&
Flour power
More than just the advertising property of an instant lemon juice firm, the pancake is a humble dish with an expansive history. James Smart traces its story and uncovers a whole world of celebrations.
or a simple dish. pancakes — essentially just fried batter —
come in a whole stack of
varieties. The bases can be mixed with fried pork (Sweden). made from carrots and cabbage (Indonesia) or fermented sourdough buckwheat (Ethiopia). You can fill them with duck. ice cream. berries or jelly. (‘ooked with at raising agent. they puff up like American or Scotch pancakes. Some radicals even bake them in the oven — and
THE PERFECT
PANCAKE RECIPE
from Seumas Mclnnes
of Café Gandolfi
In our house pancakes are often more for breakfast with crispy bacon and maple Syrup or for a snack late at night. We have no formal recipe for Our pancakes: the batter must always be of dropping conSistency and ready to have alternative ingredients added. From grated apple and cinnamon to sweetcorn and chilli, no formality. rust enjOyment. Here is our thrown together recipe that never fails.
8 oz self-raising flour
1 heaped teaspoon baking powder
Pinch of salt
3 oz caster sugar
2 eggs lightly beaten
2 teaspoons oil
1 dessert spoon golden syrup 2oz butter - melted and cooled slightly
1/4 pint milk
Place floor, baking powder. salt and sugar in a bowl. Add the rest of the ingredients and beat With a wooden spoon until smooth. If it is too stiff add incre milk. Take a large tablespoon of batter and place on a pre-heated griddle pan over a medium heat. Turn once the pancake has started to bubble. Eat lots.
‘IOO THE LIST 16 Feb—2 Mar 2006
EAT&DRINK
call them Yorkshire Puddings.
In Christian tradition. pancakes are eaten on Shrove (from ‘shriving‘. the confession of sin) Tuesday to use up eggs and fat. which shouldn't
be eaten during the 40 day stretch of
Lent that follows. and lasts till Easter. Until 800 Al). the Papacy dictated that. on every day barring Sunday (the eastern church got Saturdays off as well) only one meal could be eaten. Animal products were strictly forbidden.
As is often the way with these things. standards slipped. What was a preparation for abstinence is now an excuse for indulgence. Partly because of its shifting date. which is tied to the moon (Shrove Tuesday falls on 28 February in 2006. 20 February in 2007 and 5 February in 2008). and partly because. unlike
THOSE
WHO DO CELEBRATE PANCAKE DAY GIVE IT
THEIR ALL
Easter. it's not tied up with the chocolate industry. not everyone celebrates Pancake Day. Of those who do. though. some give it their all. In Olney. Buckinghamshire. the pancake race has been run almost every year since 1445 (it broke for WWII but not the Wars of the Roses). The contestants (who must be women) dress up as housewives. toss a pancake. run 4l5 yards with their pan. and toss the pancake again
to finish the course. The town of
Liberal in Kansas holds an equivalent event on the same day. and race times are compared. producing a trans-Atlantic champion.
But Pancake Tuesday is a cute little nipper compared with its Francophone equivalent. .\Iardis (iras (‘Fat 'l‘uesday'). In New Orleans. the celebrations mark the fact that two French explorers founded the city on Shrove Tuesday. They might not have predicted that the vast celebration now is best known for a spectacular party at which drunk women flash their breasts at passcrs-by in exchange for a handful of beans. After some doubts. this year’s Mardis (ir‘as is going ahead. with a diverted route and James Belushi and Dan Ackroyd acting as (irand Marshals.
In Rio. the night sees the world‘s largest party reach its climax. The (‘arnival is a similarly secular affair (despite its name. ‘farewell to flesh‘) with its immediate roots in a 19th century tradition of water lights. It draws around two million participants. and gave James Bond no end of trouble in .Ilrmrrr‘ukr'r.
All this makes Scotland‘s celebrations (drop scones. bannocks and the odd game of football) seem admirably restrained. Those wishing we could get rid of the frolics and get back the religion should cock an ear to certain Americans who have been promoting fasting as a way to honour (iod. ‘.\'ot only did the fasting enable us to evict the demons] explains a Canadian poster on an evangelical website. ‘I started to feel the presence of the Holy Spirit within me. talking to me and through me to others.. But wouldn‘t you rather have a nice pancake‘.’
News to nibble on . . .
I Crisp conflt duck with carrot and ginger puree, handmade gnocchi with Italian sausage and chicken pot au feu are among the choices now at the Tron theatre [pictured] in Glasgow. New chef Jamie Donald (who has come across with commercial manager Debby McGregor from the CCA) is responsible tor lifting the bar at the Tron. Among the welcome touches is bread made fresh daily on site. In addition to the rather upmarket sounding dishes, there are staples, too, such as lamb shank Irish stew or bangers and mash. For bookings call the Tron on 0141 552 8587.
I Meanwhile. back in Sauchiehall Street. the Centre for Contemporary Art's cafe appears to have landed a coup of its own by hiring chef Martin Teplitzky. The Aussie transplant put Groucho St Jude's on the {pap initially. although he has been on the go more recently, popping up more often as a consultant than a cook. At CCA. he has his hands on the tools. however. and international influences on European cuisine are apparent in dishes such as shellfish chowder laced with saffron or prosciutto- wrapped chicken breast seasoned with spicy harissa. Call CCA on 0141 332 7959.
I Congratulations to Victoria Chalmers, winner of the James Sankey Award for Excellence in Service 2006. Chalmers is studying full-time for a hospitality honours degree at Queen Margaret University while also toiling part-time at Calistoga restaurant in Edinburgh. She beat some sharp competition in the finals at Oloroso restaurant, where nominees had to serve a three-course lunch to judges who tried to wrong-foot them with some tricky questions about the food and wine, as well as with other difficult customer behaviour. The award is given in honour of the late James Sankey, who co-founded Oloroso with Tony Singh.