Snow Days, Breakfast and a Lazy Day
Last week's snow days were truly a study in laziness. In between peeping through the window at the flurry of flakes, napping, and watching tv I did a-b-s-o-l-u-t-e-l-y nothing. The snow started Tuesday, and stopped some time on Wednesday. Lakeshore Drive was shut down, people were stranded, downtown closed-it was like something out of a movie. I love snow and this is the first real snowfall we've had in a long time. So far, before this storm, we had some precipitation, but it was gone within two days. This time, however, I got a message from work on Tuesday that we would be closed and I didn't have to go in tomorrow.
I woke up Wednesday morning excited like a kid on a snow day from school. I got bundled up, grabbed my camera, and headed outside.
It was truly a winter wonderland. The streets were clear, and people were walking in them since many sidewalks were still covered and the cars were buried. I didn't know what to do first! I wanted to play in it, offer to help shovel, take photos, run around like a kid hyped up on sugar! On my way to the lake, I passed a man carrying his Nikon and we sheepishly grinned at each other, knowing that we could be inside like the Sensible People, but here we were, away from the comfort of our homes, snapping shots because we could.
When I finally got out to the lake it was amazing! I mean, there was no lake! It was all ice and mounds of snow like in that movie with Dennis Quaid, The Day After Tomorrow and the few of us that braved the winds and climb piles of shoveled and plowed snow stared in amazement. The snow blew around like plumes of smoke which added an element of danger to the expedition. I'm posting the pics on Flickr if you want to take a look.
Fast forward to today, another day off. After waking from a nightmare about my last chef-we're talking about horror far worse than being chased by a maniacal murderer!-I woke up to a pretty sunny morning. Hungry, and with a full day ahead of me, I pondered what to eat. I am not much for cereal, and I really didn't want to go out to the Original Pancake House. My friend sent me a text about waffles and omlettes, and I figured I would make pancakes, which I haven't done in such a long time I don't even know where my go-to recipe is (probably on my sad Mac that needs a new hard drive).
After a quick search I decided to use this recipe on the Joy of Baking site, adding 1 tsp. of finely ground flax seeds, and using a whole grain all-purpose flour. Topped with real maple syrup and chased with orange juice, I'm having a great day off so far.
I think today will be a lazy one for me. I'm going to make a chocolate tart dough and bake off my Nutella custard. I know I'm late for World Nutella Day-it was February 5-but I was snowed in and loving it. I'll be indulging in some really crappy tv, including my current addiction, LMN movies. Bolstered by these pancakes, if it isn't too cold, I'll venture out and take more shots. Tuesday and Wednesday the high is supposed to be 7º, not factoring in the wind chill.
Oh, and if you want to know what kind of pan I used, it is a well-seasoned cast-iron skillet. I used just enough oil to thinly coat the bottom.
I woke up Wednesday morning excited like a kid on a snow day from school. I got bundled up, grabbed my camera, and headed outside.
It was truly a winter wonderland. The streets were clear, and people were walking in them since many sidewalks were still covered and the cars were buried. I didn't know what to do first! I wanted to play in it, offer to help shovel, take photos, run around like a kid hyped up on sugar! On my way to the lake, I passed a man carrying his Nikon and we sheepishly grinned at each other, knowing that we could be inside like the Sensible People, but here we were, away from the comfort of our homes, snapping shots because we could.
When I finally got out to the lake it was amazing! I mean, there was no lake! It was all ice and mounds of snow like in that movie with Dennis Quaid, The Day After Tomorrow and the few of us that braved the winds and climb piles of shoveled and plowed snow stared in amazement. The snow blew around like plumes of smoke which added an element of danger to the expedition. I'm posting the pics on Flickr if you want to take a look.
Lumpy batter? Good, it should have small lumps. Smooth batter=tough pancakes!
Fast forward to today, another day off. After waking from a nightmare about my last chef-we're talking about horror far worse than being chased by a maniacal murderer!-I woke up to a pretty sunny morning. Hungry, and with a full day ahead of me, I pondered what to eat. I am not much for cereal, and I really didn't want to go out to the Original Pancake House. My friend sent me a text about waffles and omlettes, and I figured I would make pancakes, which I haven't done in such a long time I don't even know where my go-to recipe is (probably on my sad Mac that needs a new hard drive).
Use a medium flame, not too high, you'll burn your flapjacks; too low and they won't rise well.
After a quick search I decided to use this recipe on the Joy of Baking site, adding 1 tsp. of finely ground flax seeds, and using a whole grain all-purpose flour. Topped with real maple syrup and chased with orange juice, I'm having a great day off so far.
Ready to eat!
You can freeze leftover pancakes, put parchment between, stack, wrap and keep in freezer to reheat during the week!
I think today will be a lazy one for me. I'm going to make a chocolate tart dough and bake off my Nutella custard. I know I'm late for World Nutella Day-it was February 5-but I was snowed in and loving it. I'll be indulging in some really crappy tv, including my current addiction, LMN movies. Bolstered by these pancakes, if it isn't too cold, I'll venture out and take more shots. Tuesday and Wednesday the high is supposed to be 7º, not factoring in the wind chill.
Oh, and if you want to know what kind of pan I used, it is a well-seasoned cast-iron skillet. I used just enough oil to thinly coat the bottom.
Comments