Breakfast: Spinach, wild mushroom and gruyere pancakes
Transform a plain pancake into a hearty brunch or supper by piling it high with garlicky mushrooms, lightly wilted spinach and nutty gruyère. Crack over an egg and you have yourself a veritable feast.
- Preparation time: 10 minutes
- Cooking time: 15 minutes
- Total time: 25 minutes
Serves: 2
Ingredients
25g salted butter
125g mixed exotic mushrooms
1 garlic clove, crushed
80g spinach
¼ batch pancake batter (see below)
2 large eggs
2 tbsp crème fraîche
30g gruyère, grated
small bunch chives
PANCAKE BATTER
100g plain flour
2 eggs
300ml milk
Method
1. Melt the butter in a frying pan over a medium heat until foaming. Halve any large mushrooms, then add all of them to the pan and fry for 4-5 minutes, until beginning to brown. Add the garlic and cook for 3 minutes, then add the spinach, stirring until wilted. Season, then keep warm until ready to serve.
2. Cook 1 pancake following the method (below) then, after you’ve flipped it, crack an egg into the centre and cover with a lid. Cook for 2-3 minutes, until the egg white is set and the yolk is cooked to your liking. Slide the pancake onto a warm serving plate. Add a dollop of crème fraîche and top with ½ the mushrooms and spinach. Sprinkle over ½ the gruyère, scatter with some chopped chives and season with a grinding of black pepper. Repeat with a second pancake and serve straight away.
PANCAKE METHOD
1. To make the batter, put the flour, eggs and a little of the milk in a large bowl and whisk together until smooth. Gradually whisk in the remaining milk to make a runny batter. (Alternatively, put all the ingredients in a blender and whizz until smooth.) Cover and set aside until ready to use (ideally chill it overnight) – or cook straight away.
2. Put a large non-stick frying pan over a medium heat, then test the pan by ladling in a very small amount of batter. It should take around 1 minute to brown on the bottom. If it browns too quickly, lower the temperature slightly; raise the temperature if it cooks too slowly and becomes rubbery. Discard (or eat!) the test pancake.
3. When the pan is at the right temperature, add a small knob of butter followed by a ladleful of batter. Swirl the pan to coat the base, then leave the pancake to cook for 1 minute. Flip and repeat on the other side, or until cooked through.
This recipe first appeared in Waitrose & Partners Food, February 2020 issue. Download the Waitrose & Partners Food app for the full issue
