The Savory Pancake

While America celebrated pancake day 2 weeks ago, Fat Tuesday is pancake day here in the UK. It is also known as "Shrove Tuesday" and is thought of much in the same way that we think of Mardi Gras as a celebration and treat before the start of Lent. About 2 weeks before pancake day, my husband brought home his trusted Betty Crocker shake and mix pancake mix. When I say pancake here, I really mean crepe. I do not understand how some French words have stayed within the language where as others have not. He was not up for home made, he knew how these turned out and was quite happy with them. I figured, no problem, I haven't made crepes from scratch since French Club in high school, that gives me more time to concentrate on yummy fillings. As an American, I think of fruits and sweet things in a pancake. Not here, they are a savory dish. They may splurge with a little lemon juice and sugar for their sweet pancake. If I was going to make pancakes as a starter, main course, and desert, I had some research to do. At a bit of a loss, I trusted the Betty Crocker UK & Ireland facebook page for suggested fillings. They posted a recipe for "Mediterranean Pancakes" and I went with it. You spoon some pesto inside the pancake and then add your sauteed onion, peppers, and zucchini (courgette for all of my English followers, see what I mean about French words!). Fold the pancake in half and sprinkle with Parmesan cheese. Roast everything in the oven until the cheese melts. These became our starters. I filled pancakes as my husband masterfully flipped each one. 3 pancakes now assembled and in the oven. Mean time, we prepared the "Main Course" pancakes. My husband requested beef filling like a taco... Earlier that day I went to the butcher (yes, small village, we still have a butcher with local meat. They are just across the street from our house) and bought ground beef. I sauteed some garlic and onion, added the meat with some chili powder, cinnamon, salt, and pepper. Once the meat was browned, I added some tomato sauce and Franks hot sauce. We put a few jalapeno peppers and some cheddar cheese on top, and voila, taco pancakes. We popped them in the oven to melt the cheddar cheese.

Finally, the pancakes I had been waiting for, dessert pancakes!!! We layered Nutella with fresh strawberries inside. We wrapped them up and added home made vanilla whipped cream on top of the pancakes. I will still say, this is my FAVORITE way to eat crepes. I was however, pleasantly surprised at how tasty the savory pancakes were. It is a good, thing that pancake day is only once a year (or twice if you celebrate the American and English days), I would need to go to the gym much more often to keep up with the calories otherwise!

Next up, the savory pie as it was also British Pie week in the UK last week. Bon Appetit!