Sunday, March 25, 2012

Sexy Blueberry Buttermilk Pancakes


 
That got your interest, didn't it?  Lovely Joan Swan is our guest today.  Joan is a triple RWA® Golden Heart finalist and writes sexy romantic suspense with a paranormal twist.  Her debut novel with Kensington Brava, FEVER, released February 28, 2012.  Her second novel, BLAZE, follows in October, 2012.

In her day job, she works as a sonographer for one of the top ten medical facilities in the nation and lives on the California central coast in beautiful wine country with her husband and two daughters.
FEVER is currently available for sale, to be followed by BLAZE in October.  I can't imagine that they'll be able to top the FEVER cover!
Dr. Alyssa Foster will admit to a bad boy fetish…

But when she finds herself face to face with a convicted murderer with determination for freedom and an eye on her as his get out of jail free card, Alyssa knows she’s in deep trouble…. Not just because Teague Creek is a prisoner desperate for freedom, but because his every touch makes her desperate for more.

A man with a life sentence has nothing to lose…

Teague Creek has one shot at freedom, but his plan to escape with a hostage develops a fatal flaw: Alyssa. On the run from both the law and deadly undercover operatives who know of his strange abilities, he needs to avoid trouble, but every heated kiss tells him the fire between them could be just as devastating as the flames that changed him forever.
Joan is very kindly offering a copy of FEVER to one lucky reader.  Just leave a comment here today to enter!
In addition, you can enter her giveaway of either a COLOR NOOK or KINDLE FIRE!  Enter here: http://joanswan.com/giveaways/blog-tour-ereader/

Welcome, Joan!
A big thanks to Mystery Lover’s Kitchen for having me over.  I’m a follower and a big fan, sharing many of their luscious recipe posts Twitter while wishing I had time to try more of them out myself!  So I’m exciting to be there to share one of my own.
Not much eating goes on in my debut paranormal romantic suspense, FEVER.  My hero and heroine are too busy running—from cops, undercover operatives, private investigators.  Who has time to eat?
Though, during a breather at a mountain cabin, my hero makes breakfast.  Blueberry pancakes are on the menu, so I thought I’d bring you an awesome blueberry pancake recipe, along with a few tips for perfecting your own pancakes. 
But first…a little excerpt from that section of FEVER:
“How could you possibly…?  Where did you get all this…?”  Alyssa’s stomach rumbled so loud it drowned out the still-sizzling griddle.  She put a hand over her belly, her cheeks pinking to a beautiful hue.  “Oh, my God.  I didn’t realize how hungry I was until I saw this food.”
Teague sat and forked steaming pancakes onto his plate.  Alyssa set her brush on the counter and pulled out a chair.  She heaped two ladlefuls of scrambled eggs onto her plate, plucked up four strips of thick-sliced bacon then started in on the pancakes.
 “Eggs,” she mumbled around her food.  “Where did you get eggs?”
“They’re powdered.  You’ve got to be damn good and hungry if you’re eating those without noticing.  Your eyes are about times the size of your stomach.”
She pointed at the dark circles embedded in the hotcakes.  “What are these?”
“Blueberries.”
She smirked at him.  “These can’t be from a powder.”
“No, those are from the freezer.  You don’t get out much, do you doctor?”
“Ha-ha.”  Alyssa clopped off a chunk of butter and slathered it over the cakes, gushed on syrup and butchered them as she tried to cut them into bite-sized pieces.  Then she heavily salted her eggs.  Once the preparations were done, she started eating.  Or rather devouring. 
With a strip of bacon in one hand, her fork in the other, she started a two-handed method of eating Teague had never seen outside a firehouse.  A lopsided grin pulled at his lips as he watched. 
She flicked and absent glance his way.  “What?”
He chuckled, reached across the table and wiped a smudge of syrup from the corner of her mouth with his knuckle.  “You look like a chipmunk hording for winter.”
She scowled.  “Mind your own food and leave me alone.”
Once she’d demolished the quadruple stack of cakes, she reached for more. 
“For a doctor, you aren’t very heart healthy.” 
She looked up at him through her lashes with a don’t-start expression.  “At the moment, the longevity of my life based on my diet isn’t among my top concerns.”
Her quip brought their reality into focus and punched a hole in Teague’s distraction. He set down his fork and started clearing the table.
“Hey.”  Alyssa grabbed the edge of the bowl holding the scrambled eggs.  “I’m not done with that.”
He set it back down, shaking his head.  “You eat as much as two of my biggest firefighters.  You’re going to make yourself sick.”

