I used to teach a fine art program for kids wherein the main instructor was adamant that a child NEVER throw their half-finished project or drawing away because it “wasn’t right.” He argued that until you see it through to the end, you won’t know what it could have been or how you could have improved upon it.
I exercised this principle when getting off to a very rocky start in a recent sourdough-venture.
First, I over proved the bejeezus out of a stiff starter. The thing smelled like ripe nail polish and felt like wet leather. I’m pretty sure there was no hope. I would have thrown it out.
BUT, I fed it, reconstituted it to sour (rather than rank) and let it chill.
I knew bread would elicit too strong a sour taste with how long the starter had developed, but pancakes! Now pancakes could do… syrup DOES cover a multitude of sins.
Having no clue how to make sourdough pancakes, I did what every good and stubborn baker does:
I googled,
I scoffed,
and I made it up as I went.
so…
Sourdough Pancakes
Ingredients:
- ¾ cup (150g) stiff sourdough starter, at room temperature
- 1 egg
- 1 ½ Tablespoon sugar
- 1 cup buttermilk
- 2 Tablespoons canola oil
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ cup all-purpose unbleached flour (or whole wheat flour for a nuttier taste)
- ¾ teaspoon salt
Throw the starter, egg, sugar, buttermilk, oil and soda in a bowl and let it soak at least 15-20 minutes to loosen up the starter.
It will look gross.
It will feel even grosser. Mmmmm, eyeball stew….
After soaking, mix this on med-high for 3 minutes with a whisk attachment. This should break up the starter. Here is the SECOND place I would have thrown the thing out. No matter the whip, the batter looked like this:
well, that’s nothing I’ve seen before….
BUT WAIT, stay the course. It gets good!
Add the ½ cup of flour and ¾ teaspoon salt, still whisking, but only until the flour is incorporated, then let it sit for 10 minutes.
While that’s resting, we start setting the table but decide that maple syrup is not going to be the best pairing with sourdough, so we invent this:
Honey & Agave Banana Syrup
Ingredients:
- 4 Tablespoons butter
- ¼ cup honey
- 1/3 cup agave syrup
- ½ sliced or mashed banana
- 1 Tablespoon brown sugar
- ¼ cup dried tart cherries (not pictured)
- 1/3 cup chopped pecans (not pictured)
- dried rosemary. yes. rosemary. for sprinkling on top. trust me. (not pictured)
Throw the butter, honey, agave, banana, and brown sugar in a small sauce pan.
Bring it to a steaming low boil over medium heat and whisk it until the bananas have broken and blended into the magma.
Pour all but a Tablespoon or so of the syrup into a serving vessel. In the remaining Tablespoon (still in the saucepan) add the dried cherries and chopped pecans.
Stir until they’re coated, soft and warm.
Now, back to the cakes…
(I like an electric griddle for cakes. It keeps a steady temperature and you don’t need to mess with butters and oils to bake on.)
Pour ¼ cup of the batter out and cook them at 350° for about 4 minutes until they bubble on the surface, like this:
flip them and cook for an additional 2 minutes or so, and flop them on a serving tray.
Now, remember when I said I almost threw this away TWICE during the conjuring process???
I give you the best tasting mistake I’ve ever digested:
stack the cakes
drizzle with syrup
dollop with cherries and nuts
sprinkle with ROSEMARY, it makes the whole thing come alive
How many masterpieces have we scrapped mid-stroke?
How much of us is hidden for what we’ve done or fear we will do, wrong?
How might any mislaid plan be redirected and deliver us to new and better places?
How will we know till we see it through?
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