You say Cocoa and I say Cacao
Raw cacao breakfast pancakes with warmed homemade marmalade? Don't mind if I do.
Heavens to Betsy these are good. And when I say good I mean really, really good. Like savour-every-mouthful -of-beautiness-on-a-plate-I-love-you-give-me-more, good.
Raw cacao is the secret ingredient. I love cocoa, the dark bitter taste, the luxury and the intensity is almost lustful, but since discovering raw cacao in the Foodie aisle at Aldi I'm not sure if I want to switch back. The flavour is amazing. You know that flush you sometimes get from a high cocoa content cake? It's not there. But the pleasure, the sensuality, the decadence... OMG it's there in bucket loads.
Raw cacao is the stage BEFORE cocoa. It's not roasted, so the bitterness is gone, the intensity is diminished slightly but the flavour, brought on by the fermentation process, is still there. And you need way less sugar to make it palatable. WIN. What's more, it's super high in iron and magnesium, so if you're feeling all 'I'm a Goddess Leave Me In My Happy Place' it's perfect to help you through.
My little one asked for chocolate pancakes the other morning. We've been experimenting with pancakes since Pancake Day and usually they are filled with chocolate hazelnut spread, but you know and I know that stuff is full of sugar and I don't like giving it to him every day, despite the begging. So raw cacao pancakes were made as a compromise. And they worked. Especially with warmed, homemade seville orange marmalade... (help I'm drooling again).
It's so simple...
Raw Cacao Pancakes and Warm Seville Orange Marmalade
Ingredients - Serves 1
(sorry, I'm selfish and I need four pancakes at a time, but this recipe is easily increased)
3 heaped tbsp plain flour
2 heaped tbsp raw cacao powder
1 level tbsp sugar or 1 level tbsp sugar alternative like honey or maple syrup
1 medium sized egg
1/2 tsp bicarbonate of soda (optional- this makes them more American and less Crepe like)
225ml of semi skimmed milk (I'll try with non dairy alternatives one day I promise)
butter or spray oil (I make my own spray oil simply using an old frylight spray with vegetable oil in it)
Method
Chuck the flour, cacao powder, bicarb and sugar in a bowl. Make a well in the centre and crack the egg into it. Using a fork, combine the dry ingredients with the egg adding a little milk at the same time. Keep adding the milk, whisking gently with the fork until combined and all the milk is used up. Don't over beat the mixture, trust me, you don't need to. This is easily something you can do first thing in the morning. You should have a pourable mixture that looks like a good smoothie.
Heat a heavy based, small frying pan over a medium low heat and brush the pan with butter or spray with oil. You're not frying, you're just making it less resistant so don't go overboard with the fat, it isn't a good idea, believe me.
Your mixture should make 4-6 pancakes, dependent upon how thick you like them, so pour your mixture in equal sized batches and cook the first side until bubbles appear and the edges look cooked. Gently flip your pancake over, (no need for dramatics, it's 7am and you've got stuff to do) and cook for the same amount of time you cooked the other side. It's not rocket science but you can't leave the pan unattended. Burnt pancakes aren't particularly tasty and children have very little cognitive dissonance. Do you?
Place your pancake on a plate and cover with foil and do the same with the rest.
When you've finished cooking your pancakes SWITCH OFF THE RING
Take a tablespoon or two of marmalade/jam and drop it in the pan, there should be enough residual heat for the conserve to warm through and liquefy enough to pour over your pancakes. Again, it doesn't take long so don't be leaving that pan however cheap it was.
Sprinkle your pancakes with a dusting of icing sugar if you're feeling posh and pour over that warmed marmalade!
Now GET THEM IN YOUR BELLY!!
Let me know how it goes by posting to Instagram or Facebook with the tag #marmaladeandmud