You?re Doing It Wrong: Pancakes

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Brow Beat You're Doing It Wrong: Pancakes By L.V. Anderson Posted Tuesday, Feb 21, 2012, at 04:03 PM ET You're Doing It Wrong is appearing on Tuesday rather than Wednesday this week, because it's not just any Tuesday—it's Shrove Tuesday, also known as Mardi Gras, also known as Pancake Day. In the days of near-universal Christianity in Western Europe, the day before Ash Wednesday was a chance to load up on all the rich foodstuffs verboten during Lent. Since pancakes are heavy on eggs, milk, and sugar (all ostensibly sinful ingredients), people made a tradition of eating them before the fasting season began. These days, Shrove Tuesday isn't so much a last-gasp gastronomic orgy as a good excuse for anyone, Christian or not, to eat pancakes. Not that you need an excuse; pancakes are easy, economical, and beloved by virtually everyone. What's more, they're inexplicably impressive—despite requiring very little effort, homemade pancakes tend to make people fall over themselves with gratitude and admiration. Sadly, though, misinformation about pancake-making abounds. Many recipes call for separating the eggs, whipping the whites, and then folding them into the batter at the last minute. This supposedly results in a light, fluffy pancake—but it's utterly unnecessary. You don't need to go halfway toward making a meringue to make good pancakes; you just need to get some chemistry right. Which is why buttermilk is absolutely crucial for good pancakes. Buttermilk is fermented milk (despite the deceptive name, it's no fattier than regular milk); thanks to the fermentation process, it's thicker and more ... To continue reading, click here. Join the Fray: our reader discussion forum What did you think of this article? POST A MESSAGE | READ MESSAGES Also In Slate Dickerson: What Mitt Romney Has To Do to Win Michigan Santorum Used To Say the Exact Opposite Thing About Partial-Birth Abortions Why Is Peter Thiel Giving Millions to Ron Paul's Doomed Presidential Bid? They've Never Even Met!	Advertisement
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