It’s Pancake Day today so we asked the experts for their tips on toppings
On Shrove Tuesday, those wishing to challenge themselves in the kitchen can pimp up their creations with these chefs’ suggestions, writes Gaby Soutar
Whether you’ve made them from scratch or they are shop bought, sometimes the idea of pancakes can be better than the reality.
Those needing inspiration today for Pancake Day or Shrove Tuesday can experiment with the help of the below cooks, bakers and chefs.
They suggest teaming pancakes with a range of sweet or savoury options, from the traditional sugar and lemon to ingredients ranging from poached haddock and Arbroath Smokies, to chuckleberry jam and Biscoff spread.
It seems that sometimes it is the toppings that prevent pancakes from falling flat.
Nick Nairn of Nick’s on Henderson Street
“My favourite topping on pancakes is granulated sugar and lemon. Using granulated instead of caster gives it that crunch – a taste of childhood – as the sugar doesn’t just dissolve. My kids’ favourite is Nutella teamed with very thinly sliced orange. You can make this option more adult by adding a splash of Drambuie, for a dish that’s inspired by crepes Suzette.
"If you want to try a savoury option, then poach smoked haddock in milk before placing it on top of your pancake with wilted spinach and a bit of Hollandaise or grated cheddar, then grill. The kids and I also like to treat pancakes a bit like pizza, and add tomato sauce, mushrooms, pesto and Parmesan on top, then grill them until their edges go crispy.”
www.nicksonhendersonst. com
Michelle Phillips of Mimi’s Bakehouse, Edinburgh
“At Mimi’s, we usually offer maple syrup cupcakes with mini pancakes on top. I'm not sure if we are doing them this year, you’ll have to wait and see. However, our most popular French toast topping does work really well with pancakes. We gently fry a chopped up banana in maple syrup, until caramelised, then spread a layer of Biscoff spread over each pancake, add the cooked banana, before sprinkling crushed up Lotus biscuits over the lot. Serve with whipped cream.”
https://www.facebook.com/ mimisbakehouse
Chris Niven of The Adamson, St Andrews
“Savoury pancakes are a great option for Shrove Tuesday. If you’ve got a crepestyle pancake, make a rich cheese sauce finished with grain mustard and chives, then use this to bind some flaked Arbroath smokie and chopped cooked leeks. Fill your crepe with this mixture, wrap it and top with more cheese sauce and grated mature cheddar, then grill.
“Another great savoury option goes well with a more traditional American-style buttermilk pancake. Add a nice grated mature cheddar and chives, then spread your warm pancake with a mix of Marmite and butter, then serve with crispy streaky bacon”.
https://theadamson.com
Jessica Elliott Dennison of Elliott’s cafe and shop, Edinburgh
“My favourite way to enjoy pancakes at this time of year is with a spoonful of our forced-rhubarb compote – we’ve got a few jars I made in stock at the Sciennes Road shop at the moment – some strained yoghurt and a handful of crushed, roasted hazelnuts. Or team them with slices of blood orange (currently in-season and amazing), honey on the comb and pistachio. For a posh banoffee vibe, I also like to go with dulche de leche along with slices of banana and whipped cream.
I’m also a fan of the savoury take on pancakes – think Isle of Mull cheddar with the chuckleberry jam that is one of our top-sellers. It’s a sweet and sour preserve with a tart, pink gooseberry flavour. [It’s] so, so good.”
www.elliottsedinburgh. com
Fred Berkmiller of L’escargot Bleu, Edinburgh
“In France, Pancake Day is on February 2 and is known as La Chandeleur or Crepe Day. My favourite way to eat a crepe is chocolate all the way. Use good chocolate – not the cheapest – melted with butter and cold milk or cream, or just warm crepes, folded with salted butter and sugar on top is wonderful.
"You could also go for more of a sharing meal. Keep it simple and serve with options including good honey, jam, lemon and sugar, orange marmalade, homemade nut-paste or toss in the pan with Grand Marnier or Cointreau.”
www.leescargotbleu.co.uk
Gillian Reith of Three Sisters Bake, Quarriers Village and Glasgow
“We are pretty boring when it comes to pancakes. Our favourites are good old sugar and lemon, maybe a bit of Nutella if we’re really pushing the boat out. However, if we were trying to create the perfect pancake for 2021 it would definitely have to involve a Biscoff spread, possibly teamed with caramelised banana.
"Biscoff spread was a huge trend in 2020 and continues to be super popular in all our bakes and bakes in 2021. However, we also enjoy pancakes with a homemade blueberry compote (pictured).”
www.threesistersbake. co.uk
Jonny Bell of Honeycomb & Co, Edinburgh
“At Honeycomb & Co we love to use seasonal produce to keep our dishes fresh and exciting – and at this time of year vivid pink forced rhubarb is top of our ingredients list. We like to add some star anise to a simple stock syrup and poach it really gently until it softens.
