Cranberry and Almond Granola

I've been on this 1500 calorie a day thing for a few weeks now, and plan on keeping it up for a long time so I've been trying to find ways to manage my snacking - which really is the biggest problem area for me! Some of the stuff I've done is swapped out all milk chocolate for dark chocolate only (lucky I already love dark choc!), cutting out cakes and cookies that I don't know for a fact are totally worth the calories (you know what I mean? Only the great stuff!), and no sweet, flavoured or sugary drinks. 

Last night I decided to make some granola for my night time TV snacking (in our house it's Netflix and Snack) and I have to say I'm really pleased with this specific mix and baking times. The last time I made my own granola it was a bit too crunchy and I think I burnt some of the components. 

Without further ado, here's the recipe for my Cranberry and Almond Granola:

Yield: 3 cups granola

Ingredients:

• 1/4 cup pure maple syrup
• 3 tbsp melted coconut oil 
• 2 tbsp honey 
• 1 + 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract 
• 1/4 tsp sea salt 
• 1 + 1/2 cup sliced almonds 
• 2 cups old fashioned rolled oats
• 1 cup dried cranberries*

Method:

1. Preheat the oven to 150°C/fan and line a baking tray with parchment paper
2. In a large bowl, whisk the maple syrup, coconut oil, honey, vanilla and salt until thoroughly mixed 
3. Add the rolled oats and sliced almonds and stir to coat everything in the maple mixture
4. Spread the mix out on the prepared baking tray (I just used a standard cookie sheet) and pop in the oven for 20 minutes. Remove from the oven at the 20 minute mark and toss the granola with a forked spatula to "turn" them in a way, and then put it back in the oven for 5 - 10 minutes*
5. Remove from the oven and allow to cool for about 10 minutes before adding the cranberries, use a fork or spatula to stir so that it mixes well. Then store in an airtight jar or container and it should keep for 2 weeks max 

*Notes:

• You can use other dried berries of your own preference, I've also done this with chocolate chips and coconut flakes!
• For step 4, if you feel after 20 minutes that it has toasted to your preferred crispiness, then stop there.

Pancakes!

I woke up on Saturday to the sound of birds chirping outside my bedroom window, the scent of fresh flowers by my bedside (heh, thanks awesome Bath & Bodyworks scent diffuser), and the sound of a Disney princess trill when I realised that I'm on holiday! It's the end of the year and I get to totally just chill!

So what does one do when one is faced with endless hours of doing absolutely nothing? Why, make pancakes, of course! Nothing fancy needed, just your basic pancakes that takes 5 minutes to whip up. This is one of those breakfast recipes that will have you sitting at the table in no more than half an hour from when you drag yourself out of bed.

Just Pancakes
Makes enough for 3 - 4 people (depending on how high you stack'em)

• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/4 cup caster sugar
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1 large egg
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 cup milk 

Mix all the dry ingredients in a bowl, whisk in the egg and vanilla, then gradually whisk in the milk. Let the mixture sit for about 5 minutes while you heat up a large skillet or griddle.
Brush some butter over the surface of the heated pan and pour the batter out in 1/4 cup batches for each pancake. When the bubbles on the top have popped and left behind little holes in the pancake, flip it over and leave it for about 1 minute to just brown the other side.
Serve with butter, maple syrup and fresh fruits if you have any.
Enjoy!

Baked Egg in Avocado

I've been absent from the blog these past couple of months; much has been happening and I have no excuse. I've just started a new job, and between learning the ropes and the daily commute to and from work, I'm left with little time to tinker in the kitchen. One thing I've learnt about maintaining a recipe blog while also holding a full time corporate job is the importance of self discipline. I try to cook or bake at least once a week, but in these past few months, it's just been easier to go back to the tried and tested.

But I had a little time this weekend, as it's the first time in three years I'm missing the annual ski trip to Switzerland (crying inside as my siblings send me pictures and updates). Also, I had a craving for avocado and guacamole. This morning, I whipped up a simple baked egg dish (ever since trying out Shakshuka, I can't get enough of baked eggs in my breakfast) for my breakfast, following a rather heavy Valentines Day food fest (dim sum, food trucks, briyani rice, AND McDonalds, oh my). So without further ado, let me share this easy and yummy recipe for two.