Teague’s Blueberry Buttermilk Pancakes

INGREDIENTS
Dry Ingredients:
·       2 cups all purpose flour (you can also divide this among all purpose and cake flour)
·       ½ teaspoon salt
·       ½ teaspoon baking soda
·       ½ teaspoon baking powder
·       2 Tbsp sugar
·       1 teaspoon cinnamon
·       ½ teaspoon nutmeg
Other ingredients:
·       2 large eggs
·       1 ½ cups buttermilk
·       3 Tbsp warm melted butter
·       1 cup blueberries
·       Cooking spray or vegetable oil
METHOD
Step 1
·       Whisk together the dry ingredients in a large bowl.
·       In a separate bowl, whisk the eggs, then whisk in the buttermilk. *Perfect pancake tip #1*
·       Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and combine with whisk.
·       Mix only until the batter just comes together.
·       Whisk in the melted butter.
·       Do not over-mix! *Perfect pancake tip #2*
·        
Step 2
·       Heat a flat griddle or large pan. *Perfect pancake tip #3*
·       Spray the pan with non-stick cooking spray or brush with vegetable oil. *Perfect pancake tip #4*
·       Ladle the pancake batter onto the griddle to the desired size *Perfect pancake tip #5*
·       Sprinkle the blueberries into the pancake on the griddle. *Perfect pancake tip #6*
·       Flip when cooked on that side *Perfect pancake tip #7*
·       Cook another minute or two
·       Serve hot

Perfect Pancake Tips
1.     Use a large whisk to mix the ingredients until the dry ingredients are just mixed in. The large whisk allows for more air to be whipped into the batter resulting in light and fluffy pancakes.
2.     Don't overbeat the batter or you will have flat, tough, chewy cakes. If you have time, refrigerate the batter for 30 minutes before you start cooking the pancakes.
3.     Heat the griddle until drops of water dance and evaporate immediately. If your griddle has a temperature control, heat it to 375 degrees F.
4.     Using butter in your batter and cooking spray on your pan will result in a golden brown, buttery pancake without any burning.
5.     Use a 1/4 cup measuring cup to pour the batter onto the hot griddle. Pour quickly, keeping at least a 2" space between each pancake. 
6.     Wait to add blueberries until the batter has already been poured on the griddle - this will keep them from bleeding into batter.
7.     Let the pancakes cook until the edges start to look dry and bubbles form on the uncooked surface. Don't move the pancakes before this, because they will just break apart. Handling the pancake too much with make it tough.
8.     Use a long handled spatula and carefully slide it under each pancake. Using your wrist, quickly flip the pancakes.
9.     Serve with melted butter, real maple syrup and sprinkled with powdered sugar.

If you weren’t counting calories, what would your all time favorite breakfast be?

40 comments:

  1. Oh yum ... I love pancakes! I keep wanting to get a griddle, and with this recipe, I might be able to justify it. :)

    Congratulations on your forthcoming release!

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    1. Yes! Now that's a perfect excuse to buy new kitchen ware if I've ever heard one!! GO!! BUY!! NOW!! Enjoy!

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  2. Well that was a Good Morning Surprise ... LOL....

    And thank you for the yummy pancake recipe ;)!


    Congratulations from me also on your upcoming release of Blaze!

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    1. Thanks Shawn...a sweet morning welcome! Oh, and the pancakes are yummy too. :)

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  3. Your book sounds amazing. Pancakes do to. A few adjustments for gluten free and I can eat them

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    1. Oh, awesome!! Yes, lots of gluten free recipes now!

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  4. That sounds delicious...and so does Teague! My all time favorite breakfast would have to be a smorgasbord-croissants, fruit salad, bagels and cream cheese, bacon...lots of bacon...biscuits and gravy, mimosas...drat, now I'm hungry with none of those items available.

