Blueberry-Lemon-Ricotta Pancakes

As with most Sundays, I made pancakes for breakfast yesterday. These blueberry-lemon-ricotta pancakes had been on my "to do" list for a while so I was happy to finally give them a try. They were extremely light and sweet, almost like angel food cake. In my opinion, syrup would have distracted from the blueberries so I enjoyed mine with butter only - perfection!

I must admit I was cursing these pancakes as they were cooking and vowed this was the first and last time I would make this recipe but looking back, I think I was simply too impatient (I was starving!) and I flipped them before the batter was properly set so they fell apart. Once I had a bit of food in my belly, I was able to stop messing with them and let them cook longer and wouldn't you know, no more broken pancakes! Also, I recommend smaller pancakes (about 1/4 cup of batter per pancake) as anything more is difficult to manage since the batter is so light.

Blueberry-Lemon-Ricotta Pancakes
Adapted from Judy's recipe at Judy in Her Natural Habitat: The Kitchen and Williams-Sonoma.

1 cup ricotta cheese (I used light ricotta cheese)
1 cup milk
3 eggs, separated
1/4 cup sugar
Juice of 1 lemon
1 1/2 cups cake flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup blueberries (I used frozen blueberries)

Whisk together the ricotta, milk, egg yolks, sugar and lemon juice until smooth. Sift together the flour, baking powder and 1/8 tsp. of the salt over the ricotta mixture and stir with a wooden spoon until just combined.

Using a whisk (or, if you're feeling lazy like me, a stand-mixer) beat the egg whites until frothy. Add the remaining 1/8 tsp. salt and continue beating until soft peaks form. Using a rubber spatula, fold one-third of the egg whites into the ricotta mixture, then gently fold in the remaining whites and the blueberries.

Wipe a bit of oil on griddle and heat to medium/high. Ladle 1/4 cup of batter onto the griddle for each pancake. Cook until bubbles form on top and the pancakes are golden underneath, approximately 4 minutes. Flip the pancakes and cook for about 3 minutes more. Top with butter and enjoy!

Yield: 24 pancakes.