Baked Egg in Avocado with fresh Guacamole
Serves 2

• 1 avocado, halved
• 2 fresh eggs
• 1/2 tomato, chopped 
• 2 tbsp diced white onion
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 1 lime 
• Few leaves of coriander, to garnish
• Salt and pepper to season

1. Preheat the oven to 230°C/fan-forced
2. Halve your avocado and scoop out enough of the flesh to create wells large enough for your eggs, then hold the avocado halves in place on crumpled foil on a baking tray
3. Crack an egg into each half, don't freak out if some spills over, and sprinkle with a pinch of sea salt. Bake for 15-20 minutes
4. Meanwhile, in a small bowl, mix the avocado flesh, chopped tomato, diced onion, coriander, and juice of 1 lime. Sprinkle with sea salt to season
5. Serve the avocado halves with a generous topping or side of guacamole, Greek yoghurt and a piece of toast 

Tomato Relish

"In the orchestra of a great kitchen, the sauce chef is a soloist." so said the great French restaurateur, Fernand Point. What is life without sauce? What are chips without ketchup (and salt and vinegar)? Or hotdogs without mustard? Or god forbid, tagliatelle with no bolognese?!

Wow, it's midnight, and as I typed that last bit my tummy just started rumbling. This is why people should go to sleep 2 hours after dinner; midnight snacks are dangerous.

Anyway, you may ask "What's with the rant about sauce, Nabs?" I'll tell you. I just got back from a short (*sniff*) trip to Melbourne, where every brunch meal I had (I had brunch like every day I was there, oh living the dream) came with a small bowl or a side serving of tomato relish. Le boyfriend informed me that in Australia, people take tomato relish very seriously. Like, don't even mess man, don't go and call it ketchup (omg, Nabs, you friggin peasant fool, you did not just say ketchup!) or ask for ketchup from a bottle, cos tomato relish is the shizz!

I have to admit... as much as a Heinz hoarder as I am - my mum will be the first to tell you how particular I am about always having Heinz ketchup in the pantry - I kind of have to agree with the Aussies. I loved it, every restaurant we went to had it on the dish, but every single one was different. Some added basil, one place had capers, another had roasted tomatoes, and I'm pretty sure one place included garlic while the others didn't seem to.

So the night I arrived in Malaysia, incredibly sad that I had to leave Melbourne at all (I'm coming back for you baby, don't go nowhere), I resolved to recreate the brunches I had there in my own kitchen. Gosh darnit, I will pay the extra 3 bucks for a carton of fresh Australian milk, and I will learn to poach an egg properly, yes, sure I'll make my own sourdough bread too... but most importantly, and here's the thing that ties the whole thing together: I will make my own tomato relish.

Now I have 5 jars of the stuff in the refrigerator, and you know what? I will have that midnight snack (see paragraph 2 in the mad midnight blog rant), and I will slather a spoonful of relish on a piece of toasted sourdough.

Tomato relish is easy enough to make, it just takes a bit of prep time. Or the recipe I went with took a bit more prep time. Remember, there are many different recipes for tomato relish available over the internet, and this was just the one I decided to go with for my first foray into this world. I really like the result, but I'm open to adjusting the recipe to suit my tastes (needs a low peppery note I think), so don't take this as the only recipe for it. If anyone has a personal favourite, please do share, I'd love to give it a try in my search for the go-to recipe.

Tomato relish
Makes 4-5 jars

• 1.5kg diced tomatoes
• 3 medium yellow onions, diced
• 1/4 cup sea salt flakes
• 500ml white wine vinegar
• 500g light brown sugar
• 1 1/2 tsp dried chilli flakes
• 2 tbsp all purpose flour
• 1 tbsp mustard powder
• 1 tbsp curry powder

1. Place the diced tomatoes and onions in a large bowl, cover in salt and let it sit overnight. The next morning, remove access water and rinse the tomatoes and onions with water (so it's not too salty) then move it into a deep heavy bottomed pot over a medium heat, add 250ml of the white wine vinegar (or any light vinegar you have on hand really). 
2. Allow it to boil then bring the fire down to a low heat and leave it to simmer for 30 minutes. Then add the sugar and chilli flakes and simmer for an hour. 
3. Skim the top for access water and remove it (I don't like my relish too runny). In a separate bowl, combine the remaining 250ml vinegar with the flour, mustard powder, and curry powder. Add to the pot and stir for 3-4 minutes until the mixture has thickened. Pour the hot relish into prepared jars and allow to cool before covering with a lid and removing to a fridge. This can keep for 6 months in the refrigerator. 