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    1. Oh, yes...bacon! I absolutely could not leave the bacon out of this breakfast! And the DH loves biscuits and gravy.

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  5. Thanks for joining us today, Joan! I don't think I'll ever look at blueberry pancakes quite the same way again. I'll have your cover on my mind! Love your pancake tips!

    ~ Krista

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  6. What a tasty book...in so many ways! :) And these pancakes sound delish!

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  7. Not sure what's yummier...the pancakes or our hero! Can I have both?

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  8. Your book sounds SO good, cant wait to get to town and buy it.Thanks
    smyrly@hotmail.com

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  9. LOL! Bad boys - in fiction and on the griddle. I'm loving both. It's wonderful to see you in our Kitchen today, Joan, and BIG congrats on your romantic suspense debut. FEVER looks like one hot read. Woot!

    ~ Cleo

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    1. Well said, Cleo!! Thank you for the warm welcome!

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  10. If calories aren't to be counted, I adore biscuits smothered in sausage gravy, dribbled with Tabasco, and sprinkled with chopped a mix of chopped pasley and a bit of scallion. All of this is washed down with black coffee.

    That said, I love pancakes and will be trying out your recipe and the tips.

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    1. Oh, yum Lil! My DH is going to love those little extras to his biscuits and gravy!

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  11. Those pancakes sound yummy- I will have to try out the recipe. Too bad I can't have the guy on the book cover make them for me! ;)
    Fever looks like a great book. I would love to read it!

    debbie at burdeen dot com

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    1. I know, right? You and me both, Debbie! He'd be quite a distraction in the kitchen!

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  12. Blueberry pancakes are one of my favorite breakfast foods---now if I could just get Teague to join me for breakfast!
    suefarrell.farrell@gmail.com

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    1. Seriously! If you figure it out Sue, let me know!!

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  13. To start great coffee, then eggs, bacon, english muffins, home fries, and more coffee. I think I would add a side of those luscious sounding pancakes too. Dee

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    1. Dee, you are SO making me hungry! (And I just ate lunch!)

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  14. Boy, he sounds good enough to eat! (Did I say that out loud?)

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    Replies
    1. ROTFLMAO! You're not the only one. You just happened to write it down, too!

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  15. Oh yum! Now my mouth is watering. Too bad it's dinner time here and we're having chicken. The pancakes sound SO much better ;).

    vsloboda(at)gmail(dot)com

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    1. Dang! Maybe breakfast tomorrow (or dinner! I LOVE having breakfast for dinner!)

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  16. Just had pizza bread on herbed bread.. but damn now I want pancakes.. Mmm..

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  17. I like pancakes but I love french toast! With lots of butter & syrup. I love to get them from room service!

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    1. Okay, Juliet, time for me to fess up -- I would have had Teague make French toast, because it's my favorite too (with, yeah, all that butter and syrup) but he wouldn't have had the ingredients in a cabin closed up for the weekend. The pancakes I could manage between cupboards, freezer and water :)

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  18. For me, it would be breakfast in an English castle with eggs, ham, bacon, sausage, corned beef hash, fried tomatoes, chips,and muffins with jam and, I'd be willing to try, Kedgeree but not kippers. We are talking fiction here, right.

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  19. I love belgian waffles with blueberries and strawberries... I also enjoy pancakes with blueberries. I am at work and i saw your sexy guy on the cover and my sergeant walks by me and says, what are you looking at, i said something yummy that i feel like putting the fan on! lol.

    Looking forward to reading your book. :)

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    1. LOLOL, ooops!! Sorry I almost got you in trouble! Glad your sergeant was understanding!

      I too love Belgian waffles. Depending on the restaurant, I'd rather have the waffle than the pancake, but generally my preference runs French toast, pancakes, waffle.

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  20. I love waffles with cream chesse and strawberry on them. And the book cover does not look bad at all. LoL. Nothing like a great breakfust and a good looking man.

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  21. Congrats on your new release .. And thanks for the amazing pancake recipe I made them and they came out fabulous

    DolphinBaby1369@aol.com

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