Eva! The Oxford Dictionary people should be contacting you for permission to use your opening photo to illustrate “fluffy.” These really are incredible and certainly special enough to serve for a holiday breakfast.
I hope you’re feeling better. Happy New Year!
LikeLike
Such an incredibly lovely thing for you to say, John, you always brighten my day with your kind words. I am feeling better, but still have a slight cold, which I hear will last most of the winter. Hope you are well on the way to recovery too. Happy New Year.
LikeLike
The pancakes are really thick and soft!
Happy New Year to you and yours, Eva!
LikeLike
Thanks Angie, Happy New Year to you too!
LikeLike
Happy New Year, Eva! Beautiful thick pancakes, and I hope you are feeling better this new year.
LikeLike
Thank you kindly Betsy, yes, I am feeling better, sadly in time for work! The pancakes worked out very well. I really loved the gingerbread flavour.
LikeLike
Happy New Year Eva!! I was just reviewing all of the beautiful recipes you posted through the holidays… you have been very prolific and full of inspiration, as always. I’m so sorry to hear about your brother’s family… but I bet your January gathering will be even more special. Would you believe my brother had to cancel for the exact same reason? (we usually gather at our home after Christmas but not this year for the first time in ages…). I have been amazed at just how bad/pervasive this cold/flu season has been… almost every one I know has been sick in one form or another… not fun. On a positive note, loving the Tala accessories from your Secret Santa (how great are those?!) and loving the ginger twist on your fluffy pancakes…All the best to you and yours in 2013 Eva! xo.
LikeLike
Happy New Year to you too, Kelly! And thank you so much for your kind compliments. Yes, I did do a lot of Christmas baking, but no more than any other year — but then again, each year I say I’m going to cut it down and never do. Too bad about your brother’s family, I hope you have a chance to have a ‘redo’ like ours in the new year.
The Secret Santa worked out very well, I will definitely participate next year too. All the best to you and your family for 2013.
LikeLike
I have no resolve, I mean I didn’t make a resolution. I got all mixed up looking at those pancakes. I love how thick they are.
LikeLike
Thanks Greg, they were certainly thick and tasty smothered with real Canadian Maple Syrup.
LikeLike
My new year’s resolution is to try (again) to be organized. The problem with this resolution is that it stiffles my “creativity”.
Spent New Year’s Eve with friends and had a blast. Glad you got over your 24 hour stomach bug and was able to enjoy the last day of 2012. Looking forward to visiting with you in “Blogland” in 2013.
LikeLike
Thanks Norma, it sounds like you had a lovely NYE. These bugs are particularly bad this time of year with all the windows closed. Hope you stay healthy. Happy New Year to you too!
LikeLike
Great way to celebrate a New Year’s breakfast. Love the retro kitchen tools as well. Is the ornament a bunny?
LikeLike
Hi Maria, yes, that cutie pie in the background is indeed a bunny. Happy New Year!
LikeLike
Happy New Year Eva..all the best for 20l3
LikeLike
Thank you Mama, Happy New Year to you too and all the best.
LikeLike