Tuesday, October 17, 2006

Throwdown: Pancakes

It's time to throw down the gauntlet. MSNBC has posted a "Nix the Mix" article on creating the perfect pancake. The woman who wrote it is perfectly lovely, a Tracie McMillan. Her tone is a mix of awe and 4th-grade teacher. "Wow, look. Someone is making perfect pancakes from scratch like my dad used to" and "Listen closely children. I'm only going to show you how to prep this griddle once."

She doesn't address over mixing. Or letting the batter sit. Or that the first two "throw-away" pancakes are often the ones that the kids fight over. Then there's silver dollar, flap-jack, Swedish, and syrups.

And I'd like to know whose "Best Plain Pancakes" recipe that is. We wouldn't accept an article without the author's name, a movie without the screenwriter, or a building without the architect. Why a recipe without the creator?

I think I have to start seriously writing and stop piddling around. Americans are getting half-assed food news.

1 comment:

Bon Vivant said...

Once I made these really good pancakes with raspberries and choc chips; the end result was somewhat flatter pancakes, as opposed to fluffy, but I prefer a more "Swedish" type pancake than "Dutch" pancake anyway.

The best package pancake mix is Bette's Oceanview Diner (you know that place in Berkeley on 4th Street); I don't eat there anymore (but still like their mix), I go to the Gillman Grill down the street - best ever corned beef hash and no wait!