Olive Oil Pancakes With Dark Chocolate and Sea Salt

May sound unusual together, but one taste is enough to convince you that they’re utterly sublime!

Olive oil, chocolate, and sea salt may sound unusual together — but one taste is enough to convince you that they’re utterly sublime. Says Food52 user arielleclementine about this pancake recipe she developed: “Amanda’s chocolate toast (baguette + dark chocolate + olive oil + sea salt) easily makes the top five list of my favorite flavor combinations. These pancakes were inspired by Amanda’s chocolate toast, and I think the combination is just as wonderful in pancake form. I used Cook’s Illustrated’s Light and Fluffy Pancake batter as a jumping off point.”

This recipe is excellent for either a leisurely weekend breakfast, or the always satisfying breakfast-for-dinner. Fluffy batter is the perfect backdrop for the richness and complexity of the dark chocolate and the sea salt — they’re like your favorite chocolate-chip pancakes, all grown up.

Olive Oil Pancakes with Dark Chocolate and Sea Salt

Makes 10-12 six-inch pancakes

1.5 cups all purpose flour
1/2 cup cornstarch
2 tablespoons sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon kosher salt
2 cups buttermilk
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 large egg, beaten
canola oil, for frying
1 bar of your favorite dark chocolate (appx 4 oz), chopped into 1/2 inch chunks
1 tablespoon flaky sea salt
good extra virgin olive oil, Spanish if you’ve got it, for serving
orange zest, for serving (thanks to aargersi for the idea!)

In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, cornstarch, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. In a small bowl, combine the buttermilk, 3 tablespoons of olive oil, and the beaten egg. Pour the liquid ingredients into the dry ingredients and whisk a few times, so that the items are just combined, but some lumps remain. Allow the batter to rest 30 minutes if you’ve got the time.

Heat a large heavy-bottomed skillet (cast iron if you’ve got it) over medium-low heat. Add a couple tablespoons of canola oil and heat until shimmery. Pour 1/2 cup of batter into the center of the pan and immediately scatter a generous tablespoon of chocolate chunks over the pancake, then top that with a small pinch of flaky sea salt, trying not to crush the flakes, if possible. Cook 1-2 minutes, until hollow bubbles appear around the top of the pancake and the edge looks good and crispy. Flip, and cook about 1 minute more, or until the bottom is evenly browned. Repeat this step, one pancake at a time, adding more oil as necessary, until all the batter has been used.

Serve the pancakes with a drizzle of good olive oil instead of butter and syrup (sounds weird but it works!) and some freshly grated orange zest. Yay pancakes!

 

Source: https://www.yahoo.com