Anyway, serve it with whatever you like, have it on a sandwich, with eggs, with a burger... for me, I decided to finally tackle that big fear of mine: poached eggs. It took me 7 tries over 3 days to finally get it right, and so despite the fact that I was heading out to see my friends for brunch in an hour, I put that poached egg on a slice of toast and smoked salmon, dumped a spoonful of relish on it and enjoyed that little sucker. Then I brought a jar of relish to brunch for my friends so they wouldn't have to suffer ketchup lol. Let me see if I can master poached eggs again and again... if I do, I'll post a video.

Loads of love,
Nabsy

Strawberries & Cream muffins

It's past midnight, I retreated into my room after watching the late night news with my parents more than two hours ago. I've taken a shower, changed into my "Proud to be well adjusted" t-shirt I got from a chiropractor's convention in Las Vegas (long story, not for this entry) and sleep shorts, I have read a chapter of Crazy Rich Asians (get a copy if you haven't already)... and I can't sleep.

I keep thinking. My brain won't quit talking to me. The images keep speeding at me. Voices, memories, thoughts, hypothetical conversations with myself, questions I don't want answered, recipes, more recipes, cake decorating ideas, and oh my God, before you know it... I'm in the kitchen again, I've put the apron on (I only ever wear an apron when I'm baking in my pajamas, cos I don't want to get sugar in my bed), the oven is preheating and I'm flipping through my "Keep Calm and Carry On" red notebook of recipes.

Late night baking. It's surprisingly quite a normal thing to do for young professionals who love baking. It's also an excellent method of quieting the mind to ready yourself for bed. I've talked about the benefits of baking in approaching anxiety issues before... this time it's no different. I can't sleep cos I'm afraid, so I bake and worry about getting the measurements just-so instead of thinking about all the stuff I can't change.

Late last night, I decided to make breakfast muffins as I wanted to wake up to something positive. After a quick look in the fridge, I decided the strawberries I bought a few days ago would definitely go bad in the next two days, so the recipe just HAD to be strawberry based. No bananas, or else I would have made brown butter strawberry banana bread (an old late night baking favourite of mine), but the pantry told me I have an excess of white chocolate. Then I knew just the muffin I wanted to have my morning latte with.

Strawberries & Cream Muffins
Yield: 12 5.5oz muffins

• 2 cups all purpose flour
• 1 tbsp baking soda
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/2 cup caster sugar
• 2 cups whipping cream
• 1/4 cup sunflower oil
• 1 large egg
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 1/2 cup chopped strawberries
• 1 cup white chocolate chips

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C and prepare your muffin tin or muffin liners (I used 5.5oz standalone cups)
2. Combine the flour, baking soda, salt, and sugar in a medium bowl and set aside
3. In a smaller bowl, whisk the cream, oil, egg, and vanilla until incorporated
4. Pour the cream mixture over the flour mixture and stir with a spatula until thoroughly combined
5. Add the chopped strawberries and white chocolate chips (leaving roughly 1/4 cup of each to sprinkle on top of the muffins later) and fold into the batter
6. Scoop up the batter into the prepared muffin tins or liners, top each muffin with some more strawberries and white chocolate chips, then transfer into the preheated oven. Reduce the heat to 165°C/fan-forced and bake for 20-25 minutes or until the tops appear golden and a skewer inserted at an angle comes out clean (depending on the size of your muffins). Remove from the oven and allow to cool in the pan for 5 minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool completely

Clean up, wash up, go to sleep, then wake up 4 hours later when your alarm clock goes off and enjoy a fresh muffin, reheated quickly if you like, and a cup of brewed coffee. This happens to me at least twice a week, nobody in my house ever says anything about it, but they'll quietly watch me over breakfast as I set up my little studio and snap pictures of my late night baking spoils.

