Top Scottish chefs share recipes and tips for perfect pancakes - including sell-out island cafe creation
As it’s Shrove Tuesday (17 February), it’s the perfect excuse to whip up a batch of pancakes. But if you’re in the mood for something a bit more adventurous than the traditional, some top Scottish chiefs have shared their favourite recipes and topping ideas.
From Scotch pancakes with foraged toppings , created on the Isle of Skye, to a childhood-inspired bake, here are some creative ideas to add to your pancakes this Shrove Tuesday.
Café Cùil pancakes with rhubarb crumble and foraged gorse flower mascarpone topping, from Clare Coghill owner of Cafe Cùil, Isle of Skye
Clare said of these “lovingly made” pancakes: “When we first added these Scotch pancakes onto our specials board, they sold out within the hour. They are lovingly made each morning by our baker, Fiona: it’s her own family recipe passed down from her mother, so it’s an honour to share it with you.
“Pancakes are now a permanent feature on our menus, but we like to stay on our toes by coming up with seasonal toppings that showcase what grows around us. This is a beautiful pancake topping that uses the best of spring produce on Skye. We forage for our own gorse flowers, which have a delicious, coconutty essence to them when in bloom.”
Café Cùil Cookbook: Recipes from the Isle of Skye is published in hardback by Kitchen Press and available nationwide. Café Cùil will re-open for the season in March on the Isle of Skye.
Café Cùil pancakes
Makes 12 pancakes
Cooking time: 20 minutes
Pancake Ingredients:
- 3 eggs
- 100g caster sugar
- 300g self-raising flour
- 1 tbsp baking powder
- 1 tbsp lemon juice
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 100ml milk
- 1 tsp salted butter
Pancake method:
1. Crack the eggs into a bowl and add the sugar, then whisk using a handheld electric mixer until the mix is really light and fluffy – this takes a good couple of minutes but it will make your pancakes rise nicely when cooked.
2. In a separate bowl, combine the self-raising flour, baking powder, lemon juice and vanilla extract, then whisk in your frothy egg mix. Pour in the milk while the mixer is running to get a thick batter, then leave to rest for 5 minutes.
3. Heat up a large, non-stick pan on a medium-low heat, then wipe a little butter around the pan using some folded kitchen roll. Add a generous tablespoon of batter to make a pancake about 10cm across – they will spread a little so allow about 2cm between each one.
4. Let the pancakes cook for 2 to 3 minutes until the underside is golden brown and you begin to see bubbles forming on the surface. Gently flip the pancakes one by one with a spatula and cook for another 2 minutes on the other side, until golden.
5. Let the pancakes rest on a wire rack, covered with a clean dish cloth, then repeat with the remaining batter, re-greasing the pan when necessary.
6. Serve the pancakes in a stack of three with your favourite toppings.
Pancake topping rhubarb crumble and gorse mascarpone
Feeds 4
Cooking time: 40 minutes
Ingredients:
- 200g trimmed rhubarb, cut on the diagonal into 3cm pieces
- 150g granulated sugar
- 100g plain flour
- 100g light brown sugar
- 100g ginger nut biscuits, blitzed or bashed into crumbs
- 100g softened butter, diced
- Golden syrup
For the gorse mascarpone
- 100g mascarpone
- 1 tbsp desiccated coconut
- 1 tbsp icing sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla
- A handful of dried gorse flowers, plus a few more for the top
Method:
1. Preheat your oven to 200°C/180°C fan.
2. Put your chopped rhubarb into a roasting tin so the pieces are in a single layer without too much overlap. Give the tin a wee shoogle (shake) so the rhubarb distributes evenly. Pour the sugar over the top and shake the tin again so it’s in an even layer, then cover tightly with tin foil. Roast in the oven for 12 minutes. Check to see if the rhubarb is done by giving a piece a squeeze – it should have a little bit of give – and put it back in the oven for a couple of minutes if it needs it.
3. In a mixing bowl, combine the plain flour, light brown sugar, Gingernut biscuit crumbs and butter. Rub the ingredients together with your fingertips until you have a chunky breadcrumb consistency.
4. Tip the crumble mixture onto a baking tray and roast for 15 minutes, until it’s golden and crispy.
5. While the crumble is cooking, whip up the gorse mascarpone. Put the mascarpone, coconut, icing sugar, vanilla and gorse flowers in a bowl, then beat vigorously with a spoon until smooth. Keep some gorse flowers aside for garnish.
6. To serve, stack three pancakes on each plate, drizzle over plenty of golden syrup, then pile on a spoonful of crumble, then some rhubarb, then a dollop of gorse mascarpone.
Puffy pancakes from Twelve Triangles bakery
Emily Cuddeford, co-founder of Twelve Triangles said: "I first started making this recipe when I was reading my son The Moomins series.
"Moomin Mamma makes everybody pancakes and jam when they wake up from hibernation in spring. These are now known as ‘puffy pancakes’ in our house and are great with bacon and maple syrup or as mini pancakes with butter and jam for snack boxes.
"This is the slightly more grown-up version served with sweet dukkah and Yorkshire roasted rhubarb, which is beautiful and just starting to appear at this time of year."
Makes 9 large pancakes or 14 smaller pancakes.
Ingredients
- 220g plain flour
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
- 40g caster sugar
- A pinch of salt
- 3 eggs
- 150g buttermilk
- 30g butter (melted)
Method
Weigh the dry ingredients into a bowl.
Melt some butter in the frying pan you will use to cook the pancakes, and then wipe it out with some kitchen roll.
Whisk the eggs and buttermilk together with the melted butter.
Add the wet mixture into the dry ingredients and whisk to mix together, it will be quite thick and start to bubble as the bicarbonate of soda starts to react with the acid from the buttermilk.
On a medium heat, drop spoonfuls of the batter into the frying pan and cook for a few minutes on each side. You will see bubbles start to form through the batter and you are looking for the pancakes to be a nice deep golden colour on each side.
Serve with yoghurt, roasted rhubarb and sweet dukkah for some crunch. Leftover pancakes are also great with just butter and jam.
Tips from top chefs for perfect pancakes
Sarah Baldry, pastry chef and co-owner of Nàdair, Edinburgh said: “My favourite topping is whipped salted butter and maple syrup.
“You have to serve it on top of American style buttermilk pancakes, with a dollop of whipped salted butter, I like to sprinkle an extra wee bit of sea salt as well, and lashings of the best quality maple syrup you can find.”
Roy Brown, head chef at Balgove Larder, St Andrews said: “The secret to better pancakes? Resting the batter for 30-60 mins is key to ensure thicker and fluffy pancakes.
“Staked with butter, smoked back bacon and a good pour of real maple syrup - There’s nothing better this pancake day!”
Robbie Jack head chef at The Selkie, Dundee advised to take care of the batter, saying: “Don’t overwork the batter, let it rest, cook on a medium heat, and flip only once when bubbles appear.
“Use minimal fat in a non-stick pan, keep portions even, and treat the first pancake as a tester. Season the batter properly, then elevate the flavour with vanilla, citrus zest, or spices.
“For extra richness, finish the batter with melted butter, or brown it first for a deep, nutty flavour that takes pancakes from good to exceptional.”
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