lemon ricotta pancakes

When your brother comes to visit, and has been kind enough to bring you flowers, lemon ricotta pancakes are a great way to show your gratitude.  I have always been a fan of the lemon/pancake combination. At our house, we always dressed our crepes with a sprinkling of sugar and a squish of fresh lemon juice. This delicious pancake, however, is not a crepe although it has a similar texture to one. There are a whopping three eggs in this recipe. That, coupled with the ricotta cheese, gives these pancakes their crepe-like characteristics. The recipe is perfect for two, though it would feed three with something else on the side. Serve drizzled with honey.


lemon ricotta pancakes
from Mark Bittman's How to Cook Everything Vegetarian

1 cup ricotta cheese
1 cup plain yogurt or sour cream
3 eggs, separated
1 tbsp sugar
2 tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice
2 tsp grated lemon zest
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 cup all-purpose flour
pinch of salt

Mix ricotta, plain yogurt, egg yolks, sugar, lemon juice and zest in a small bowl.

In a large bowl, combine your flour, baking soda and salt.

In a medium bowl, beat the egg whites with an electric mixer until they form soft peaks.

Make a well in the centre of your dry ingredients, then pour in the ricotta mixture.  Stir until combined.  Using a spatula, fold in your egg whites one half at a time. Do this gently and carefully until they are somewhat evenly distributed throughout the batter.  You will still be able to see your egg whites - don't worry, you're supposed to!

Make sure your pan is nice and hot. Use butter if you like - I tend to use a teflon pan and skip the butter (so I can load it on at the table!). Cook each pancake for approximately 3 to 5 minutes on each side and serve.