Cranberry Orange Scones

The first thing I ever baked without mum's supervision, at the age of 18, were scones. Up until that point in my life I never took an interest to baking, but for some reason I was drawn to a picture of scones in one of my mum's cooking magazines and I just wanted to try it. For about a year when I was in college, I made a variety of scones (cheddar and apple scones, buttermilk scones, currant scones, low fat raisin scones, etc.) for various reasons (dad's Monday morning sales meetings, mum's coffee mornings, study group, etc.) but never thought to make anything else.

I don't know why I started baking obsessively, or when exactly I started identifying myself as a baker, but at the end of the day all that matters is that baking makes me happy. Friends often ask if I plan on opening a bakery some day and to be perfectly honest with you, dear readers, I don't. I have no desire to own a bakery and work in the kitchen from 5 in the morning (or earlier) on the same recipes over and over again for the rest of my life. I enjoy baking, I love trying new recipes, and I love taking on the challenges of the occasional order for custom cakes.

Here's one of the things I love about my hobby: fresh, home made afternoon snacks with my flavours of choice. Today I'm going to share this recipe for American scones with you, sweet and fresh with a great hit of citrusy goodness to satisfy the mid-afternoon snack craving. Check out this article on Slate.com for an explanation of British vs American scones. I like both types depending on the occasion; proper plain British scones for tea, and American scones when I'm feeling generous with myself (sugar!).

Cranberry Orange Scones
For the scones:

• 2 cups all purpose flour
• 1 tbsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 3 tbsp caster sugar (plus about 1 tbsp for sprinkling on top later)
• 5 tbsp butter, cold and cubed
• 1 1/2 cup fresh cranberries, roughly chopped
• 1 cup heavy cream
• Zest of 1 orange
• 1/2 tsp vanilla extract

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C, line a baking sheet with parchment paper
2. I did it the lazy way and used my food processor, so put the flour, baking powder, salt, and sugar in the food processor and whizz to combine. Drop in the cubed butter and pulse until it comes together (about 1 round of singing Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star in your head). Transfer the mixture into a bowl and hand stir in the heavy cream, orange zest, and vanilla. Then fold in the cranberries. Once the dough has come together, transfer it to a well floured surface and knead a couple of times. Flatten the dough into a round disc (roughly 9" in diameter, around 3/4" thick) and let it rest for 10 minutes. Then move it to your prepared baking sheet and using a butter knife, just cut across the disc to form 8 wedges. Bake for 18-25 minutes or until it turns golden. Remove from the oven to cool 

Orange glaze

• 1 cup confectioners sugar
• 1 tbsp freshly squeezed orange juice

1. While the scones are cooling on a wire rack, stir the sugar and orange juice together in a bowl. Once the scones have cooled almost completely, drizzle the glaze over the tops and let it harden before serving

If you don't have a food processor, simple combine the flour, baking powder, salt and sugar in a mixing bowl. Then crumble the butter in with the flour mix with your fingertips until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Continue as above instructions with the rest of the ingredients.

Blueberry Coconut Breakfast Biscuits

I made a massive booboo last week.Was supposed to go to Bangkok with a girlfriend for her hen weekend but a day before the trip I realised that my passport had expired. Completely idiotic, classic Nabs. So I found myself with a free weekend instead of hitting the spas and cheap shopping centres in Bangkok. It was the first weekend I've had to myself in a very long time, and I chose to spend most of it wining and dining with good friends then took Sunday to try one of the recipes I've put on my "to bake" list.

That list is fast growing, by the way, as I find time has become a scarce resource in the past few months. After ramen, churros, sangria, milky coffees, and lord only knows what else I put in my body on Friday and Saturday, I decided to try one of the healthier options on the list. The organic, high fibre, gluten free Blueberry Coconut Breakfast Biscuits.

They turned out delicious, but not as crunchy as I had hoped. I might need to keep them in the oven for an extra 5 minutes to truly get it crispy and golden.

