Pecan Pancakes with Mixed Berry Compote

While focusing more attention on healthy eating cookbooks lately, I hadn't baked much for a few weeks. That will change, of course, when my birthday rolls around next week. In the meantime, since not much baking has been happening, the thought of making pancakes was very appealing. As I pulled out the griddle, I realized it had been years since I last made pancakes. I don’t know how that happened. I guess I get easily distracted by scones, muffins, popovers, and every other baked good that adds a sweet component to a big breakfast or brunch meal, and I just overlooked pancakes for far too long. They are best when just made, but you can stow them in a warm oven while readying the rest of the morning meal. And, in this case, the berry compote for topping the pancakes can easily be made in advance. This recipe is one more from the breakfast chapter of Power Foods, and the intro touts the antioxidant properties of both the pancakes and the topping with ingredients like wheat germ, pecans, and berries.

The berry compote can simmer away while the pancakes are made, or it can be made in advance and then re-warmed for serving. Since berries aren’t in season just yet, I used a bag of frozen, mixed berries. The berries were combined with honey and lemon zest and left to simmer until thickened. For the pancakes, all purpose and whole wheat flours were whisked together with wheat germ, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Separately, yogurt, melted butter, and an egg were combined and then added to the dry ingredients. Chopped pecans were added as well, and everything was mixed until just moistened. The batter was spooned onto a hot griddle brushed with melted butter, and this is a thick batter that needs some help in spreading. It requires some pushing with the back of a spoon to flatten into a cake. Then, they take only a few minutes of browning on each side.

I realized I kind of like flipping pancakes. I’d missed it. The batter sizzles on the griddle on the first side and then again after the flip. These were hearty, little pancakes with good, nutty flavor. And, the berry compote topping was sweet, tart, and just the right embellishment. I have a feeling I’ll be making pancakes more frequently now.

Big City Salmon with Martini Sauce

We were in the mood for a light-ish kind of meal involving fish and some salad, and I found some fresh and fabulous king salmon at Whole Foods. I could have simply seared and roasted it and left it at that, but then what are all those cookbooks doing here anyway? I found an interesting sauce to try in Crescent City Cooking by Susan Spicer. In introducing the recipe in the book, she explains that years ago she created a menu of regionally-themed dishes for a Fourth of July dinner. To represent Manhattan in that menu, she developed a martini sauce with olives for salmon. That sounded like a sauce worth trying. For a side dish, I tried the zucchini and fennel slaw from the July issue of Gourmet, and that recipe is on Epicurious.

The salmon could have been grilled, roasted, or even poached, but I did my usual quick sear in a saute pan, turn, and place in a 400 F degree oven for a few minute to cook not quite all the way through. The sauce was started by reducing gin and vermouth with chopped shallots and juniper berries. Once reduced to about three tablespoons, cream was added, and that was reduced again. It was then strained into a bowl and poured back into a saucepan so just a little butter could be incorporated. Sliced pimento-stuffed olives and lemon juice were added. Meanwhile, the slaw was very quickly assembled. I thinly sliced the zucchini and fennel with a Benriner, and they were dressed with a combination of mayonnaise, lemon juice, chives, and mustard.

The meal worked out great. The martini sauce was nicely flavored in a pleasantly boozy sort of way, and the juniper berries gave it a very subtle, wispy hint of pine. The olives took charge visually and brought little punches of brininess that went well with the salmon. And, even though the slaw just sat in the background, off to the side of the plate, it was more delicious than I expected. It was shown in Gourmet with salmon cakes, it was great with the salmon I made, and I can imagine it as a side with all sorts of other things too. It’s incredibly simple to prepare, and I definitely recommend it.