A legend says that there is no person in the world who doesn't love pancakes. We all believe that this fact is actually true. Pancakes are very delicious and come in different shapes and flavors. Maybe that is the reason why almost every restaurant in the world has them on the menu. They have a special place in our hearts and remind us of our family, and remind us of the mornings. If you want to have enough energy throughout the day, the pancakes are a great breakfast choice.

A pancake is a flat cake made from a batter that usually contains butter, eggs, and milk, alongside the flour. In order to make a pancake, you need to mix these ingredients. When the mixture of the ingredients is ready, you should have a hot surface such as a griddle or frying pan to cook them.

History of pancakes

As you have probably noticed in American or European movies, there are different shapes of pancakes. These different shapes, ingredients, and flavors make us wonder - are pancakes an American classic or part of the European tradition? Neither. The truth is that pancakes are 30,000 years old and that even people in the Stone Age ate a variation of this dish. During the English Renaissance, the flavor of pancakes was enhanced with apples, sherry, and rose water.

The name "pancake" does come from England. The first recipe was written in the 15th century. But, the pancakes we know and love today were made in medieval Europe.

On January 2nd, in 492, the first pancake was made by Pope Gelasius. According to some stories, there were too many pilgrims in the Vatican and they ran out of food. To find a solution in this situation, the Pope decided to make a meal that only contains eggs and flour.

Pancakes today

You may be surprised, but pancakes are eaten all over the world. Almost every country and culture have a unique view on pancakes. Because of that, pancakes are can be sweet or savory, thin or thick, large or small. They can be served for breakfast, lunch, and even dinner.

There are many interesting pancake recipes around the globe. For instance, pancakes in Europe are thin and baked on both sides, stuffed with jam or chocolate cream. In Austria, the Czech Republic, former Yugoslavia, Slovakia, and Romania, pancakes are called "palačinka" or "palacinka". There are traditional versions filled with cheese, dressed with yogurt, and then baked in the oven. Crêpes are the pancakes made in France, Italy, Switzerland, Belgium, and Portugal. This type of pancake is made from flour, milk, and eggs. And it is served with ice cream, fruit, jam, or chocolate. But it can also be served with a savory filling like cheese, ham, and vegetables. In Germany, pancakes are known as "Pfannkuchen" (meaning pan-cake) except for some regions like Berlin, Saxony, and Brandenburg where they call them "Eierkuchen" (meaning eggs-cake). And so on. Every country has its own version.

Pancakes in the United States

Pancakes, as you can see in the pictures and movies, are served in a stack of a couple of pancakes, piled up on each other. Then it is topped with maple syrup and butter. The batter is thick and it contains (besides eggs, flour, and milk) a leavening agent, usually baking powder. The pancakes are made with various ingredients like blueberries, strawberries, bananas, cheese, cinnamon, vanilla, nutmeg, buttermilk (instead of regular milk), etc. They are about 1/3 inches thick and wide between four and 10 inches. Americans love pancakes so much that they even have pancake restaurant chains like IHOP, which stands for the International House of Pancakes or TOPH which stands for The Original Pancake House.

Best flour for pancakes

The best choice for pancakes is the all-purpose flour. And if you have a self-raising one, it will save you from one step. But if you don't have self-raising flour, just use baking powder, just like we did in this recipe. However, if you want to make pancakes a bit healthier, you can use whole wheat flour. In conclusion, use all-purpose flour and avoid the cake flour, pastry flour, bread, or rye flour.

The fluffy pancakes

There is not much mystery in how to make your pancakes fluffy. If you ever failed at it, you have to know where you made the mistake - while you were handling the eggs. The secret is to separate the egg yolks from egg whites. First, you need to mix all the wet ingredients with the yolks. And when you prepare the whole batter, then add the egg whites at the end. But before you do that, you need to mix the egg whites at high speed. Add the whipped egg whites slowly into the batter using a spatula.

Pancake day or Shrove Tuesday

Pancake day is celebrated on the so-called Shrove Tuesday which falls 47 days before Easter Sunday. So, the day can vary (because the Easter also varies) from year to year. For example, in 2020 it was on February 25. In 2021, it will fall on February 16.

Blueberries

Since our recipe contains blueberries, let's see what this fruit actually is. Blueberries are certainly one of the fruits that can bring many benefits to your health. They are loaded with many essential vitamins, minerals, nutrients, and antioxidants that are beneficial for your body. These are vitamin E, vitamin C, salicylic acid, carotenoids, fiber, potassium, manganese, and much more. They can prevent cancer, arthritis, decrease pain, and reduce inflammatory processes in our bodies.

Blueberries are perennial plants that have blue or purple berries on them. The tree (or bush) varies in size and can grow from 4 inches to 13 feet. Low-level bushes provide us with the smaller berries, whereas the tall bushes provide larger berries. Therefore, according to their size, there is a difference between the lowbush and highbush blueberries. When it comes to highbush blueberries, the United States is the leader in its production. On the other hand, Canada is more oriented towards the production of lowbush blueberries.

Blueberries are extra cheap in the summer because it is their season. But you can enjoy blueberries all year long. All you need to do is to buy a larger amount of them, freeze them and you will be supplied for the whole winter, and if you buy enough, even the whole year.

They are great snacking food, so instead of eating the unhealthy potato chips and other similar snacks, you can eat blueberries. You can eat them raw or make a smoothie or make a juice. Each way you choose, you will do something good for your health.

Blueberry pancakes

People usually think that blueberry pancakes are just plain pancakes topped with blueberries for decoration. However, in our recipe, we actually use the blueberry jelly and mix it with all the other ingredients. This will give your pancakes an interesting color, especially when you decorate it some more with fresh fruit and jam.