MY VERSION OF INSANELY GREAT PANCAKES FROM TENNESSEE SEEN ON FOODTV.

Somewhere I saw an ad for Aretha Frankenstein’s insanely great pancakes. I was intrigued and sent for some of the mix, had to buy three boxes, because I knew we weren’t going to Chattanooga any time soon. The family had a big pancake brunch on our deck last summer. We made these pancakes and an easy version of potato pancakes for the favorite Son-in Law on griddles right out on the deck. Both kinds of pancakes were judged wonderful, I immediately tasted farina in the insanely great ones and thought I can duplicate this mix.

I am deeply concerned that we are raising a generation of children that do not know what food without additives and chemicals tastes like. If the preservatives, fillers and high-fructose corn syrup aren’t in the food, it doesn’t taste right or good to them. We buy Pure Michigan Maple Syrup at the Farmer’s Market directly from the man who makes it. Our teenage grand-daughters don’t like it and always ask if we have some syrup from the store as they don’t like the stuff that “grows” on trees.

JULIE’S FARINA FEATHER LIGHT PANCAKES
I found a wonderful recipe in an old 1959 cookbook for feather pancakes. I used that recipe as a guide, added farina and buttermilk to make a copy of our favorite pancake mix, Aretha Frankenstein’s. The pancakes are as Aretha say’s, “Insanely Great.”

1 egg, slightly beaten
1 ½ c buttermilk
1 T canola oil
1 c flour
2 T (yes tablespoons) baking powder
2 T sugar
½ t baking soda
½ t salt
¼ c farina cereal, dry (Cream of Wheat cereal dry), uncooked

Ingredients.

In a bowl, combine and mix together liquid ingredients. In another bowl, completely mix together the dry ingredients. Add the liquid ingredients into the dry ingredients and mix; batter will be lumpy. Heat a frying pan or griddle over medium hot burner, the pan is hot enough when drops of water sprinkle on it immediately sizzle.  Spray with non-stick cooking spray. Using a ladle, pour batter into what will be the center of the pancake. Pouring the batter in this way results in a perfectly round pancake.  Bake pancake until bubbles start to appear on surface.  Flip over and continue cooking until browned on the other side.

Wet ingredients and dry ingredients.  Mix each one well.

Stir wet ingredients into dry ingredients.  Batter will be lumpy.

When griddle is ready, water bubbles and sizzles.

Pour batter from a ladle for round pancakes.

Bake on one side until bubbles appear.

Two beautiful puffy pancakes.

This one is just starting to puff up.

Pancakes with butter and pure Michigan Maple Syrup.