Blueberry-Cornmeal Pancakes with Honey Butter

Last night when I started to make the Carrot-Ginger Soup I realized that I didn't have the potato that I needed for the soup, so since David was home, I made a quick run to the grocery store. At the grocery store I noticed pints of fresh blueberries for two dollars. I am admittedly no bargain shopper when in comes to food, but I always pay attention to the cost of berries because I love them and they are almost always fairly pricey. Aside from snacking I didn't know what I would use them for, but bought two pints anyway.

One of those pints became tonight's breakfast for dinner. Last July during blueberry season I made these blueberry-cornmeal pancakes many times, perhaps too many times. They are fantastic. Unfortunately I can't share the recipe here since it is from a copyrighted cookbook and isn't available online. It's from Pancakes And Waffles by Lou Seibert Pappas. I have possibly used this cookbook more than any other. The woman is a pancake and waffle genius and David and I love pancakes and waffles, especially waffles for breakfast on weekends.

What I think is so great about these pancakes is: 1) they have cornmeal, which adds a nice texture, 2) they have buttermilk, which I love in pancakes and waffles, and 3) the egg whites are separated out and whipped, which makes the pancakes fluffier. It is more work to whip the egg whites and it does require more dishes to be washed, but it really does result in very good pancakes (and waffles).

The honey butter is from the same cookbook. I'd say it was a failure in appearance, but delicious in flavor. Next time I try making honey butter, I'll just keep it simple and beat some honey and butter together.

Carrot-Ginger Soup with Chile Butter

Ginger again? Yes. I'm really trying to waste less food, so I'm trying to piggy-back meals with the same fresh ingredients that I don't use all the time and don't keep for a long time. Ginger root will keep for a while, but not usually as long as I go between recipes that use it.

I've made this soup quite a few times now. The original version of it appeared in the May 2010 bon appetit and is available online. Both David and I really like it and the fussy, picky, non-eating Camille finally tried it tonight and decided that she likes it too! Tomorrow, it will probably be a totally different story.

Most of the changes I made to this recipe had more to do with food waste than with flavor or preparation. The original recipe calls for 1 1/2 pounds of carrots, but my grocery store only sells carrots in 1 pound increments, so I decided to just use all the carrots and add a little extra liquid. The original recipe also specified 5 cups of vegetable broth, but the vegetable broth I like comes in a 4-cup carton, so I use 4 cups of vegetable broth and 1 1/2 cups of water (1/2 cup extra for those extra carrots). I also use low-sodium vegetable broth. Since giving birth to Adeline and having had HELLP Syndrome and being put on a low-sodium diet, I've been far more conscious of my sodium intake. I'm fine now and can eat whatever I like, but I have found that less sodium means less bloating, and still having a slight paunch being 10 weeks postpartum, less bloating is good.

Here's the recipe as I made it:

Chile Butter

1/4 cup unsalted butter at room temperature

1/4 cup (2 large) scallions, finely chopped

1/4 teaspoon dried crushed red pepper

Mix all ingredients in a small bowl. If making ahead, cover and chill. Bring to room temperature before using.

Soup

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

2 pounds carrots, peeled and cut into 1/4 inch rounds

1 large onion, chopped

1 large potato, peeled and chopped

2-3 tablespoons ginger, peeled and minced

1/4 - 1/2 teaspoon salt

4 cups low-sodium vegetable stock

1 1/2 cups water

6 tablespoons dry roasted peanuts, chopped

Melt 2 tablespoons butter in large pot over medium-high heat. Add carrots, onion, potato, and ginger. Sprinkle with 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon salt. Saute until vegetables are slightly softened but not brown, stirring often, about 10 minutes. Add the broth and water; bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer until vegetables are soft, about 20 minutes. Cool slightly. Working in batches, puree in a blender until smooth. Ladle soup into bowls. Top with a spoonful of chile butter and sprinkle with nuts. Makes about 4 meal-sized servings.

Total prep and cooking time: 1 1/2 hours

What we ate with the soup:

spinach salad with tomatoes and red peppers

multigrain bread

Pear-Ginger Muffins

I love these muffins! This recipe is from Williams-Sonoma Essentials of Baking: Recipes and Techniques for Succcessful Home Baking. It's an excellent cookbook -- I highly recommend it. The original recipe is also available on the Williams-Sonoma website.

As usual, I made a few changes to the recipe. The main change I made to this recipe is that I do not consider brown sugar to be a dry ingredient. Whenever I've added brown sugar to the dry ingredients, I seem to get some clumps, so I always add it to the moist ingredients. Here's the recipe as I made it:

1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 heaping teaspoon ground ginger

2/3 cup chopped crystallized ginger

2 large eggs

2/3 cup packed dark brown sugar

1 tablespoon peeled and grated (or minced) fresh ginger

6 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

1 cup whole milk

1 large pear, chopped

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Prepare a muffin pan by coating the muffin cups with cooking spray.

In a bowl, stir together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and ground ginger. Stir in about 1/3 cup of the chopped crystallized ginger.

In another bowl, whisk the eggs until blended. Add the brown sugar and the fresh ginger. Whisk in the melted butter and then the milk. Pour over the dry ingredients and stir with a rubber spatula just until moistened. Fold in the pear.

Spoon the batter into the prepared muffin cups, evenly dividing the batter over all 12 cups. Sprinkle the remaining crystallized ginger over the tops. Bake until a toothpick inserted into the center of a muffin comes out clean, about 15 minutes. Let cool in the pan on a wire cooling rack for 2 minutes, then remove the muffins from the pan and continue cooling on the wire rack. Serve warm. Makes 12 muffins.

Prep time (not including baking): about 30 minutes