I welcome yuo and giv to you an truly American style pancake recipe. It's well known on Discusscooking and many other places, bot on and off the internet, my home tow in Michigan. and our sister city in Ontario. Here is my "from scratch" pancake recipe, to be served with your favorite sweet toppings, sliced fruit, r syrup:
Chief Longwind's fluffy, and moist pancakes:
There was a time when my Dad would take me to my grandparents’ house. Now you have to understand. I was a skinny and generally small of stature, so they were always trying to feed me. Of course, since I had boundless energy and used all of it, I had an enormous appetite. I would often receive for breakfast a bowl of Sugar Smacks, or a bowl of oatmeal, followed by 2 poached eggs, from the egg-poaching pan of course and served atop a piece of toast, and finally, either pancakes or waffles.
When the final course was pancakes, my Grandpa would serve them up as he sang; “Pancakes are delicious, pancakes are so fine, I oughta know, cause I like ‘em so, that I eat ‘em all the time.” He always had a big grin on his face as he served them up.
Of course, the pancakes I got in those fondly remembered days came from a ready made mix, usually Aunt Jemima brand. But to a skinny kid, they were gourmet treats.
In honor of my Dad, and my Grandparents, I chose for my signature dish, pancakes. Of course mine are far different. But I still sing that little ditty that my Grandpa used to sing when I dish them up. “Pancakes are delicious, pancakes are so fine...” I even made everyone at out church sing it before I would serve them my pancakes at one of our annual pancake breakfasts. That was fun.
So here’s the recipe that I perfected (with help from my eldest daughter), and serve every year by request to better than a hundred folks.
Ingredients: Dry Ingredients:
1 cup all-purpose flour
2 tbs. Sugar
½ tsp. Salt
3 tsp. Double Acting Baking Powder (You must use Double Acting Baking Powder to get the best texture)
Wet Ingredients:
3/4 plus 1/8 cup milk
1 large Egg
3 tbs. Cooking oil
Preheat the griddle. Place the dry ingredients into a large bowl and stir together with a wire whisk or mixing spoon. Add the remaining ingredients and again stir until mixed. Do not stir until all the lumps are gone as this will over-mix the batter. There should be small lumps. These will dissappear while cooking the pancakes.
Cook over medium heat until the bubbles close slowly as they rise and pop. Do not cook until the bubbles stay open as this will dry out the pancake. And most importantly, Don’t squish them down with your cake turner or spatula. When they are ready to flip, turn them over and cook for about 1 minute more. Remove from the pan and serve immediately. If you must cook up enough for a bunch of people, keep them warm by stacking in a large-rectangular cake pan and placing the pan into a 120' oven covered with a clean kitchen towel.
You can add blueberries to the uncooked batter without changing anything else. However, if you add acidic fruits such as strawberries, rasp berries, or pineapple, you will need to add ½ tsp. Baking soda to the batter to balance the acid from the fruit.
The above recipe makes enough pancakes for two people. You can easily enlarge the recipe by simply multiplying the ingredients by the same number. That is, if you double the flour, multiply all other ingredients by two.
Here is a second recipe for you, a seasoned flour recipe for coating chicken, The cooking method will give you chicken so juicy and tender, it will squirt you when you bite into it.
It also works well with pork:
Chief Longwind's Best Seasoned Flour Recipe:
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1 1/2 tsp. kosher salt
1/2 tsp. granulated garlic powder
1/8 tsp. powdered ginger
1/2 tsp. marjoram
1/4 tsp. rubbed sage
1/4 tsp. ground thyme
1/2 tsp. black pepper
1/4 tsp. turmeric
1/8 tsp. red pepper
1 dash Chinese 5-spice powder
1/8 tsp. celery seed
1/4 tsp. granulated onion powder
In a seperate bowl, make an egg-wash from 1 large egg whisked with 1/4 cup water.
Preheat 2 inches of oil in a frying pan until fragrant. Turn heat to medium flame.
Skin the chicken thighs and dredge in seasoned flour. Dip in the egg-wash, and then again in the seasoned flour. Shake excess coating from the chicken and place in hot oil. Don't crown the pan. Fry on each side for 2 minutes. Remove the chicken to a foil-lined pan and place into the oven. Bake for 20 minutes. Serve immediately.
And finally, my prize winning white chili recipe:
2009 United Way Chili Cook-off, 1rst-place Prize-Winning Recipe, White Chili Category – Chief Longwind's White Chili
In past years, I made this same basic recipe, but with chicken or pork as the meat, and with more potent hot peppers. So this year, I tweaked the herbs and spices, changed to ground beef, and reduced the heat. Everyone who has tried this recipe has fallen in love with it. It’s not as pretty as red chili, but it sure does taste great. Try this recipe on a cool fall night. It’ll warm you to your toes.
Ingredients:
* 24 oz. (3 cups) Great Northern Beans, cooked
* 24 oz. Pinto Beans, cooked
* ½ cup Salsa Verde (available in most grocery stores)
* 1 large white onion, diced
* ½ cup chopped green onion
* 1 tbs. Sriracha brand Pepper Sauce
* 2 tbs. Coriander, ground
* 1 tbs. Cumin, ground
* 2 stalks Celery, sliced with leaves
* 1 ½ lb. Ground Beef (80/20 grind) (this would also be great with ground, or cubed goat or lamb)
* 2 tsp. Kosher Salt, or 1 ½ tsp. table salt
* 3 tbs. fresh Cilantro, chopped
* 2, one-inch Serrano Chile Peppers, minced
* ½ tsp. white pepper, ground (or you can use black pepper)
* 2 cups heavy cream (1 pint)
* ½ cup Masa Harina (can be found next to the corn meal at
your grocers)
* 3 tbs. cooking oil
Heat the oil in a large pan. Add the diced onion. Sauté over medium heat while stirring until the onions soften slightly Add the garlic and meat. Brown the meat, then add the garlic, herbs, and spices. Let cook for about 5 minutes to allow the flavors to develop. Add the remaining ingredients, except for the Masa Harina, and reduce heat to a simmer. Cover and cook for two hours, stirring every twenty minutes or so to prevent the chili from sticking. Taste the chili and correct the seasoning to your taste (add more salt if needed).
Place the Masa Harina into an eight ounce cup along with just enough water to form a thick paste. Stir with a fork until all the lumps are removed. Slowly stir in two tbs. more water. This is called slurry. Stir the Masa Harina slurry into the chili, and again cover. Let it all cook over low heat for an additional ten minutes. Stir and test to see if the chili is thick enough for you. If so, then you are ready to serve up a bowl- full or two to your family. But remember, like all great chili, this is even better the next day. So if you can, cool it in an ice bath and place in the refrigerator for tomorrow’s dinner. Serve it with some good cornbread, or nachos.
Temember, recipes are starting points. They inspire and give you an idea how to make something. It's up to you to change the recipes to fit your own tastes. Love having you here.
Cgief Longwind of the North
Congratulations on the new arrival! 
