So tomorrow is Shrove Tuesday or as it’s more commonly referred to- Pancake Day. The origin of Shrove Tuesday is that it’s the day all the perishable, rich foodstuffs such as eggs, milk, fat and sugar are used up before lent begins.

I love pancakes. They’re yummy, quick and you can experiment with all kinds of different toppings. It’s a shame we only really make them once a year but then again maybe that’s what keeps them special and interesting.

I should probably mention that my idea of Pancakes are actually what many people would call Crêpes. These are thin, flat and reasonably large unlike their smaller slightly risen American cousins. But I grew up calling this version a pancake and habits like that are hard to break.

Here’s my Pancake recipe followed by a few of my favourite toppings.

Pancakes
Makes 9

• 100g Plain Flour
• Pinch of Salt (or a teaspoon of Sugar though I find that this can cause the pancake to burn more easily)
• 1 Egg
• 320ml Warm Milk (not to be hot enough to cook the egg)
• 1 tbsp melted Butter

Sift the Flour and Salt into a bowl. Make a well in the centre.

Add the Egg and half the Milk into the centre and beat until a smooth batter is formed.

Gradually add the rest of the Milk and stir in the melted Butter.

Melt a tiny bit of butter in a large frying pan. If you use too much butter the pancake will be soggy.

Heat the pan until it just begins to smoke and add a small ladle (about 3-4 tablespoons) of batter. Swirl the pan to coat  evenly and turn the heat down to medium low.

Cook the pancake until it moves freely from the bottom of the pan. Lift the edge with a spatula to check if it has begun to brown, if so flip it over, if not leave it for another minute, perhaps increasing the heat a little.
[I recently read that if you can flip the pancake in the air then this means it's tough so I am quite proud to be a spatula flipper!]

Check the other side after a couple of minutes and remove to a plate once it has cooked. Repeat this process with the rest of the batter.

Now comes the fun bit- Fill and top your pancakes!

These are some of my favourites:

Lemon and Sugar

A classic and probably my favourite. I like it best with brown sugar rather than white.

Filled with Cream and Berries, topped with a Raspberry Sauce. Yum!

Not only does this taste amazing but it is so easy to present. This would have been a rather good Valentines dessert now I come to think about it!

Nutella and toasted Hazelnuts

A shamefully recent discovery. I feel like I’ve missed out on many years of this delicious combination. Smooth Nutella and crunchy nuts, all wrapped up in a pancake, delicious!

Got any favourite toppings you wanna share?