Ricotta Hotcakes with Honeycomb Butter
To ensure your hotcakes are deliciously fluffy, it’s really important to choose the right flour and prepare it properly. I use soft cake flour and I always double sift both the flour and baking powder. Prioritise the quality of your ricotta. I like to use Westcombe ricotta from Somerset. Although you won’t necessarily be able to taste the cheese flavour of the ricotta in your pancakes, it will add an extra sweetness and is also key to their soft texture.
For the honeycomb:
Light-flavoured Oil for greasing 150g Caster Sugar 75g Golden Syrup 1 1/2 tsp of Bicarbonate of Soda
For the honeycomb butter:
250g Unsalted Butter, softened 2 tbsp Runny Honey 90g Honeycomb, above recipe or shop-bought, crushed
For the hotcakes:
300g Ricotta 175ml Milk 4 Eggs, separated 125g Plain Flour 1 tsp Baking Powder 50g Butter
To serve:
Icing Sugar 1 Banana, halved and sliced lengthways
To make the honeycomb:
Lightly oil a 20cm cake tin. Place the sugar and syrup in a heavy-based pan over medium-low heat.
Swirl the pan to dissolve the sugar, then stir with a spatula until dissolved – this might take 10-15 minutes, so be patient and do not let the mixture bubble at this stage.
Turn up the heat, use a sugar thermometer if you have one, and heat the mixture to 155°C or until a dark amber caramel.
Remove from the heat and quickly stir in the bicarbonate of soda until golden and foamy. Be careful not to overstir: you want to retain as much air in the mixture as possible.
Carefully pour into the tin. Leave to harden and cool for 90 minutes. Break into chunks and crush with a rolling pin.
To make the honeycomb butter:
Blend the ingredients in a food processor until smooth.
Roll into a log, wrap in greaseproof paper and chill in the fridge for 2 hours.
To make the hotcakes:
Mix together the ricotta, milk and egg yolks.
Sift the flour, baking powder and a pinch of salt into another bowl. Add the ricotta mixture and stir to combine.
Beat the egg whites in a clean dry bowl until stiff peaks form. Fold into the batter in two batches with a large metal spoon.
Melt a little butter in a large non-stick frying pan. Add 2 tablespoons of batter per hotcake, cooking in batches.
Cook over low-medium heat for 2 minutes, or until golden underneath. Turn and cook the other side until golden and cooked through.
Serve dusted with icing sugar, with the sliced banana and honeycomb butter.
ingredients
Light-flavoured Oil
Caster Sugar
Golden Syrup
Bicarbonate of Soda
Unsalted Butter
Honey
Honeycomb
Ricotta
Milk
Eggs
Plain Flour
Baking Powder