First, no, Honey didn’t get Best of Winners on Sunday, either. The blenheim dog I described as “plodding” showed with a lot more verve and beat the tricolor boy, which I think was fair since the tri had this movement fault. I did hope the judge would go on to put Honey over the blenheim male, but no. There’s another fairly nearby show in January, so I suppose I’ll enter that one, but it sure is too bad Honey didn’t manage to get that one last point this year. :(
For consolation after disappointing winter days, very little beats these pancakes. Actually, they’re great on any occasion, especially special occasions such as Christmas morning, though actually I make them all winter, for any reason or no reason.
Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Pancakes
2 C quick oats
2 C whole milk
2 eggs, beaten
1 1/2 C flour
2 1/2 tsp baking powder
3/4 tsp salt
1/2 C + 2 Tbsp sugar
2/3 C mini chocolate chips
1/3 C melted shortening
Combine the oatmeal and milk. Crack in the eggs and set aside for five minutes. Stir together the dry ingredients. Melt the shortening in the microwave. (I don’t know why this recipe uses shortening instead of butter, but I actually do make it just the way it says. Naturally you can use butter if you want and see if you like how that works.)
Now, whisk the oat-milk-egg mixture until well combined. Whisk in the dry ingredient mixture. Stir in the chocolate chips. Stir in the shortening.
Cook as you do any pancakes, EXCEPT, the batter is thick, so don’t wait for little bubbles to appear and stay open all across the surface of the pancakes before you turn them. Just turn one when the edges look dry and judge whether the others are ready to turn by that one.
Any recipe for pancakes which tells you that the first batch doesn’t usually turn out was written by someone who is trying to use a cast iron skillet on the stovetop. Instead, invest in a cheap nonstick electric skillet. Set the heat to 350 degrees. Poof, all your pancakes will now turn out perfectly.
The amount of sugar in these pancakes suits my personal taste, btw, which means they come out sweet enough to eat plain, without syrup. If you insist on pouring syrup on your pancakes, you might want to reduce the sugar in the recipe.