Buttermilk pancakes

Remember what I said about breakfast in my house? We love it. In fact, I think three of the five foods my son will actually eat on a regular basis are bacon, omelettes, and pancakes. He loves pancakes so much that I have to much extras on the weekends so that we can pop them in the toaster for him for weekday breakfasts (they keep surprisingly well for this purpose).

I have to give credit to my sister Joy's mother-in-law for this recipe. Until Frances taught Joy how to make these pancakes, we were all really waffle fans, and just tolerated pancakes. Now I eat pancakes almost every weekend.

I think it goes without saying, but these are best with real maple syrup...

Buttermilk Pancakes

2 cups flour
2 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
2 eggs (3 if they are medium-sized ones)
2 cups cultured nonfat buttermilk, plus some extra
2 tablespoons melted butter

Sift together flour, sugar, baking soda, and salt.

Stir together eggs and buttermilk. Mix butter into liquid slowly, then pour liquids into flour mixture. (I usually skip this step and just dump the eggs and buttermilk into the flour at the same time, then use the pan that I'm going to cook the pancakes in to melt the butter, then I whisk that into the batter just before cooking.) Stir well.

Add a little more buttermilk if necessary to get to a smooth, not-too-thick but not-too-thin texture. For me, the texture is right when the batter spreads evenly in the pan, but still needs just the slightest spreading with the back of a ladle.

Heat a frying pan to just below-medium temperature. Melt just a little butter in the pan to coat the bottom. Pour some batter in the pan and smooth out a little with the spoon so that it isn’t too thick. When large bubbles appear on the surface, it is ready to be turned over (don't wait too long!). Serve hot!

Nutrition info:

For one 6-inch pancake: 130 calories, 3.3g fat (1.7g saturated fat), 20.1g carbs (4.1g sugars), 4.6g protein

Contributed by Gwyneth

Ham and potato casserole

While it hasn't been particularly cold this winter here in Dublin, who can resist a good casserole on a gray, drizzly day? This dish is pretty versatile, and we often use whatever leftover meat we have on hand, although I do think ham is best, (but smoked sausage is also delicious). I have been known to replace the onions with leeks (very tasty) or sometimes I will also throw in a bit of cauliflower or brocolli. But it's also delicious prepared exactly as described; this is total comfort food at its best.

Ham and Potato Casserole

½ pound cooked ham, cut into medium-small cubes
2 teaspoons dijon mustard
1 large onion, thinly sliced
2 tablespoons butter
2 pounds potatoes, medium dice, boiled
bread crumbs, mixed with a little melted butter

Sauce:
2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons flour
2 cups milk (or 1 cup milk and 1 cup cooking water from potatoes)
8 oz cheddar cheese (could also use gruyere or swiss, or a combination of cheeses)

Heat oven to 350°. Toss ham with mustard in a medium sized casserole dish. Let sit while you cook the onion in 2 tbsp butter and a bit of salt and pepper until translucent. Mix onions in with ham, then gently fold in cooked potatoes.

Make sauce: Melt butter over medium-low heat, add flour, then add the milk (to lighten the dish up a bit, you can also make the sauce using the water that you used to cook the potato in), whisking quickly to avoid lumps). Let thicken a bit, then add cheese. Cook until sauce has thickened, 2 or 3 minutes.

Pour sauce over ham mixture, and stir very gently just until combined. Top with buttered breadcrumbs. Bake for 45 minutes.

Recipe from Gwyneth, from a potato cookbook I found years ago