Raspberry Ricotta Pancakes

There's something about pancakes that have ricotta cheese in them that are just so delicious. Almost every recipe I've seen for ricotta pancakes uses whipped egg whites to lighten up the ricotta. What you end up with is a tiny little souffle. These are not meant to be thin pancakes like I usually like them. Ricotta + egg whites = fluffy. My housemate Ashelen and I saw this recipe in Glamour Magazine's May 2011 issue. They're called "Love You" Pancakes and they are so yummy. Lucky for us, the day we decided to make them it was beautiful out so we enjoyed them on our patio with a warm cup of coffee and a little music.

Fluffy heaven.

Raspberry ricotta yum!

These would be great for mother's day, easter morning, or just about any other special day. The great thing about these is that you can practically substitute any other fruit for the raspberries, just cut it up into small chunks. I love maple syrups with fresh berries or chunk fruit preserves mixed in which is why I chose to add some leftover raspberries to the syrup. Always heat your maple syrup up. Nothing can ruin a hot pancake, waffle, or piece of french toast more than cold thick syrup.

Happy Spring!

I hope you enjoy these as much as we did!

Raspberry Ricotta “Love You’ Pancakes

Taken from Glamour Magazine- May 2011

Serves 4

1 lemon

1 pint plus ½ cup fresh or thawed frozen raspberries

1/3 cup plus 1tbsp. granulated sugar

2 cups AP flour

¼ tsp salt

1 tbsp. baking powder (not a typo, yes a tablespoon)

1 cup low fat or part skim ricotta

1 ¼ cup low fat milk

4 large eggs, separated

1 cup real maple syrup

Preheat oven to 215 degrees.

1.       1. Working over a bowl, use a grater or microplane if you have one, to zest the lemon. Be careful not to remove any of the bitter white pith.

2.       2. Add the raspberries to the bowl containing the lemon zest. Stir the 1/3 cup sugar, gently crushing the raspberries with a spoon. Don’t crush too much, you want chunks of raspberries. Set bowl aside.

3.       3. In a medium bowl, combine the dry ingredients (flour, salt, 1 tbsp sugar, and baking powder). In a third bowl, beat the ricotta cheese with the milk and egg yolks. Add the flour mixture to the ricotta mixture and stir until just combined. Let it rest for 10 minutes.

4.       4, Meanwhile, place your maple syrup, ½ cup berries and a squeeze of lemon juice in a small sauce pan. Simmer over low heat until you are ready to eat.

5.       5. Beat the egg whites with a handheld mixer until they hold soft peaks. Next, gently fold the raspberries with their juices into the ricotta batter. Lastly, fold in the egg whites. Little clumps of white are perfectly fine- you don’t want to over mix or your pancakes will be tough and not fluffy.

6.     6.   Heat a large nonstick skillet or griddle pan over a moderately low heat. Melt a little butter or spray a cooking spray in the center of the skillet. Line a baking sheet with a silpat, tin foil, or parchment paper.

7.       7. Spoon the batter directly over the melted butter or oil.

8.     8.  Cook each pancake until the bottom is golden brown and the bubbles on the surface begin to break, about 3 minutes. Using a spatula, quickly flip the pancakes and cook on the other side about 2 minutes or until golden.

9.      9.  When each pancake is done, place it on the baking sheet and put it in the oven. This will keep all of your pancakes warm as you cook the rest of the batter. This way you will be able to eat with all of your hungry guests all together.