Blueberry Coconut Breakfast Biscuits

Recipe from kumquatblog.com 

• 1 1/2 cup rolled oats
• 1 cup unsweetened coconut flakes
• 1 tbsp golden flax seeds
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 3/4 cup roughly chopped pecans
• 1/2 cup dried blueberries
• 3 very ripe bananas, mashed
• 1/4 cup coconut oil, warmed until liquid
• 1 tbsp agave nectar
• 1 tsp vanilla extract

1. Line a shallow muffin pan with butter, preheat the oven to 180C 
2. In a large mixing bowl mix the oats, coconut flakes, flaxmeal, salt, pecans, and blueberries. Stir in the bananas, coconut oil, agave nectar, and vanilla until combined
3. Divide the mixture into the muffin pan (around 1-2 tbsp each) and bake for 25 minutes or until golden, cool in the pan

Domesticated Day In

On a typical day after a massive rave party, one would drag oneself out of bed around 2 in the afternoon, cursing the daylight and shouting for a nonexistent manservant to fetch one's cup of coffee and a handful of Advil. Last Saturday, however, after an amazing night at the Guetta gig (I never know what to call these things, concerts? Shows? Performances?) Alena and I woke up to watch Disney's Sleeping Beauty while Hodor (lol) tried his hand at the most amazing focaccia bread. 

A lot of Disney-esque (I'd say -esque as I doubt we actually managed any semblance of real singing) trilling and a properly risen dough later, Al and I started preparing the ingredients for our brunch. Despite the fact that it was well into the afternoon at that point, we had yet to change out of our sleepwear and thus still counted it as brunch.

You may recall me mentioning that on a recent trip to Singapore, we tried a Tunisian breakfast dish at a very popular breakfast joint called Wild Honey, and having seen various renditions of the recipe online over the past couple of weeks, we decided to give it a proper go. The recipe is easy enough to whip up in less than 20 minutes, and it's such a full meal that I guarantee it will keep you stuffed until dinner time (though it may have something to do with the fact that we had our "brunch" at 3 in the evening).

World's Most Attractive Siblings

With no further ado, let me share this recipe with you:

Shakshuka (North African skillet breakfast dish) 

• 3 tbsp olive oil
• 1 medium red onion, sliced thinly
• 3 garlic cloves, crushed/chopped finely
• 1 red pepper, sliced
• 1 yellow pepper, sliced
• Salt
• Cracked black pepper
• 1 tsp cumin
• 1 tsp sugar
• 3/4 tsp paprika/cayenne pepper
• 1/2 tsp chili flakes
• 1/2 cup diced sausage/chorizo (optional)
• 2 cans diced tomatoes (no added salt), drained of the water
• 1/3 cup white wine/water
• 4 large eggs
• 1/3 cup crumbled feta cheese
• Fresh basil/parsley

1. First of all, preheat the oven to 200C, and heat your cast iron skillet (or if you don't own one, just use a basic pan and switch to an oven safe casserole dish later) on a medium fire. Pour in the olive oil, and cook the onion until soft and aromatic.
2. Toss in the peppers and garlic and cook until softened, for about 5 minutes
3. Add the spices and sausages and cook for a bit more
4. Pour in the tomatoes and wine/water and lower the heat to a small flame. Allow the mixture to simmer for around 20 minutes (this is where you take your shower), until all that delicious flavour has soaked through
5. Take the skillet off the heat, crack the eggs over the top, sprinkling each egg with salt and pepper then crumble the feta over. Pop the skillet into the oven until the eggs are baked. I prefer my eggs NOT runny, so I leave mine in for around 8 minutes, however if you're looking for the runny egg yolk, leave it for no more than 7 minutes
6. Serve with your bread of choice (seriously, try that focaccia recipe) and a garnish of fresh torn basil leaves or parsley

Enjoy!
Lots of love, The Breakfast Club

Kedgeree with Smoked Salmon and Golf

If you've been listening to the Ryder Cup going on in the background for the past few days as I have, you would have sometimes found yourself mimicking the Scottish accent of the commentator. Despite your wild protestations that you don't engage in such behaviour, I know you did... even if you did it under your breath. 

Last night, while watching yet another bout of Team Europe wiping the green with Team USA (I really couldn't care less about golf), and going on about Scottish weather and Scottish food (this was my version of golf commentary in a Scottish accent), I had the sudden urge to make kedgeree! 

I know there are disputes in the origin of kedgeree; is it Indian brought to Scotland, or is it Scottish brought to India? It doesn't matter to me, as I am part Indian and Scottish! Woohoo! It makes me wonder then, why I've never made kedgeree before... maybe because the ingredients list is slightly longer than what I usually like (I'm fine with 5 ingredients, tqvm), but then I had a good look at it again, it really is quite simple! 

