Buckwheat Overnight CAKES

DEAR SOS: I would like a recipe for buckwheat pancakes that appeared in The Times in 1959 or 1960. It used yeast and required overnight time to rise.

--FRANK

DEAR FRANK: Old-fashioned buckwheat cakes at your service. We’ve printed this recipe several times since ’59.

OLD-FASHIONED BUCKWHEAT CAKES

Serve these hot with butter and molasses, maple syrup or honey.

1 (1/4-ounce) envelope yeast

1/2 cup warm water

1 teaspoon salt

1 cup milk, scalded

1 1/2 cups buckwheat flour

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

1 tablespoon molasses

Sprinkle yeast over water in medium-sized warm bowl and stir until dissolved. Beat in salt. Cool milk to lukewarm and add to yeast mixture along with flour. Beat until batter is well blended. Cover and let rise in warm place until doubled and bubbly, about 3 hours at ordinary kitchen temperature or overnight in refrigerator. If not ready to bake immediately, refrigerate batter.

Bring back to room temperature and, just before baking, beat in baking soda and molasses. Batter should be consistency of sour cream. If batter is too thick, add little warm water or milk. If too thin, beat in more buckwheat flour. Drop by spoonful onto hot, lightly greased griddle. Bake until bubbles appear on surface and begin to break at edges of pancake. Turn and bake second side until lightly browned.

Makes 24 (3-inch) cakes.

Each pancake contains about:

33 calories; 105 mg sodium; 1 mg cholesterol; 0 fat; 6 grams carbohydrates; 1 gram protein; 0.13 gram fiber.

The Key Is the Lime

DEAR SOS: While in Florida recently, we had a wonderful key lime pie at the Cafe del Sol at Marriott’s Marco Island Resort. I realize key limes in Florida are different from ours. But if you can obtain the recipe, I’m sure it would be a reasonable facsimile.

--RUTH

DEAR RUTH: True. The smaller, slightly tart key limes produce a sharper taste than other limes; they’re the same as the yellow limes you sometimes find in Mexican markets. But even if you use everyday green limes, this pie is delicious.

MARCO ISLAND RESORT KEY LIME PIE

PECAN CRUST

1 tablespoon butter

1 1/2 cups chopped pecans

3/4 cup graham cracker crumbs

Grated peel of 2 limes

3/4 teaspoon cinnamon

1 1/2 tablespoons sugar

Melt butter in medium skillet. Add pecans and saute until lightly browned and toasted. Immediately remove nuts and butter from pan and place in food processor. Add crumbs, lime peel, cinnamon and sugar and mix to coarse crumbs. Turn into 10-inch pie plate, reserving 2 ounces crumbs for garnish. Evenly distribute crumb mixture over bottom and sides of pie plate, pressing to cover surface with crust. Let stand at room temperature until ready to fill.

PIE FILLING

7 egg yolks

2 (14-ounce) cans sweetened condensed milk

1/2 cup key lime or other lime juice

Grated peel of 2 limes

Whipped cream

Beat egg yolks at high speed until smooth, 4 to 5 minutes. Slowly add condensed milk with mixer running, but do not over-mix. Scrape down sides of bowl. Slowly add lime juice at medium speed. Add peel and mix slowly.

Pour into prepared Pecan Crust, smoothing top with rubber spatula. Fill baking pan halfway with hot water and place on lowest rack of oven. Place pie plate on rack above water and bake at 300 degrees until filling is firm to touch, 20 to 25 minutes. Do not allow pie to brown.

Remove pie from oven and place on wire rack to cool to room temperature, then place in refrigerator to set and chill, about 4 hours.

To serve, top pie with 3/4-inch-thick layer of whipped cream and sprinkle with reserved graham cracker crumbs.

Makes 8 servings.

Each serving contains about:

535 calories; 202 mg sodium; 276 mg cholesterol; 26 grams fat; 68 grams carbohydrates; 12 grams protein; 0.35 gram fiber.

Trying Again for Dip

DEAR SOS: Regarding the reader who wanted her co-worker’s recipe for spinach dip, the one you printed was OK, but I’ll bet it’s not the one she’s looking for. Try this one.

--GAYLE

DEAR GAYLE: Thanks. We’ll find out.

SPINACH DIP

1 (10-ounce) package frozen chopped spinach, thawed and drained

1 cup sour cream

1 1/2 to 2 cups mayonnaise

1 small (about 4-ounce) can water chestnuts, chopped

3 green onions, chopped

1 (1 1/2-ounce) package dry vegetable soup mix

Dash hot pepper sauce

Combine spinach, sour cream, mayonnaise, water chestnuts, green onions, soup mix, and hot pepper sauce. Chill several hours. Serve with crackers or raw vegetables.

Makes 6 servings.

each serving contains about:

357 calories; 963 mg sodium; 32 mg cholesterol; 28 grams fat; 26 grams carbohydrates; 4 grams protein; 1.28 gram fiber.