With ricotta and sour cream or yogurt as their main ingredients, these are quite different from traditional pancakes — light, creamy, and completely delicious.
Ingredients
- 1 cup ricotta (to make your own, see page 569)
- 1 cup sour cream or yogurt
- 3 eggs, separated (see page 546)
- 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
- 2 teaspoons grated lemon zest
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- 0.5 teaspoon baking soda
- Pinch salt
- Butter or good-quality vegetable oil for cooking
How to Make It
- Heat a griddle or large skillet over medium-low heat while you make the batter.
- Beat together the ricotta, sour cream, egg yolks, lemon juice, and lemon zest in a large bowl. Combine the dry ingredients in a small bowl. Beat the egg whites with a clean whisk or electric mixer in a medium bowl until they hold fairly stiff but not dry peaks (see “Beating Egg Whites,” page 547).
- Stir the flour mixture into the ricotta mixture, blending well with a spoon but not beating; don’t overmix. Gently fold in the egg whites; they should remain somewhat distinct in the batter.
- Put about 1 teaspoon butter or oil on the griddle or skillet. When the butter is melted or the oil is hot, spread it evenly over the surface using a brush or paper towel. Add the batter by the heaping tablespoon, making sure you include some
- of the egg whites in each spoonful. Cook until lightly browned on the bottom, 3 to 5 minutes, then flip and cook until the second side is brown. Add butter or oil to the griddle for each batch until all the batter is used up. Serve immediately; these will not hold.
- COTTAGE CHEESE PANCAKES Great with rehydrated raisins or currants: Substitute cottage cheese for the ricotta, decrease the baking soda to ¼ teaspoon, and omit the lemon juice and zest.
