I love the traditional pancake with sugar and lemon just as much as the next person, but realistically, after well over a decade of repeating the same toppings, I think 2019 is signalling the time for a change. With endless toppings available, you can take your pancakes from average to pan-tastic!
- Lotus Biscoff spread with fruit– picture the Lotus caramelised biscuits that are given with coffee at the hair salon or hotels, but spreadable, like Nutella. Pretty good, right? Even better, the spread is suitable for vegans! Simply spread it on top of your pancake, or between your stack of pancakes, or if you’re feeling particularly elaborate, melt it on a low power setting in the microwave, and drizzle over your pancakes. (Spoiler alert: each of these methods is improved dramatically with the addition of banana/berries/cinnamon. Thank me later.)
- Marks and Spencer’s ‘Lemon, gin and tonic sauce’– spruce up the monotony of lemon and sugar with this lively twist on an old classic. For all gin lovers and advocates of a classic pairing, the combination of citrus with sugar, as well as the classic pairing of gin and tonic makes for a never before seen outcome, unless you put gin and tonic into your pancake mix, in which case I can’t decide whether to commend you or condemn you. Pair a drizzle of this syrup with a scoop of ice cream, and you’ve got all the ingredients for a perfect dessert.
- Peanut butter and jam– upgrade your usual PB&J on toast to PB&J on PANCAKES! I personally believe that pancakes can upgrade any meal, and before any sceptics begin to question their role in improving savoury food, I’d like to remind you that Yorkshire puddings are essentially puffy pancakes. Simply spread jam between your pancakes, and I’d recommend fluffy American-style pancakes for this particular recipe and spread/drizzle/dollop your peanut butter top. A guaranteed food-porn shot for your Instagram, suitable for vegans, and a sure-fire way to prove your culinary prowess to your parents through sending them your masterpiece via WhatsApp.
- Bakewell tart pancakes– take your twist on the classic dessert with this mouth-watering idea. Either spread cherry jam between your pancakes, or drizzle a cherry syrup over, topping with ice cream while still warm, and finishing with a sprinkle of flaked almonds, contrasting the tartness of the jam, the sweetness of the ice cream, and the mild nuttiness of the almonds. Perhaps less traditional than your typical pancake toppings, but regardless still just as, if not more satisfying. To make this recipe suitable for vegans, simply switch dairy ice cream for a vegan alternative.
There you have it, four different pancake toppings to upgrade your Shrove Tuesday to a whole new level. You’ll notice I haven’t added any savoury recipes to this article, and that’s purely down to the fact that if you’re adding tuna or ricotta cheese or any other ridiculous savoury toppings to this classic dessert, then you’re absolutely doing it wrong, and I won’t be told otherwise.
I hope you all have a wonderful pancake day and hopefully enjoy one, or two, of these ideas!
Grace Quinn
Featured image courtesy of digipam via Flickr, no changes made to the image. Image licence can be found here.
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