Want to try grandma's pancakes?

With the celebration of Mother’s Day, I figured more may want to try this family heirloom, a recipe for Grandma’s Pancakes. The pancakes are just pancakes but the way they were made and what is added to them made these pancakes so important to my family and special friends. 

One side of my family was comprised of early settlers from the US who literally followed American explorer Daniel Boone westward and settled beyond the Cumberland Gap in the mountains of Kentucky. Every year, we would travel up to eight hours to Leslie County to an area known as Big Rock, Kentucky, to visit the sweetest family member I have ever had, Grandma Katherine Baker.  

 It was often an exhausting trip, and the next morning after a restful sleep, a wonderful aroma would emanate from the kitchen. We would smell freshly made pancakes, and not just ordinary pancakes, but skillet size giant pancakes. 

 It became a tradition to bring friends and we would love to watch their faces light up when my grandmother would turn around from the oven with a big smile and reveal these cast iron skillet size pancakes and plop two of them on their plates and lovingly say, “Eat up now, you need your energy.”

 This was after she took homegrown strawberries from her own garden and converted them into a silky strawberry syrup and then added three giant tablespoons of peanut butter onto the giant pancakes.  

 The strawberry syrup was absorbed into the pancakes and the peanut butter tasted so good. But what was hilarious was to watch newcomers' faces as they realized they were expected to eat two oversized pancakes that often were bigger than the plates. 

 So, want to add this to your family tradition? 

 It’s easy! Just get a box of pancake mix, any will do. 

 Follow the instructions and mix the batter, add an egg if you like them extra fluffy.

Then pour into a cast iron skillet and heat on the stove until you see plenty of bubbles. Make sure you have enough batter poured in to make about a half- to an inch-thick pancake. Cook one side until you see bubbles pop up from the batter. 

 Here’s the tricky part; if you are skilled, use both hands and carefully flip the pancake in the air and cook on the other side. Or, do as most do, get a spatula and slide underneath to loosen the pancake from the skillet then use a plate to slide the half-cooked pancake onto a plate. Add some more butter to the hot skillet, then flip the pancake off the plate back onto the skillet to cook the other side. 

 Before you cook, go to Lexington’s farmers market if you can and buy at least a quart of fresh strawberries.

 Wash the strawberries and pick off the stems. Place in a pot and add a half cup of sugar and cook the strawberries until boiling. Let simmer into a wonderful-tasting strawberry syrup. 

 At last, plate the pancake and drown it in syrup then plop several heaping spoonfuls of peanut butter onto the pancake. 

Of course, don’t forget the best part! Give to a close family friend and watch his or her face when the realization hits that TWO giant sized strawberry and peanut butter pancakes are to be consumed. 

Happy Mother’s Day. Do share some of Grandma’s pancake love with your family and start a wonderful tradition in your own family!