There are two recipes in particular that were the final clincher in my decision to do the Edmonds this year. One was the rice pudding recipe which I will be reviewing in the near future, and the other was the pancake recipe.
The thing is, I had never made the Edmonds recipe. I had read it many many times and by doing that it wasn’t difficult to tell that it wasn’t going to be good. The thing about pancakes is that they should be light and fluffy and they should be delicious on their own. Pancakes are not just a vehicle for other things such as bacon, banana or maple syrup. Pancakes should be yummy enough that they are a pleasure to eat along with whatever you eat them with.
I have many friends who have grown up with their mums making the Edmonds recipe and they rave about it but I honestly believe with my whole heart that the pancake itself is not the bit they are raving about, they may just not know it yet. Yes, this is my opinion and I have been wrong before but I am going to give you a recipe for light, fluffy, delicious American pancakes at the end of this review and if you think you can make the Edmonds recipe taste better than that (if you can actually make the recipe edible at all) then I will publically apologise.
I need to point out also that some of my friends water down the Edmonds recipe and create thin “pancakes” which in reality are more like crepes – although I don’t think its even nice as a crepe recipe I am talking about making them as written in the Edmonds. So they would be thick and pancake like. Right here is my review *big breath*
E
dmonds pancakes. The recipe can be found on page 218. The recipe is very simple with few ingredients. It is quick and easy to assemble but when you are making them you need to factor in that it needs to rest for 1 hour in the refrigerator. The resulting batter has a very gluey texture and reminds me a lot of the flour past
e I used to use as a child to make papier mache at school; I think the term I used when describing it to a family member was glorified wall paper paste. I am sorry Edmonds, but I need to be honest. This is my opinion, no filters.
I
let the mixture rest and noticed when I took it out of the fridge that a few bubbles were sitting on the top. This made me feel a little hopeful that they wouldn’t be as rubbery as I thought they would be when I read the recipe. The mixture had thickened a wee bit so I added a little water to loosen it up a bit so it was more like a pancake batter. The mixture still acted gluey.
I cooked the pancakes as per the instructions, and it didn’t take long for my fears to become realised. 
Unlike most pancake recipes where bubbles form on the top and start popping indicating it’s time to flip them, with this recipe the outer edge started to become transparent like water and flour does when it’s cooked. The result was as I expected – the pancake was rubbery and flavourless. I made two more to give the mixture the chance to prove itself, but each one was firm and rubbery. I didn’t make the rest of the mixture and I confess I didn’t sprinkle with lemon juice and sugar and serve, and here’s why.
If I
get a layer of tissue paper and sprinkle it with lemon and sugar it would taste yummy apart from the texture. If I actually made wall paper paste and cooked it then sprinkled it with lemon and sugar it would taste good. Even though the texture would be rubbery.
These pancakes themselves are disgusting. They actually make me angry. When I buy a recipe book I expect that each recipe has been tested and I as the user would have a half decent chance of making something yum. This recipe is a vehicle for lemon and sugar and that is a travesty. People trust the Edmonds and we trust that they will give us good versions of dishes. In this instance they haven’t. Yes you can
thin the mixture and use it for passible crepes but if that’s what you do then change the name in the recipe book. Don’t call something a pancake if you know there is no way you will end up with an actual pancake at the end of the exercise. It’s unfair and wrong.
If you love this recipe I respect that but I would ask you give my recipe a go. This recipe makes pancakes the way they should be. Light, fluffy, thick pancakes that can hold their own. They act as no vehicle to anything. The way a pancake should be.
Right, now that’s off my chest. Happy mother’s day to all you mums out there. Being a mum can often be a thankless job but I know for most of us we wouldn’t change it for the world. This is your day mums, try and make some time for you. For those like me who don’t have a mum or have lost their mums. I am thinking of you today. Remember we honour our mothers by being the best version of us we can be, that’s a win win for both your mum and you.
Until next time. Happy cooking 🙂 x