Breakfast For Dinner: Fast Pancakes

Serves 4

This recipe may not work for more than 4 people, but it might, once you get a rhythm worked out. Practice on a non-rushed evening. Make it a contest and use a stop watch. Give yourselves gold stars - make it fun.

You can also make pancakes ahead of time, and freeze them in zipper freezer bags with waxed paper between them (they'll last at least a month)! Just heat in the oven a few minutes or the microwave for about a minute. Too long and they'll bounce.

Make your pancakes any size or thickness that works for your situation on any particular night. Make your own pancake rules..

Speed of Preparation and Speed of Service take planning!

First, keep your stove-top and kitchen counter top completely clean and organized at all times. You need room. Clutter will slow you down and create frustration.

Next, set the table the night before or early in the morning. The kids can help. Sit down to eat pancakes, unless you make a roll-up filled with ingredients and you can carry it with you (sausage and cheese, fruit and cream cheese, etc.)

If you want to have pancakes for supper one or two nights in a week, keep a griddle on your stove top that crosses two burners on one side of the cook-top, front-to-back. A long rectangular electric griddle on the counter top is fine as well.

In the morning, put the griddle in place, get out a large mixing bowl, stirring spoon, clean dish towel, and box or bag of pancake mix or self-rising floor and put it all on the counter top. If you use oil in the mix, set the bottle out on the counter or measure what you need into a small owl of cup and cover to protect form spilling.

If you use eggs in the mix, get them out and put them in the bowl on top of the clean towel. They will be OK for a day out of the refrigerator unless in hot inside your house. Tell everyone not to play with the raw eggs.

Take a measuring cup and measure out the milk you will need and set the cup in the refrigerator so as to not spill. I use a can of evaporated milk and that can just sit on the counter. You can also measure out the pancake mix into another bowl and cover it with a towel or a plate so that you don't have to measure that night at dinner.

WHEN YOU GET HOME

Turn on the griddle or two stove burners.

Wet the towel until damp and put it under the bowl to keep it from slipping as you stir.

Get the milk out of the refrigerator.

Mix your ingredients.

Test a spoonful of batter on the griddle to see if it is hot enough.

When hot, make pancakes and sit them on a plate and fill individually

OR

Place pancakes (1 large or 2 small) on each plate and top with any of these items:

• Butter

• Jam

• Fruit compote

• Confectioners sugar

• Light brown sugar and cinnamon

• Honey

• Syrup

• Fresh fruit

• Cream cheese

• Sour cream

• Pudding

• Whipped topping or Whipped cream

For a rollup you can carry in a table napkin, use any of these:

• Bulk sausage or kielbasa-style, sliced; cooked the day before and heated in microwave. Even chicken meat will work, like your good imagination.

• Shredded cheeses (you can mix these right into the batter if you like)

• Fruit pieces (fresh or canned, drained) and whipped cream.

• Thick jam, peanut butter and/or butter.

• Anything else that is not too drippy.

Enjoy! -- I hope you have fun with pancakes.

Punakaiki is located on the west coast of New Zealand and is most well known for its Pancake Rocks and Blowholes.Children love the concept of such tall stacks of pancakes!

The rocks look a little like giant stacks of pancakes, with rather smaller ones at the tops. They are made of limestone sculpted by the local winds and rains. The western coast is full of underground caves and streams as well as cliffs by the sea, all very interesting to explore.

This area is popular for hiking and horse riding along the western edge of the Paparoa National Park by the Tasman Sea. Scheduled hiking includes the Pancake Rocks are sketcked out nicely for families that like to walk for 20 or 30 minutes. A couple of othe hikes require two hours, with one aditional walk being an overnighter. Visitors also like to birdwatch, fish, surf, kayak, and take part in many other activites here.

• Pancakes on the Rocks - Sydney, Australia
• The Pancake Curriculum -- All for fun! National Pancake Week is in March.