So here we go, quick weeknight kedgeree that can be made ahead for your breakfast (oh baby, trust me, this stuff only gets better after refrigeration) or lunch, or brunch the next day: 

Kedgeree with smoked salmon flakes

• 1 tray of quail eggs (about 10 eggs if you don't pop two in your mouth first), boiled
• 4 cups cooked long grain white rice
• 250g smoked fish (you can use salmon if you can't find smoked haddock) 
• 4 tbsp unsalted butter
• 1 tbsp fresh grated ginger (be careful, I grated half my knuckle off before I got to the ginger)
• 1 yellow onion, diced finely
• 1 clove garlic, finely chopped
• 2 tbsp curry powder
• 1 tbsp mustard seeds
• 1 fresh chili, sliced finely
• 2 tomatoes, chopped
• 2 sprigs spring onion, chopped
• Juice of 1 lemon
• A handful of chopped parsley
• Salt and pepper to season
• Natural yoghurt, to serve

1. Heat your pan, pop the butter in and let it just melt and heat before adding the ginger, onion, and garlic
2. Allow this to soften until just yellow, don't burn, and then add the curry powder, mustard seeds and chili. Let this cook until the curry smell rises and you see the oil rise to the top of the curry mix (this is when you know the curry powder has cooked, otherwise the flavour will be flat)
3. Then toss in the tomatoes, spring onion, and pour in the lemon juice. Heat the mixture through, make sure the flavours get all mixed up
4. Add the cooked rice and smoked fish, gently folding it all in so the fish flakes as you go, then once it's all mixed, stir in the parsley (or cilantro is better if you can find some)
5. Season to taste, you can choose to add more lemon juice to your liking
6. Garnish with chopped parsley and boiled eggs, and serve with a dollop of natural yoghurt on the side

Pancakes!

I was surfing the interwebz last weekend and found this incredible picture of a recipe by Aleta. It may have been approaching midnight, but as soon as I saw it I wanted breakfast, and I wanted it then!

So it's damn good luck on my part that I have a 16-year-old brother and cousin in the house, cos they're always up for food no matter how odd the craving or combination. Thanks Mark and Isaac, love you smelly boys!

With a quick mental check of my pantry, I was assured that I had all the ingredients on hand. Yes, even blueberries (albeit from a tin, as opposed to Aleta's suggested frozen berries), which proves my point on grocery shopping: buy things you may not even know you need because they will come in handy sooner or later.

In this case, it was later rather than sooner. Considering I've had tin sitting in my pantry for a few months now!

I love how they turned out! I have absolutely NOOOO issue with having ultra blue pancakes. They're CRAZY awesome to look at while I ate them. My brother found them a bit shocking, though, and he gently nudged them away with his fork as he dug into the conservatively coloured pancakes. Coward.

The recipe is incredibly easy, and you should be able to whip it up in less than 10 minutes. Now, the hard part is flipping the pancakes... and watching them disappear out the corner of your eyes as the aforementioned 16-year-olds vanish them from the plate with surprising speed. Damn their metabolism!

Ze Recipe:

• 1 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 4 tbsp sugar
• 1 3/4 tbsp baking powder
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 1/2 cup milk
• 3 tbsp melted butter
• 2 eggs
• 1 tsp vanilla extract (as always, triple this amount for extra nomness)
• Extra ingredients: 3/4 cup blueberries (pressed, with juice), 1 cup shredded cheddar, 3/4 sliced smashed bananas, etc

1. Whisk the dry ingredients (flour, sugar, baking powder, salt) in a bowl
2. Whisk the milk, butter, eggs and vanilla extract in a separate bowl, then add to the dry mix
3. Combine ingredients until integrated, then stir in your extra ingredients
4. Let the mix sit for 10-15 minutes or so while you heat your pan
5. Once the pan is hot (go on medium heat, please! Don't burn these beauties), drop 1/4 cup of batter for each cake. Flip when the bubbles stop and it's toasty on the bottom. Then take them off when they're equally toasty on the other side.

Aleta's tip is to use a "smidge" of shortening instead of butter to produce a slightly crispy pancake and she's right!

xx Nabs