#MapleVLemon - The Pancake Day Challenge

Today is Pancake Day, the one day of the year when eating an excess of pancakes is deemed acceptable.  Freddy and Kizzy love pancakes and need no encouragement when it comes to consuming them for breakfast, lunch or dinner.  Making a big batch of pancake batter and cooking them up for the family is a tradition that we really enjoy.  The kids wait patiently for each pancake to be tossed and served before adding their own topping.  

This year we have taken part in the #MapleVLemon challenge with Clarks.  I gave everybody a choice between traditional lemon juice and white sugar or maple syrup as a topping for their pancakes that we made for a lovely Pancake Day brunch. 

Maple syrup contains 45% less sugar gram for gram than refined sugar, making it the healthier choice.  But would it prove to be the most popular choice for my family?

I had both of the toppings laid out on the table and it didn't take long for both Kizzy and Freddy to choose maple syrup as their topping of choice, squeezing it liberally on top of their pancakes.  In fact, the lemon juice and sugar option remained redundant.  The children loved the taste, texture and sweetness of the maple syrup. And Freddy loved getting to squeeze it out of the bottle.

I think it is safe to say that in the #MapleVLemon challenge, my family definitely took the side of Team Maple.  Both Ian and myself also opted for the maple syrup, which is an ingredient I use quite regularly in recipes.  

Of the eight pancakes we made, the maple syrup to lemon juice ratio was 8:0.  A resounding success for our Clarks Maple Syrup.

For some other ideas for pancake toppings and fillings, take a look at this blog post I previously wrote for Clarks Maple Syrup with recipe ideas for breakfast, dinner and dessert pancakes, all featuring maple syrup as an ingredient.


Posts written in conjunction with Clark's Maple Syrup but all opinions and recipe ideas are my own.

Recipe Ideas for Pancake Day #MovetoMaple

Pancake Day is a great excuse to indulge in delicious pancakes for breakfast, dinner and tea. When I was a child, the only way pancakes were served was with lemon juice and sugar, but thankfully things have evolved since then. Although lemon juice and sugar remains a popular choice of topping, there are so many other ways we can enjoy pancakes. Pancakes are versatile, perfect in both sweet and savoury courses. They can be paired with fruits, vegetables, cheese and other ingredients to create some fantastic recipes. 

Clarks Maple Syrup have challenged me to come up with some pancake based meals for my family using their maple syrup.  I received a pancake day hamper which included a 500ml bottle of the Maple Syrup to use. I was more than happy to join in as we love maple syrup!  It's a natural sweetener made from the sap of the Maple tree, with a delicious rich flavour, perfect for pancakes. 

When it comes to Pancake Day and the #MaplevLemon debate, maple syrup wins hand down for us. Plus, gram for gram, maple syrup contains 45% less sugar than refined white sugar, making it the healthier option.

Using a basic recipe you can make the perfect pancake and adapt it in lots of ways.  I also use the super easy, no weigh American pancake recipe using one cup of SR flour, one cup of milk and one egg beaten together (watch Kizzy making them in this video here!)  Pancakes are also very cheap to make, making them a great value option when on a budget.

Here are some of my Pancake Day recipe ideas all featuring Clarks Maple Syrup:

Banana, Blueberry and Maple Pancakes are a perfect breakfast pancake.  The American style pancake batter contains mashed banana and blueberries in it, and the topping of soft fruits, walnuts and Clarks Maple Syrup is absolutely delicious.  It's a great way  to start the day, containing lots of plant based goodness packed with nutrients and antioxidants.

For a fantastic main meal, add some defrosted chopped frozen spinach (squeeze the water out of it once defrosted), garlic granules and black pepper to the batter to make some tasty, savoury, Spinach Pancakes.  They can be filled with a Canadian Vegetable Chilli, which is a spicy, Quorn mince and five bean chilli, which has Clarks Maple Syrup added (this mix of spicy and sweet really excites the taste buds!)  The stuffed pancake is then topped with Mexicana Cheese and finished off in the oven until the cheese bubbles.  Really delicious!  You can experiment with different fillings to suit your own personal taste.

For a more traditional dessert pancake, simply serve with maple syrup and butter, but you can jazz up a pancake by making a small batch of coloured batter and piping on detail.  You can use a piping bag or even an old tomato sauce bottle to draw on a face or a love heart on the top of the pancake just before flipping. You could even write a message or a name on your pancake.

We made one incorporating strawberries for a bit of fruity fun!  Simply squirt over some syrup to serve.  They are yummy served with a spoonful of ice cream on the side.

Pancakes really are a lot of fun to make and eat and are just so versatile.  My kids love pancakes in all their different guises, sweet, savoury, thick and thin. Plus they can help make them too.

This Pancake Day why not take the #LemonvMaple challenge and maybe make the #MovetoMaple. You can join in with these hashtags on Twitter and follow @Clarks_It for some Pancake Day fun!

Find out more about Clarks at www.clarksit.co.uk.

Vanilla Maple and Pecan Cookie Recipe

These cookies have a very soft, light and airy texture, which is quite unusual but they are very tasty.  They are quite cake-like and the top is sticky with Clarks Vanilla Maple Syrup.  (They have been adapted from the Cookies Galore book by J. Bellefontaine.)

Ingredients

175g Plain Flour

1 Teaspoon Baking powder

1/2 Teaspoon of bicarbonate of soda

85g of butter

75g sugar

1 beaten egg

50 g of Pecans roughly chopped

4 tablespoons of Clark's Maple Syrup with Vanilla (plus a little extra to brush over once cooked)

Method

Rub the butter into the flour, bicarb and baking powder.

Stir in sugar and chopped nuts.

Add egg and Maple Syrup to form a stiff mixture.

Blob tablespoonfuls onto a baking sheet.

Cook at GM4 for 15-20 minutes.

Once cooked, remove from oven and brush over some more Maple Syrup whilst still hot.

I received the three bottles of Clarks Maple Syrup: Original, Pure Canadian and Vanilla to try out.  They are perfect served on pancakes, over ice cream, with porridge or in baking.  The rich, natural flavour is sweet and delicious and also has Superfood status so you don't have to feel guilty about enjoying it!

• A tablespoon of maple syrup contains 52 calories, that’s fewer calories than sugar and honey
• An excellent source of manganese which provides energy and antioxidants
• A good source of zinc which helps protect the immune system
• May help to support reproductive health and lower the risk of prostate cancer
• Contains compounds which could help manage Type 2 diabetes.
• It settles digestive issues which can occur after eating processed sweeteners
• It helps with muscle recovery and keeps bones strong
• It also includes important nutrients such as iron, calcium and potassium
• It helps to keep your white blood cells up which help protect against coughs and colds
• May promote a healthy liver

Find out more at www.clarksmaplesyrup.co.uk