Irish Soda Bread Pancakes

Last month I set out to make Irish Soda Bread for St. Patrick's Day, like I always do. (I also made a Chocolate Stout Cake, but this blog has seen more than its fair share of cakes.) I was eager to try Fallon & Byrne's soda bread recipe touted in Bon Appetit, and in the course of looking up the recipe I stumbled across a fantastic idea: cooking the dough on a griddle, a la English muffins or crumpets. So I doubled the recipe and made both baked and griddled versions. Wouldn't you know it, the griddled bread was better than the loaf. Since then I've been playing with the recipe to make it a bit less dense while at the same time more oat-y. And pancake-y. And a touch savory, thanks to the addition of fresh rosemary.

The batter is hearty and nutty thanks to whole wheat graham flour, raw wheat germ and both old fashioned and steel cut oats.

It's also a touch sweet thanks to brown sugar.

Buttermilk imparts a slight tang -- and rise -- to the batter. 

You'll want to add the optional chopped fresh rosemary. Trust me. (This from a girl who isn't mad about rosemary.)

Drizzle the pancakes with honey or, better yet, Lyle's Golden Syrup.

Top with berries and you've got a winning breakfast that just so happens to be perfect pre-run fuel in case you, like me, are getting back into running.

Oh, and don't forget a generous pat of Kerrygold Pure Irish Butter.



Irish Soda Bread Pancakes

Makes 10, 4-inch pancakes

Adapted from Fallon & Byrne Soda Bread, Bon Appetit, March 2010

3/4 cup all purpose flour

1/2 cup whole wheat graham flour (or whole wheat pastry flour)

1/2 cup old fashioned oats

1/4 cup raw wheat germ

2 tablespoons steel-cut oats

2 tablespoons (packed) brown sugar

2 teaspoons baking soda

1/4 teaspoon kosher salt

1 tablespoon chopped fresh rosemary (optional)

2 cups buttermilk

Nonstick cooking spray

1. In a medium bowl, whisk together all of the ingredients except the buttermilk and cooking spray. Add the buttermilk and stir until the mixture forms a uniform batter.

2. Heat a griddle or cast iron skillet over medium-low heat. Coat with cooking spray and spoon about 1/4 cup of batter onto the griddle for each pancake. The batter is thick, so you'll have to press and spread it around with your finger or a spoon. Cook until golden brown, about 3-4 minutes, then flip and cook for another 3 minutes on the other side. Note: Between batches, wipe the griddle with a cloth or paper towel and re-spray with cooking spray.

Happy Monday

I don't have a story to go with this post other than to say that I will probably never master the art of the perfect cappuccino, or find it worthwhile to make my own doughnuts again, and that I'm totally fine with it.

Happy Monday!

Showing Up

I'm glad my last post resonated with you. Isn't it validating and motivating to know that others struggle, too, and that ruts and disappointments don't have to equal defeat? Thank you so much for the encouragement. I need it. We all do.

For further inspiration, check out these recent posts by Megan Gordon (A Sweet Spoonful) and Penny De Los Santos (Appetite), who seem to know exactly what I (we) need to hear these days.

Visions of Greatness Or Something Like It  - Megan perfectly articulates the trick of balancing the monotony of commercial baking with the reward of connecting with people through hand crafted food -- something I struggled with when I was baking professionally. She shares some great insight from Ari Weinzweig's book, A Lapsed Anarchist's Approach To Building A Great Business (which I promptly ordered), putting it thusly: "Crafting a Vision of Greatness... differs greatly from a mission statement in that it's more specific and is really a full-scale picture of what things will look like when you've arrived at where you're going and things are working well... [It's] a statement of optimism in the future and you've got to have this... It also allows you to create your reality instead of just reacting to problems... Regardless of what business you're in or what personal goal you're pursuing at the moment, it takes a lot longer to make something great than most people think. So many of us put such high expectations on ourselves for things to fall into place in a short period of time... Some of it has to do with our fast-paced culture and increasingly short-attention spans, but some of it also has to do with limited knowledge on the importance of staying power in most creative pursuits. There's something to be said about just showing up."

