A New Flip On Pancakes

Pancakes are supposed to be the bland foils for butter and maple syrup. They should take a back step and let the other two flavors shine. However in one recipe this breakfast staple becomes the star.It even is moved to the dessert tray thanks to a punch of taste.

The flavorful flapjacks was the subjects of yesterday's A Good Appetite column in the New York Times Dining section. Melissa Clark, the author, experimented with her usual pancake recipe. Her quest for something different actually started with her having a jar of rhubarb compote. She had paired it with the everyday recipe, yet it just didn't make the fruit's flavor pop. She then tried adding other ingredients which helped it immensely.

The extra oomph came from Greek yogurt and honey along with lemon zest and extra butter. This created a cake like quality to the texture along with a rich flavor. She then added poppy seeds for crunch and a hint of extra flavor too. Before serving she smeared more Greek yogurt and the rhubarb compote on them.It worked. These pancakes also would make an elegant dessert for dinner , almost like a thick crepe Suzette. In fact omit the poppy seeds and you could sub these in for that famed French sweet. Another variation  is adding lemon curd and layering the pancakes for a different kind of tea sandwich too.

Pancakes needn't be so boring. Add some Greek yogurt as well as melted butter to enrich the batter. It will give a new kind of flapjack, perfect for breakfast, even better as a new kind of dessert.