Green Pancakes with Lime Butter

As part of the Cookbook of the Month feature for September, here is the first recipe I'd like to share with you from Plenty by Yotam Ottolenghi. This is a delicious weekend brunch recipe. I really wanted to make this for breakfast this morning, however, because I had to work today I decided to make it for dinner instead.. a bit strange, I know!

These pancakes are packed with veggies and flavour and here is what Ottolenghi has to say about them:

This recipe brought lots of compliments round my way after I first published it in 2008. I guess these pancakes are so comforting they somehow take you back to your childhood, when the joy of textures and flavours is still pure and unadulterated. Brunch is an ideal meal for them, served with a salad of seasonal leaves and possibly also a slice of freshly grilled haloumi or a piece of smoked fish.

Green Pancakes with Lime Butter
Serves 3-4

250g spinach, washed
110g self raising flour
1 tbsp baking powder
1 free range egg
50g unsalted butter
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp ground cumin
150ml milk
6 medium spring onione (100g in total), finely sliced
2 fresh green chillies, thinly sliced*
1 free range egg white
oilive oil for frying
* I deseeded mine

Lime Butter
100g unsalted butter, at room temperature
grated zest of 1 lime
1 1/2 tbsp lime juice
1/3 tsp salt
1/2 tsp ground white pepper
1 tbsp chopped coriander
1/2 garlic clove, finely chopped
1/4 tsp chilli flakes


First, make the lime butter. Put the butter in a medium bowl and beat with a wooden spoon until it turns soft and creamy. Stir in the remaining ingredients. Tip everything out on to a sheet of clingfilm and roll into a sausage shape. Twist the ends to seal the flavoured butter. Chill until firm.

Wilt the spinach in a pan with a splash of water. Drain in a sieve and, when cool, queeze hard with your hands to remove as much moisture as possible. Roughly chop and put aside.

For the pancake batter, put the flour, baking powder, whole egg, melted butter, salt, cumin and milk in a mixing bowl, and whisk until smooth. Add the sping onion, chillies and spinach and mix with a fork. Whisk the egg white to soft peaks and carefully fold it in to the batter.

Pour a small amount of oil into a heavy frying pan and place on medium-high heat. For each pancake, ladle 2 tablespoons of batter into the pan and press down gently. You should get smallish pancakes, about 7cm in diameter and 1cm thick. Cook for about 2 minutes on each side, until you get a good golden-green colour. Transfer to kichen paper and keep warm. Continue making pancakes, adding oil to the pan as needed, until the batter is used up.

To serve, pile up three pancakes per person and place a slice of flavoured butter on top to melt.

Stay tuned for more from the Cookbook of the Month!

Ladybird x

Cookbook of the Month - September

If there's one thing a food lover can never have enough of (other than food), it's cookbooks. I could spend hours tucked away in a bookshop leafing through cookbooks, soaking up inspirational new recipes and sumptuous food photography.  It really is a very unique and enjoyable form of literature.. and there should be a term to describe describe it- henceforth I shall refer to this genre as 'Cooklit'!

And so it is with great pleasure that I announce a new feature on Diary of a Ladybird - Cookbook of the Month. At the start of each month I'll announce a feature cookbook. Then during the month, I'll tell you a little about the book and its author and I'll bring you some recipes from the book so that you can get a feel for sort of food that the book presents. If you have tried the book, or if there are certain recipes from the book you'd like me to showcase, I would love to hear from you :)

Without further ado, here is the first instalment of Cookbook of the Month. The selection September is...

Plenty by Yotam Ottolenghi

[Text from back cover]

With his fabulous restaurants and bestselling Ottolenghi Cookbook, Yotam Ottolenghi has established himself as one of the most exciting new talents in the world of cookery and food writing. This exclusive collection of vegetarian recipes was inspired by his column 'The New Vegetarian' for the Guardian's Weekend magazine, and features both brand-new recipes and dishes first devised for that column.

Yotam's food inspiration comes from his strong Mediterranean background and his unapologetic love of ingredients. Not a vegetarian himself, his approach to vegetable dishes is wholly original and innovative, based on strong flavours and stunning, fresh combinations. With sections devoted to cooking greens, aubergines, brassicas, rice and cereals, pasta and couscous, pulses, tofu, roots, squashes, onions, fruit, mushrooms and tomatoes, the breadth of colours, tastes and textures is extraordinary.

Featuring vibrant, daring food photography, stunning design, and with Yotam's voice and personality shining through, Ottolenghi Vegetables is a must-have for meat-eaters and vegetarians alike.

Plenty was published in May 2010, much to the delight of Ottolenghi fans across the globe. Boasting 120 enticing recipes, this is a book to inspire.
There is plenty of Plenty to be had, and I can't wait to get started!
 
Stay tuned...
 
Ladybird x