What If You Are Good Enough - Penny argues that no matter how many times our pursuits are rejected, we are good enough. "Whatever it is you want to do, you can do it.  Whatever it is you want to be, you can be it. So go do it." 

So I've been showing up. I've cooked, styled and photographed a few recipes in the past two days. A sneak peek is below; the images are straight from my camera and need a bit of processing, but I like them.

Grilled Butterflied Leg of Lamb, Lemon Mint Pesto, Slow Roasted Tomatoes

Broccolini, Lemon Mint Pesto, Slow Roasted Tomatoes, Feta

I'm going to keep showing up. Promise me you will, too, okay?

Goodies From Bakesale For Japan

Phototasting

You know how I go on about being such a bad photographer and subject you to my wretched iPhone photos and act like it's cute and funny? (It's not.) I'm happy to report this is about to change, thanks to the Phototasting workshop I attended yesterday at Cube Cafe and Marketplace.

Hosted by four lovely, knowledgeable and talented food bloggers -- Pam at Rants & Craves, Claire at The Kitchy Kitchen, Tony at SinoSoul and Jessica at Cube -- the workshop introduced me to nerdy essentials like white balance, ISO, aperture, shutter speed and exposure. Our hosts addressed composition, lighting, styling and post, and taught me how to use my cameras: a circa 2001 Nikon Coolpix 5700 and my newer but still outdated Canon PowerShot SD750. (My iPhone was banished to my handbag, where it will remain whenever food photography is in play. You're welcome.)

Along with approximately 20 other delightful participants -- many who are food bloggers -- I practiced my new found skills shooting and sharing a delicious four-course regional Italian meal focused on seasonal ingredients.

How did I do? You decide.

(The following images were shot with my Canon SD750 point and shoot and are straight from the camera. I haven't gotten around to downloading the images from my Nikon.)

First Course

Heirloom Tomato and Fresh Peach with Buffalo Mozzarella, Six-Year Balsamic and Olive Oil

Second Course

Black Truffle Pizza with Mozzarella and Fried Egg

Third Course

Pancetta-Wrapped Porchetta with Creamy Polenta and Roasted Broccoli

Dessert

White Nectarine Shortcake with Lemon Verbena and Fresh Cream

I have a long way to go before I can brag about my food photography, but I think it's safe to say I've vastly improved. I'm chomping at the bit (or porchetta as it were) to learn and practice so much more. Now if only I could persuade my hosts to let me follow them around so their awesomeness could rub off on me. But I'll settle for stalking their blogs, and am definitely signing up for their next workshop.

Freelance Styling

Whaaat? I haven't mentioned I occasionally freelance as a stylist? I guess I thought it went without saying, this being L.A. and all. As luck would have it, I'm friends with some wicked talented photographers. (I have no idea why they're friends with me, other than I'm the world's worst photographer and therefore pose no threat, and I keep them hopped up on sugar.) Sometimes, they let me style sets and wardrobe on their shoots. 

I also happen to be friends with a really senior (in title, not age) producer on the Real Housewives shows and Bethenny Getting Married? (I know, right!? I'm seeing her -- my friend, not Bethenny -- on Sunday so I'll see if I can get any dirt, although she's contractually obligated to stay mum. Rats.) Anyway, she once hired me to style Andy Cohen for a Real Housewives reunion special. Love! Not only did I get to throw down some budget on Ralph Lauren Purple Label, but that guy is even more nice and smart and funny and charming in person. Now if I could only work an angle with Top Chef...

Below are some images from one of my favorite shoots with photographer Dani Brubaker. The clothes are from designers I won't mention because we didn't tell them frosting would be involved. I picked up the tableware, aprons and linens at Anthropologie, and made the sweets myself. (Brag much?) While we were shooting, the kids were dying -- dying -- to dig in to the cupcakes. What went down when we let them loose? As Andy Cohen would say, watch what happens...

[All images © 2008 Dani Brubaker. Used with permission.]

Don't you just want to eat those kids with a spoon?