American Blueberry Pancakes

Thick, fluffy griddle cakes studded with wild blueberries, served with warm maple syrup in the New England breakfast tradition

Origin: New England, United States

From the journey of Blueberry.

The American blueberry pancake is the breakfast expression of the wild blueberry harvest, and it is woven into the food culture of New England and the upper Midwest with the same inseparability as the blueberry muffin or the blueberry pie. The combination of wild berries and griddle cakes appears in early American domestic cookery literature from the mid-nineteenth century, when the wild blueberry was still gathered exclusively from natural barrens and swamps rather than cultivated. The pancake served as the domestic vehicle for fresh summer berries in a way that a pie or baked pudding could not: it was quick, made in quantity, and could be served immediately from the griddle. The New England breakfast pancake tradition draws on a specifically American fluffy style derived from the use of buttermilk and bicarbonate of soda rather than the thin crepe tradition of France or the yeasted pancake of Germany. The result is a thick, tender griddle cake with a slightly sour tang from the buttermilk, a soft interior, and burst blueberries that have caramelised slightly against the hot griddle. When made with wild Maine blueberries and finished with genuine Vermont maple syrup, this is one of the most complete and characterful regional breakfast dishes in the American canon.

Ingredients

Dry

200 g plain flour
2 tbsp caster sugar
1.5 tsp baking powder
0.5 tsp bicarbonate of soda
0.5 tsp fine sea salt

Wet

240 ml buttermilk, at room temperature
2 large eggs, at room temperature
2 tbsp melted unsalted butter, plus extra for the griddle
1 tsp vanilla extract

Berries

200 g wild blueberries (fresh or frozen, do not thaw)

To serve

120 ml pure maple syrup, warmed, to serve

Method

Whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda, and salt in a large bowl. In a separate jug, whisk the buttermilk, eggs, melted butter, and vanilla together.
Pour the wet ingredients into the dry and fold together gently until just combined. The batter should be thick, slightly lumpy, and not smooth. Do not overwork it. Leave to rest for 5 minutes.
Heat a heavy griddle or large non-stick frying pan over medium heat. Brush lightly with butter. When the butter foams and subsides, drop large spoonfuls of batter (about 3 tablespoons each) onto the griddle. Immediately scatter 8 to 10 blueberries over each pancake.
Cook until bubbles form and break across the surface of the pancake and the underside is deeply golden, about 2 to 3 minutes. Flip once and cook for a further 1 to 2 minutes until the second side is golden and the pancake is cooked through.
Transfer to a warm plate and repeat with the remaining batter, re-buttering the griddle between batches. Serve immediately with warm maple syrup.

The Gastrographer

Name: American Blueberry Pancakes
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 20 min
Total time: 30 min
Yield: 4
Cuisine: United States
Ingredients: 200 g plain flour; 2 tbsp caster sugar; 1.5 tsp baking powder; 0.5 tsp bicarbonate of soda; 0.5 tsp fine sea salt; 240 ml buttermilk, at room temperature; 2 large eggs, at room temperature; 2 tbsp melted unsalted butter, plus extra for the griddle; 1 tsp vanilla extract; 200 g wild blueberries (fresh or frozen, do not thaw); 120 ml pure maple syrup, warmed, to serve

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Ingredient originTrade or transit route

Became a culinary stapleColonial / trade control