Lemon Ricotta Hotcakes with Blueberry Compote

I don't love pancakes (or hotcakes). They are the last thing I would order at breakfast. But for some reason, watching Curtis Stone eat these on "The Best Thing I Ever Made" made me envious. They looked wonderful. I read that the difference between hotcakes and pancakes are hotcakes have a rising agent in them and puff up when cooked. I wasn't fully convinced that these would be any different then the 'cakes' I've had in the past but because they looked so delicious on TV, I was definitely willing to give them a shot. These ricotta hotcakes were heavenly! By folding egg whites into the batter and adding baking powder, they became incredibly light and fluffy. The blueberry compote added the perfect sweetness!

Lemon Ricotta Hotcakes with Blueberry Compote 

Ingredients 

Blueberry Compote

18 ounces fresh blueberries
1/4 cup sugar
Grated zest and juice of 1 lemon
1/4 cup coarsely chopped fresh mint leaves (optional)

Hotcakes

1 cup fresh ricotta cheese
4 large eggs, separated
3/4 cup buttermilk, shaken
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
Pinch of salt
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup fresh blueberries
Zest of 1 lemon (I added this to give a little lemon flavour)
About 3 tablespoons unsalted butter 

Directions
1. To make the blueberry compote: Combine the blueberries, sugar, lemon zest, and 2 tablespoons of the lemon juice in a medium saucepan over medium heat and cook for 2 minutes, or until the sugar dissolves. (Don't let the berries cook too long or they will become mushy and lose their beautiful shape.) Remove from the heat. Gently stir in the chopped mint if using. Keep warm.
2. To make the hotcakes: Whisk the ricotta and the egg yolks together in a large bowl; then whisk in the buttermilk. Sift the flour, baking powder, and salt into the ricotta mixture. Stir with a whisk until just combined. Add the zest of the lemon and mix in the batter.
3. Using an electric mixer, beat the egg whites and sugar in a large bowl until stiff peaks form. Using a large rubber spatula, gently fold the egg whites through the batter in 2 batches. Gently fold the fresh blueberries into the batter.
4. Melt some butter on a hot griddle pan over medium-low heat. Ladle the batter onto the griddle (you should be able to fit 3 hotcakes at a time) and cook for about 3 minutes per side, or until the hotcakes puff, become golden brown, and are just cooked through.
5. Transfer the hotcakes to plates. Spoon the warm blueberry compote over the hotcakes. Serve immediately.

Eggs in a (Bagel) Hole

I LOVE eggs! Actually, I take that back... I LOVE egg yolks! Anything I can think of with a runny egg yolk, I will make. Yesterday, my friend came over to make brunch. Because of the beautiful food pictures (from below), I needed a runny egg yolk. I thought of egg in a hole but what better than bread with an already existing hole? Perfect! And it was.

Recipe

Eggs in a (Bagel) Hole

Ingredients
1 bagel
1 tbsp butter
2 eggs
handful of grated cheese (anything that melts well, we used old cheddar)
salt and pepper
paprika
chives, chopped

Directions
- Melt the butter in a pan on medium heat.
- Cut your bagel in half and toast it lightly on both sides in the pan.
- Crack each egg in each bagel hole (flat side facing up).
- Sprinkle with salt and pepper.
- Turn on broiler.
- Cover. Let cook for a couple of minutes until the bottom white part looks cooked. The top will still be uncooked.

- Put bagels on a baking sheet and broil for 45 seconds to a minute until the top turns a bit white.
- Sprinkle some cheese on top, covering the bagel and the egg center.
- Broil for another 45 seconds until cheese is melted and bubbly.
- Sprinkle with paprika and fresh chives.

(We served it with breakfast potatoes- boiled, chopped, pan-fried with onions, paprika, cayenne, salt and pepper)

Breakfast Time

I recently went for two heavenly breakfasts. The first was Lawrence on St. Laurent. I had the smoked salmon and scrambled eggs. Where do I start? The creamy, mouthwatering scrambled eggs are topped on crunchy, yet soft french bread. And beside the egg and bread combo are thick pieces of fresh smoked salmon (almost sashimi-like)... so rich and delish! We had a side of 'bubble and squeak' which were very tasty potatoes/homefries. They were crispy and well-done on the outside and pure mush inside. We waited for an hour to get a table. Was it worth it? Well, I'd probably wait until Lawrence was a little less trendy... an hour is a LONG time for a hungry girl to wait for food.

Smoked Salmon and Scrambled Eggs

'Bubble and Squeak' Potatoes

The second place I went to was one of my favorite brunch places, Figaro. I'm sure everything is delicious at Figaro but I ALWAYS have the same two things because they are soooo good. On this particular day I had, Le Brunch. Le Brunch comes with two rolled crepes stuffed with ham, cheese and silky scrambled eggs. A feta and spinach boureka-like pastry, along with fresh fruit comes on the side. It's served with maple syrup, wonderful coffee and freshly squeezed orange juice. It's one of my favourite breakfasts in Montreal. 

Le Brunch