It seems like winter is taking forever. It's March 23rd and I'm at the computer desk with a fire going in the wood stove nearby. At least it didn't snow, like the weather people were originally predicting. I made Irma's pancakes for a late breakfast and that means it won't be long before someone is going to get the idea we need to eat again. It just seems endless sometimes, people always wanting to keep eating. But, I've got that figured out...leftovers! We just have to go pick them up. My mother has some Mexican casserole she needs used up. Irma was our church choir director for many years. She had studied at the Julliard School of Music. She had definite ideas about how things were to run, and was not shy about sharing those ideas. Our church could not have made it without her and she was greatly missed after she died. (Picture to left is Irma and her husband, W.D. "Jim" Finney.)
But, I recommend the pancakes. We had a sort of controversy recently at church when we needed to have a fund raiser. Someone suggested a pancake supper. I said we need to make them homemade with Irma's recipe. Everyone else vetoed the idea and said they thought you couldn't tell the difference with a mix. Finally, I volunteered to make the pancake mix, so it wouldn't be an issue. I think I ended up using 20 lbs. of flour. Yes, I know, I should have kept better records for future planning. I did keep a sort of record on my Blackberry, which I need to transfer somewhere else before the next pancake supper, because my blackberry will probably be history by then. To make a long story short, people raved about the pancakes and some of the biggest supporters of using a bought mix were able to say they thought Irma's recipe was the best.
The "interesting" part was mixing up 5 lbs. of pancake mix at once. I don't really recommend it, but it was doable. For those who like a smaller amount of flour, try 2 cups.
Irma's Pancakes (A better title could have been Irma's Easy Perfect Pancakes)
To 2 cups flour: add 1/2 tsp salt, 1 tsp. soda, 1 TBSP. baking powder, & 2 TBSP sugar. Sift everything together before proceeding to the liquid ingredients.
Melt 2 TBSP. margarine, add to 1 cup buttermilk, & 2 beaten eggs. Add liquid ingredients to dry ingredients. Stir together. Test batter with hot skillet or griddle and make one pancake. If too thick, gradually add up to 1 more cup of buttermilk. The original recipe actually called for 2 cups buttermilk, be we don't like our pancakes so thin. Tips for a perfect pancake: I like to use a spray release to cut down on extra fats. After putting a dipper of batter on skillet/griddle, allow bubbles to rise and "pop" around the pancake, this will insure your pancake will get done and not have any moist, undone spots. Flip and cook on the other side.
The beauty of this recipe is you can make it the day before and store in the refrigerator, so if you're in a hurry you don't have to get around so early to mix it up. My mother, who got the recipe from Irma, swears that it keeps for a week - but I would have my doubts about keeping it that long. However, I did keep some to use at Wed. Kids 5 days later. I did freshen it up with just a little more homemade mix, a couple of eggs and some milk and the kids thought the pancakes were WONDERFUL. As I didn't have an abundance of containers with snap on lids, I had what I thought was a rather genius moment. I bought the 97 cent Easter baskets with snap on lids. They were just about perfect, although I was careful not to fill them to the top, I don't think the handle could have born the weight.
Until later,Elaine, aka, the Red Dirt Cowgirl
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| Irma & W.D. Jim Finney |
But, I recommend the pancakes. We had a sort of controversy recently at church when we needed to have a fund raiser. Someone suggested a pancake supper. I said we need to make them homemade with Irma's recipe. Everyone else vetoed the idea and said they thought you couldn't tell the difference with a mix. Finally, I volunteered to make the pancake mix, so it wouldn't be an issue. I think I ended up using 20 lbs. of flour. Yes, I know, I should have kept better records for future planning. I did keep a sort of record on my Blackberry, which I need to transfer somewhere else before the next pancake supper, because my blackberry will probably be history by then. To make a long story short, people raved about the pancakes and some of the biggest supporters of using a bought mix were able to say they thought Irma's recipe was the best.
The "interesting" part was mixing up 5 lbs. of pancake mix at once. I don't really recommend it, but it was doable. For those who like a smaller amount of flour, try 2 cups.
Irma's Pancakes (A better title could have been Irma's Easy Perfect Pancakes)
To 2 cups flour: add 1/2 tsp salt, 1 tsp. soda, 1 TBSP. baking powder, & 2 TBSP sugar. Sift everything together before proceeding to the liquid ingredients.
Melt 2 TBSP. margarine, add to 1 cup buttermilk, & 2 beaten eggs. Add liquid ingredients to dry ingredients. Stir together. Test batter with hot skillet or griddle and make one pancake. If too thick, gradually add up to 1 more cup of buttermilk. The original recipe actually called for 2 cups buttermilk, be we don't like our pancakes so thin. Tips for a perfect pancake: I like to use a spray release to cut down on extra fats. After putting a dipper of batter on skillet/griddle, allow bubbles to rise and "pop" around the pancake, this will insure your pancake will get done and not have any moist, undone spots. Flip and cook on the other side.
The beauty of this recipe is you can make it the day before and store in the refrigerator, so if you're in a hurry you don't have to get around so early to mix it up. My mother, who got the recipe from Irma, swears that it keeps for a week - but I would have my doubts about keeping it that long. However, I did keep some to use at Wed. Kids 5 days later. I did freshen it up with just a little more homemade mix, a couple of eggs and some milk and the kids thought the pancakes were WONDERFUL. As I didn't have an abundance of containers with snap on lids, I had what I thought was a rather genius moment. I bought the 97 cent Easter baskets with snap on lids. They were just about perfect, although I was careful not to fill them to the top, I don't think the handle could have born the weight.
Until later,Elaine, aka, the Red Dirt Cowgirl
