Jack's Nutella-Drop Flap Jacks

The idea for these marvy pancakes came out of a Spanglish exchange with Jack this morning. 

“Que quieres comer this morning, hijo: pancakes or waffles?”

What do you want to eat, son: pancakes or waffles?”

“Tenemos Nutella?”

Do we have Nutella?

“Si.”

Yes

“Quiero pancakes, por favor.”

I want pancakes, please.

Like our language skills, this pancake recipe is a mashup that somehow works. It combines our regular frozen waffle topping (Nutella!) with a yogurt-based batter.

     I fretted over whether the Nutella would create moist spots in the pancakes and I’d end up with overcooked edges or undercooked innards – or that the Nutella would melt onto the pan and cause a crusty mess. This didn’t happen. I think because I followed the advice of the venerable Deb Perelman (Smitten Kitchen) to make the griddle real hot at first, and to drop it to medium/medium-high after adding the batter. Oh, yes, and smearing a stick of butter over the pan between each batch.

     These pancakes met my ideal - billowy yet substantial - thanks to the use of yogurt and that extra egg. That plus the use of Nutella instead of chocolate chips makes them (arguably) healthier than our everyday variety.

They were muy delicious.

See recipe after the jump.

Jack’s Nutella-Drop Flap Jacks

Adapted from Taste of Home

This recipe really serves 6-8. I took the advice of Taste of Home and made the full batch, freezing the extra to pop in the toaster for a fast breakfast treat on crazy schoolday mornings.

2 cups all-purpose flour

(healthy alternative: 1 cup barley flour and 1/4 cup wheat flour and 1/4 cup white flour)

1 tablespoons sugar

2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

2 eggs

2 cups plain or vanilla or maple yogurt

1/2 cup milk

Nutella

Fully loaded optional fixings: ½ cup chocolate chips and banana slices (we did this and it was amazing)

Heat pan on medium-high temperature while preparing batter.

In a medium-sized bowl stir together dry ingredients, then add wet.  Mix until all of the dry ingredients are just combined; stir in any additional ingredients except Nutella. Smear butter on the pan. Drop ¼ batter on hot griddle and immediately reduce heat to medium.  When bubbles form, drop a teaspoonful of Nutella on top of each pancake. Let it settle in a few seconds and flip. Cook for 1-2 minutes longer and remove to a platter or an oven heated to 250 degrees. Repeat, buttering griddle before adding the batter.