"Next, top a stack of fluffy pancakes with the fruit, followed by a spoonful of mascarpone, then drizzle the rhubarb syrup over the top to finish. Alternatively, if savoury is more your buzz, go for crispy streaky bacon along with chilli jam. Add a spoonful of tahini laced Greek yoghurt then top with a sprinkle of hazelnut dukkah.”
www.honeycombandco. com
People told Salma Hayek her “career would die” when she hit her mid-thirties.
The 54-year-old actress – who was born in Coatzacoalcos, Mexico – confides she was also told it would be “impossible” for a Mexican to have a leading role in Hollywood.
And yet, here she is, announcing proudly on a Zoom call: “This is the best time in my career.”
“I was told so many times it couldn’t happen, and I almost believed them – but I fought it and I won,” the Academy Award nominated star says, with a loud, infectious laugh.
“And I want other women to realise that, because in your thirties you feel the pressure, in your forties you feel the pressure – and late blooming, it’s a beautiful thing.
“We’re not ‘over’ at this time, or at another time. If you’re creative and enthusiastic and curious about life, life can be exciting forever. The entire time.”
Charismatic Hayek – famous for roles in Frida, Desperado and From Dusk Till Dawn – has more exciting upcoming film projects coming up, including The Hitman’s Wife’s Bodyguard (alongside Samuel L Jackson, Ryan Reynolds and Morgan Freeman) and Marvel’s saga of The Eternals.
But what we’re chatting about is Bliss, a mind-bending love story written and directed by Mike Cahill, which is available to watch now on Amazon Prime Video.
The sci-fi film follows recently divorced Greg (Owen Wilson) as he meets Isabel (Hayek), a mysterious woman living on the streets, who is convinced that the polluted, broken world around them is just a computer simulation.
Greg is doubtful at first, but eventually he discovers there may be some truth to Isabel’s wild conspiracy…
“The originality of the script was one of the things that really drew me to it, because there’s something very realistic in this sci-fi,” suggests mum-of-one Hayek (she shares Valentina, 13, with her husband, French businessman Francois-henri Pinault).
“It’s not like other ones [scifi films]. Even though we have parallel universes [in Bliss], they look like this universe – there’s little things here and there. It’s not like we go to another planet.
“There was something quite grounded, and quite human, about it.”
In Bliss, we see how Isabel believes there are only about 16 ‘real people’ in the whole world; the rest are fake-generated people.
Her evidence is this: she demonstrates a technique for telekinetically manipulating reality, almost like a conductor in an orchestra.
Greg learns to harness this world-bending power too, leading him to become freed from the guilt he was carrying around in his previous life. In fact, he starts to embrace the fun, carefree thrill of the simulation.
But when Greg’s daughter Emily (Nesta Cooper) tracks him down and tells him to come back to reality, saying his head is not on straight, Greg has to decide whose reality is real: Isabel’s or Emily’s?
“It’s a love triangle, actualty ly, in a strange way,” explains Connecticut native Cahill, 41. “It’s a man, his daughter and this woman, who he falls in love with.”
He elaborates: “A really powerful story is the kind of love story where the whole world around you disappears. Whether that’s good or bad, I don’t know exactly, because there are important things in the world that shouldn’t disappear.
“Using science fiction to tell this kind of love story, where two people are vying for the veracity of their world, seemed really compelling to me.”
It’s an ancient story, adds Cahill, which goes back to “Plato’s Cave, 2,400 years ago – and it keeps getting retold and retold and retold through cinema”.
“The Matrix is a very famous version of it, but so’s The Wizard of Oz, and so’s Eternal Sunshine, so is Shutter Island and Clockwork Orange,” he follows.
“This idea of a world within a world also is really compelling to me, and I can’t escape that existential thought that there’s something more to life than just, you know, Zoom screens and tables and chairs.”
As Bliss so cleverly looks at the different ways people see the world, Hayek is captivating in the way she gives life to Isabel and her complex views.
As Cahill puts it, the way she “brings the humanity to this character is something that is enlightened and beautiful and powerful.
“She has this unique ability to add this sort of magnetism and excitement – and in the storm of it all, she gives it integrity and value and beauthat it deserves to have.”
Does Hayek think we are too quick to dismiss the opinions of people like Isabel sometimes?
“Lately, people are talking to me, that I knew before, and they bring me these theories that are so out-there, and I try not to be too quick to judge – even if to me it sounds completely delusional.
“There are so many conspiracy theories and, when you talk about what’s real or not, I think one of the things that are separating us is that everybody’s creating their own reality.”
She continues: “It’s interesting that this movie comes out as this time because I think, with all the confinement, we have created our own ‘Bliss’ world through technology, and in that cave, you can find so many different ways at looking at things.
“What’s real or not real, it’s not one thing anymore. And we just have to listen and be respectful of other people’s realities.
“It’s becoming like a religion. Before reality was like one [thing], and now it’s like everybody has their own reality – and you shouldn’t talk about politics or religion or what’s real anymore.”