Today is my birthday. I am 40. And happy to be so. In our home, as it happened growing up, on your birthday- you get to pick your food. There are some old standby favorites that go back to my childhood- Cornish hens, my mom’s spaghetti and confetti angel food cakes. All of which Lovey has been kind enough to make for me when asked. Including the year we lived apart and he asked a co-worker to borrow an angel food cake pan. Talk about true love.
Then there are the years where I spy a recipe that I really want to try. This year was one of those. Holiday and birthday breakfasts have come to mean pancakes in our house. Or waffles- my favorite of those recipes to come. Often the pancakes are done in the shape of our initials. This morning Zuzu was concerned and confused why that wasn’t happening when she looked into the skillet. We assured her she wouldn’t miss it once she took a bite, but she remained leery- until- she took a bite.
This year’s birthday breakfast: Cinnamon Roll Pancakes! With Neuske’s Bacon! And my favorite way to have my coffee these days- with foamed milk and a couple of grates of Trader Joe’s Cinnamon–Sugar. A couple of comments about the recipe. The batter came out very thin- which is tasty- but I could also see making it thicker for more of a roll or cake effect. The proportions given aren’t accurate- you don’t get 8 servings of 1/3 cup and with the thinness of the batter they spread out to way beyond 4 inches. We got 5 pancakes out of it. Next time I would double the proportions so everyone can have more than one. The more you play with the cinnamon filling the easier it becomes to make the cinnamon swirl. Regardless of these tips- they taste amazing, your house smells amazing and you wish you had tripled the recipe!
CINNAMON ROLL PANCAKES:
CINNAMON FILLING:
4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, just melted (not boiling)
1/4 cup + 2 tablespoons packed light brown sugar
1/2 tablespoon ground cinnamon
CREAM CHEESE GLAZE:
4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) unsalted butter
2-ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
3/4 cup powdered sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
PANCAKES:
1 cup all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup milk
1 large egg, lightly beaten
1 tablespoon canola or vegetable oil
Directions:
Prepare the cinnamon filling: In a medium bowl, stir together the butter, brown sugar and cinnamon. Scoop the filling into a quart-sized heavy zip baggie and set it aside (see *Tips below).
Prepare the glaze: In a small pan, heat the butter over low heat until melted. Turn off the heat and whisk in the cream cheese until it is almost smooth. Sift the powdered sugar into the pan, stir and add in vanilla extract. Set the pan aside while you make the pancakes.
Prepare the pancake batter: In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt. Whisk in the milk, egg and oil, just until the batter is moistened (a few small lumps are fine).
Cook the pancakes: Heat a large, nonstick skillet over medium-heat and spray with nonstick spray. Use an ice cream scoop (or 1/3 cup measuring cup) to add the batter to the pan. Use the bottom of the scoop or cup to spread the batter into a circle (about 4-inches in diameter). Reduce the heat to medium low. Snip the corner of your baggie of cinnamon filling and squeeze the filling into the open corner. When your pancake begins to form bubbles, add the filling. Starting at the center of the pancake, squeeze the filling on top of the pancake batter in a swirl (just as you see in a regular cinnamon roll). Cook the pancake 2 to 3 minutes, or until the bubbles begin popping on top of the pancake and it’s golden brown on the bottom. Slide a thin, wide metal spatula underneath the pancake and gently but quickly flip it over. Cook an additional 2 to 3 minutes, until the other side is golden as well. When you flip the pancake onto a plate, you will see that the cinnamon filling has created a crater-swirl of cinnamon. Wipe out the pan with a paper towel, and repeat with the remaining pancake batter and cinnamon filling. Re-warm the glaze briefly, if needed. Serve pancakes topped with a drizzle of glaze.
Tips:
*Quick and easy tip: Use a boxed pancake mix as the base for this recipe.
*Tips for the cinnamon filling: Before swirling, open up the baggie again and give it a good stir to re-incorporate any butter that may have separated from the sugar. You want the mixture to thicken a bit- it’s best when it’s similar to the squeezing texture of a tube of toothpaste, which will happen if you leave it at room temperature for several minutes. Don’t try to use the filling for the pancake swirl unless it has thickened as it will be too runny to make a solid swirl.
*Keep the heat low or your pancakes might cook up too quickly. Don’t flip them until you see those bubbles starting to pop on top. Flip them with a wide spatula so you can grasp the whole thing without batter and filling dripping all over the place!
*I wrote a very detailed post on how to get the cinnamon filling *just right* on my Gingerbread- Cinnamon Roll Pancakes Post. Check it out before you attempt these!
*If you’re trying to justify your intake of decadent cinnamon rolls, you can make this a tad bit healthier by using half whole-wheat flour and low fat cream cheese, or enjoy the pancakes without glaze.
I’m calling it with this as the house wheat bread. I’ll admit- my first loaf with this recipe version was pure disaster. Worst. Loaf. Ever. Clearly not mixed and practically a pudding on the inside. But you know what they say- it’s always darkest before the dawn. And dawn means sun rise. And our golden rise was courtesy of Prairie Gold.
The Peace of Cake 