February 6, 2007: Buttermilk pancakes

On the occasions that Michael and I go out for breakfast, my eyes usually zoom straight to the sweet section where the pancakes and french toast reside. Even so, there's only half a chance I'll order them. As much as I love these fatty carbs, I prefer them cut with a lot of fresh fruit and a minimum of syrup, icing sugar and their sugary like. My most disappointing breakfast purchase ever was a plate of "french toast with strawberries and cream" three years ago: I received my fatty bread hidden under a mountain of sugared aerosol cream with a single strawberry, cut into quarters, placed in each corner of the bread. Ergh.

So, when I had half a carton of buttermilk and a few eggs left over from the choc-nutella pudding, I figured it was time to prepare a sweet breakfast my way. But it wouldn't be breakfast - I'd make pancakes for dinner! This elicited quite some protest from Michael, even as I argued that his beloved haloumi sandwiches are hardly any more nutritious than a few pancakes and a big helping of fruit salad.

So on the way home from work, I stopped by the Lygon St fruit shop and collected my haul: some miniture plums, red currants, granny smith apples, grapes, super-ripe raspberries, almost-as-ripe apricots, under-ripe peaches. I stirred in the juice of half a lemon to keep it all fresh and tangy.

As a treat I added some macadamia nuts and a spoonful of mascarpone each. For the pancakes I picked out this recipe, and I won't bother retyping it here because that post is more detailed and helpful that I'm going to be. This meal was just the combination I'd been hankering for! Michael made his way through his plate without comment, but with a speed that confirmed he loved it too and wasn't going to admit it.