Sweet Potato Pancakes

It’s nearly Pancake Day and I’ve been avidly testing out my pancake recipes. Actually, who am I kidding? I love pancakes and we eat them nearly every weekend!

While plain pancakes are great, I love adding different ingredients to them to give them a healthy twist.

Sweet potatoes are wonderful to add to pancakes. They add a lovely moistness and a depth of flavour, especially with the cinnamon.

Makes 15-20 pancakes

What you need:

200g plain flour

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp ground cinnamon

15g melted butter

200g steamed sweet potato

2 eggs, separated

200ml almond milk

1/2 tsp olive oil

How to make it: 

1. Peel and roughly chop the sweet potato. Steam until they are soft and tender. Put them into a bowl, mash and set aside to cool.
2. Melt the butter under low heat, ensuing it doesn’t begin to brown. Set aside when melted.
3. Combine all the dry ingredients into a bowl. Mix until the flour, baking soda and cinnamon are fully combined.
4. In a separate bowl, combine the mashed sweet potato, egg yolks, almond milk and melted butter.
5. Whisk the egg whites until they form foamy peaks. This helps make the pancakes light and fluffy. Set aside.
6. Form a well in the middle of the dry mixture and slowly add the wet mixture, gradually mixing them all together until they form a smooth, thick batter.
7. Slowly fold in the egg whites to add more air to the batter. Leave to stand for a few minutes.
8. Put your cast-iron pan on your stove on medium heat.
9. Turn your oven on to 170C.
10. Take your olive oil and brush it on to the surface of the pan so it’s lightly coated.
11. Take an ice cream scoop and add heaped portions of the batter to the pan. Depending on the size of your pan, you should be able to make 3 or 4 pancakes at a time, taking care to keep them evenly spaced.
12. Let them cook for 2 minutes or until they start bubbling on the surface. Flip them over and cook for 1-2 more minutes.  Repeat until all of the batter has been cooked.
13. While you’re cooking the pancakes, put the already cooked pancakes on to a plate and slide them into the oven to keep warm, covering them with tin foil so they don’t overcook.
14. Serve with a dollop of maple butter or maple syrup. You can also add some chopped banana or fresh blueberries.
15. Enjoy!