Flipping Through a Pancake Book

When I was a child, my mother always counseled me to remember that “good things come in small packages.” But I must admit it took half a lifetime for me to appreciate the maxim. These days I have a real dread of any capacious offering.

Most particularly, larger-than-life cookbooks. I think I can survive forever without riffling the pages of another oversize “coffee-table” volume that is replete with overblown color photographs but hasn’t a single recipe in its pages that inspires me to walk--not run--to the nearest stove.

So, it comes as a genuine pleasure to tell you about a recent discovery: a small book on a small subject with a rather small price tag as well: “Pancakes from Flapjacks to Crepes” by Dorian Leigh Parker (Clarkson N. Potter Inc.: $10.95.)

This compact tome is jam-packed with unique, versatile and nutritious fast-foods. I found myself making pancakes non-stop from breakfast to dinner, the moment after I read the first new pages.

I once knew Parker slightly, when she was a model and one of the most sought-after faces in America. I then was working for a large advertising agency that did much of the seeking.

The following flapjacks are meant for breakfast. But bear in mind that Parker has a repertoire of savory crepes and feathery light dessert hot cakes as well.

Parker admits this is a confection rather than a pancake. A “Cinderella-at-the-ball version” of her father’s buttermilk breakfast hot cakes.

BANANA BUTTERMILK GRIDDLE CAKES

4 eggs, separated

3 tablespoons sugar

1 1/2 cups buttermilk

2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled

1 teaspoon vanilla

2 teaspoons grated lemon peel

3 medium bananas, finely chopped

1 1/2 cups cake flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Oil and butter

Beat egg yolks with sugar in large bowl until light. Beat in buttermilk, unsalted butter, vanilla, lemon peel and bananas.

Sift flour with baking powder, soda and cinnamon. Mix into banana mixture.

Beat egg whites until stiff. Fold into pancake batter.

Heat griddle or skillet until water drop skates over surface. Brush lightly with oil or butter. Using 1/4 cup measure, pour batter onto griddle and cook until brown. Turn and brown other side.

Butter cakes as prepared and keep warm on oven-proof plate in 200-degree oven. Makes 4 servings.

How Vermont flannels got their name is anyone’s guess, for they are kissing cousins of Pennsylvania Dutch flat cakes. The origin of that name like flapjacks and johnnycakes is up for grabs.

VERMONT FLANNEL CAKES

1 cup quick oats

2 cups buttermilk, about

1 tablespoon sugar

1 teaspoon baking soda

3/4 cup unbleached flour, about

2 small eggs

Oil

Soak oatmeal in 2 cups buttermilk in large bowl 15 minutes. Mixture will thicken slightly.

Sift sugar, soda and 3/4 cup flour together, then stir into oat mixture. Beat in eggs, mixing thoroughly, and let batter rest 15 minutes. Batter should be like heavy cream in consistency. If too thin, add small amount flour. If too thick, thin with buttermilk.

Heat griddle or skillet over medium heat until water drop skates over surface. Brush with oil and reduce heat to low. Using 1/2-cup measure, pour batter onto griddle and cook until brown. Turn and brown other side.

Butter cakes as prepared and keep warm on oven-proof plate in 200 degree oven. Makes 4 servings.