Scribbles & Munch

      My Halloween obsession with pumpkin this year is definitely getting my culinary creative juices flowing!  The other night I was in the shower, thinking about what to do next with pumpkin.  I wanted something more distinctly breakfast-y this time.  "Pumpkin bread?" I asked myself.  "Like, the usual kind?  Nah...too repetative.  Pumpkin muffins?  I like pumpkin muffins, but there are so many recipes for them in the world.  Pumpkin curry?  Other cultures have curry for breakfast, and I do love curry...."
      Then I started thinking of other foods and flavors that I love, especially the ones that make rare appearances in my life.  Which inevitably got me thinking of spumone.

Just looking at this picture makes me want to lick this plate clean.

      If you've never had spumone (or "spumoni," as it's spelled in the plural) - or worse, if you've never had GOOD spumone - then I feel really, really sorry for you.  Spumone is what Neapolatin ice cream wishes it could be.  It is a three-layer gelato dessert, with at least one layer being flavored with fruit (usually cherry), another being flavored with nuts (usually pistachio), and the third layer being, of course, chocolate.  It's Italian in origin, like so many other delicious desserts, and it's really hard to find.*  But the creamy gelato and the perfectly balanced flavors make it an ice cream experience worth hunting down!
      I have never made spumone, mainly because it would require making three separate batches of ice cream, and my home does not need that many extraneous calories on hand.  However, the flavor profile can be applied to other foods for a gentle reminder of the scruptious original.  Which is how we arrive at today's Halloween breakfast: Spumone-Inspired Pumpkin Flapjacks!

This is why breakfast is my favorite part of the day.

      In order to make proper pumpkin pancakes, whipped egg whites are required.  The pumpkin purée is simply too dense for regular dry leavening to do their work.  With this particular recipe, you also have chopped nuts and cherries adding weight--an airy cloud of protein must assist for fluffy flapjack texture!  Therefore, these are not your throw-together-half-asleep-on-a-Saturday-morning pancakes.  These are plan-ahead-and-wow-everybody-for-Sunday-brunch pancakes.  I feel pretty safe saying nobody will have had these before.

Z.D.'s Spumone-Inspired Pumpkin Flapjacks
Makes about 12

Ingredients:
1/3 Cup dried tart cherries, cut into pieces if too large
1 tsp almond extract
2 large eggs
5 oz buttermilk (or 2 tsp white vinegar + milk to = 5 oz)
1/3 Cup (generous) pumpkin purée
1 Tablespoon sugar
1/4 tsp vanilla extract
2/3 Cup cake flour**
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
1/3 Cup finely chopped roasted pistachios (salted is just fine)
2 T unsalted butter, melted, plus extra for greasing skillet


Directions:
 - Place cherries in a small, heat proof bowl, and sprinkle almond extract over.  Add just enough hot water to cover, and set aside to soak while you prepare the batter.

If you love cherries (I do), feel free to increase the amount use in this recipe, up to doubling.  Just make sure that your cherry pieces aren't too big, and increase the amount of almond extract accordingly.

 - Separate the eggs, putting the whites in a clean, small bowl with tall sides.  Put the yolks in a large bowl, and add the buttermilk, pumpkin, sugar, and vanilla.  Whisk to combine, set aside.

Not a lot of pumpkin, but the flavor does come through.

 - In a medium bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients, including the pistachios.

Make sure you chop these pretty fine--too chunky and you'll feel like you're eating granola.  On the other hand, chop them too fine and they'll disappear.  Bits about the size of dried black peppercorns worked for me.

 - Beat the egg whites until stiff peaks form.  Drain the cherries and discard the soaking liquid.  Put your skillet over medium high heat to warm.  Now you're ready to bring everything together.

Good kitchen tip: use a big bowl.  When in doubt, bigger than you need.

 - Whisk the 2 T butter into your pumpkin mixture.  Add the cherries and the dry ingredients, and mix well.

This will have the consistancy of a heavy muffin batter.

 - Stir a quarter of the egg whites into the batter to lighten, then fold in the remaining egg whites.  With pancakes, it's Ok to have a few faint white streaks--you really don't want to over-mix!

Feel the fluffiness as you fold!

 - When your skillet or griddle reaches 375º F, brush with melted butter, and spoon on the batter in generous 1/4 cupfuls.  Manage your heat so that it remains between 365-375º.  Cook the flapjacks so that they are golden brown on the bottom (about 4-5 min), then flip and cook until golden brown on the other side (about 3 min longer).

Because the egg whites make this a little thicker, they take a minute or so longer to cook than regular flapjacks.

 - Serve immediately with a good chocolate sauce or chocolate-hazelnut spread, such as Nutella.

The necessary final step to creating that spumone trilogy of deliciousness!

      I served these with some good, oven-roasted bacon, fresh fruit, and hot coffee.  If you wanted to try for a little more Italian, serve with pancetta and espresso.  And if you wanted something a little more autumnal, I'd suggest pork-apple sausage and cinnamon spiced tea.  But whatever you do, don't leave off the chocolate!



*Finding GOOD spumone is even harder.  Do yourself a favor, and skip anything cheap, major-brand, or mass-produced.  The best spumone is found at small, genuine Italian restaurants, made in-house from scratch.  Which is why it's so freaking hard to find.

**Those of you who read a lot of my recipes are going, "WHOA!  Z.D.!  What's with the cake flour!?  Aren't you a passionate devotee of spelt and all-purpose flours!?!"  To which I reply: Yes, but everything has it's place. The fine grain and protein content of cake flavor guarantees the perfect texture for these flapjacks.  If you're going to make these, don't go halfway--go get the freaking cake flour.