Here is an easy classic recipe for English crepe-style pancakes traditionally eaten on Shrove Tuesday. English pancakes are smaller and a bit thicker than French crepes.
Pancakes make a cheap and fun afternoon snack. My kids call these ‘roll-y up pancakes’ and they like watching me (try to) flip them in the air. We each stick rigidly to our favourite fillings: I love the traditional lemon juice and a sprinkle of sugar, whereas my kids love Nutella and my husband likes golden syrup, just like they have on breakfast pancakes. Jam, or sliced banana and honey are also nice. Savoury versions are good too: I’ve tried ham and grated cheese, and herby cream cheese before.
Pancake-Making Tips
- Let the batter rest for 15 minutes before cooking your pancakes. If you don’t do this, the pancakes can be a bit wet.
- Don’t use too much oil in the pan, the pancakes go greasy. I pour a little oil onto the pan as it heats up, then wipe it around with kitchen paper, which soaks up the excess.
- Don’t put too much batter in the pan. Pour slowly from a ladle with one hand while swirling the pan with the other. You want a thin layer over the base of the pan.
- Don’t try to flip the pancake until it’s ready. It’s ready to flip when the edges are getting a little crispy and have come away from the sides of the pan.
Easy and cheap crepe-style pancakes traditionally eaten on Shrove Tuesday.
- 225 g Plain Flour
- 2 Eggs
- 600 ml Milk
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Sift the flour into a bowl and make a well in the centre.
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Add the eggs and half of the milk into the well, then whisk everything together until smooth.
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Add the rest of the milk. The batter should be quite thin, about the consistency of single cream. Rest the batter in the fridge for 15 minutes.
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Heat a 20cm frying or crepe pan on a high heat and grease with a little oil. I use kitchen paper for this.
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Add a ladleful of batter to the hot pan, picking it up and tilting it to spread the batter over the whole base of the pan. Let it cook for about a minute, until the edges start to come away from the sides of the pan and the bottom is golden brown.
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Flip the pancake over, using a palette knife, a spatula or your amazing tossing skills. Cook the second side for 30 seconds to a minute, until it’s golden brown on the bottom. Serve immediately.
The traditional filling is lemon juice and sugar, but let your imagination run wild! You can use syrup, honey, jam, sliced soft fruit, chocolate spread, cheese, ham, chicken, baked beans… whatever you like.
This recipe makes approximately 16 pancakes if you use a 20cm pan. To make a smaller batch of pancakes, use 115g flour and 300ml milk, but keep the eggs the same (2).
Leftover pancakes can be stored with greaseproof paper between them in the fridge (for a couple of days) or in the freezer (for a month).
