Do you know why we love everything about The Cinnamon Snail?
Just check out this message from Adam and then make these delicious pancakes: “This is exactly what breakfast at the Cinnamon Snail is about. Why would you serve yourself boring plain pancakes? Don’t you love life? Why aren’t you making your kitchen smell like hazelnuts, freshly roasted with bourbon and spices? WHY? Slow your roll—I am sure you are a nice person. So you deserve yummy breakfasts, and the people around you deserve them as well. What about your dad—he thinks your vegan diet is weird, right? Why don’t you feed him the best damn pancakes he ever ate in his life? Make everyone you know who doesn’t get your veganism some SERIOUSLY BOMB, absurdly good pancakes. They will connect the dots later, somewhere at the bottom of their first stack, as to why you went vegan in the first place. . . . But whatever ingredients you’re adding, this is a lovely all-around versatile pancake recipe that you can trust for yielding stacks of tasty fluffies. If you feel creative, use this as a base recipe to add all kinds of absolutely fun things, too.”
The Cinnamon Snail's Bourbon Hazelnut Pancakes with Cardamom Brown Butter
Ingredients
Cardamom Brown Butter
- 1/4 cup unsweetened soy milk
- 1/2 tsp rice vinegar
- 4 tsp pure maple syrup
- 1/4 tsp xanthan gum
- 1/4 tsp ground cardamom
- 1/4 tsp ground cloves
- 1/2 cup refined coconut oil melted to 75° to 100°F, if not already in liquid form
- 2 tbsp olive oil extra virgin
- 1/4 tsp Sea Salt
Bourbon Candied Hazelnuts
- 2 cups hazelnuts
- 2 tbsp canola oil
- 1/2 cup evaporated cane juice
- 1/4 cup bourbon
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp sea salt
Pancakes
- 1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 2 tsp baking soda
- 1/4 cup pure maple syrup
- 1 ²⁄³ cup unsweetened soy milk
- 3 tbsp canola oil plus more for frying the pancakes
- 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
- 1/2 tsp sea salt
- ground cinnamon or vegan powdered sugar for garnish
Instructions
- Quick warning: You’ll want to make the cardamom butter in advance, so it can set up nicely in the refrigerator. Plan to make it the day before (or at least a few hours before) you make the pancakes, so you’ll have a nice, pretty butter pat to top your steaming hot pancakes, along with a generous drizzling of maple syrup.
- Make the cardamom butter: Place the soy milk, rice vinegar, maple syrup, salt, cardamom, and cloves in a high-speed blender and mix on high speed for 10 seconds. Let sit for a minute or so—the mixture will have a curdled, thick consistency like buttermilk. Add the melted coconut oil, olive oil, and xanthan gum. Blend on high speed for 60 seconds to thoroughly emulsify. Pour into an airtight container, and chill in the freezer for an hour. Transfer the tub to the refrigerator, and use as needed. (You will have about 1 cup butter.)
- Make the candied hazelnuts: Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper. Pulse the hazelnuts a few times in a food processor to break them into smaller pieces. Mix the ground nuts and all the remaining ingredients together in a medium bowl and distribute evenly on the prepared baking sheet. Bake for 12 minutes, flipping the nuts halfway through to ensure even baking. Allow the nuts to cool, and break up any large clusters; store in an airtight container at room temperature. (The nuts will keep for up to a month.)
- Make the pancakes: In a mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Make a well in the center, and add the maple syrup, soy milk, oil, and vanilla extract. Whisk together to form a smooth batter.
- Heat a skillet or griddle over medium heat. Lightly oil the pan and ladle the pancake batter evenly onto the hot surface, forming pancakes in any size you like. Sprinkle 1 to 2 tablespoons of the bourbon hazelnuts onto each circle of batter and let cook for about 2 minutes. Carefully flip the pancakes when bubbles appear in the center and the edges start to brown lightly and lift away from the pan. Flip and allow to cook on the second side for an additional 2 minutes.
- Place 3 or 4 pancakes on each plate. Top with a pat of the cardamom butter, a sprinkle of bourbon hazelnuts, and a dash of cinnamon and/or powdered sugar for garnish, if desired.