1 teaspoon vanilla
4 tablespoons (½ stick) unsalted butter
1 cup (250 ml / 8.5 oz) non-skim milk
1¼ cups (170 g / 6 oz) flour
1 tablespoon granulated sugar
4 teaspoons baking powder
¾ teaspoon salt
2 ea. (100 g) eggs
6 oz (170 g) semisweet chocolate chips, or less to taste
Butter, for cooking
Combine the butter and milk in a small saucepan.
Place over low heat just until warm and the butter is melted. Let cool slightly.
In a bowl, combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt; mix well.
In a large bowl, whisk the eggs with a fork. Whisk in the milk mixture.
Add the dry ingredients and mix just until barely blended.
Add the chocolate chips and mix.
Heat a griddle or large skillet over medium heat.
Add about 1 teaspoon of butter and melt until bubbly.
Ladle 3 tablespoons of batter for each pancake onto the hot surface and cook until bubbly on the top and golden brown on the bottom.
Flip and cook until golden brown on the other side, about 30 seconds more.
30 seconds
Repeat until all the batter is used.
Serve hot.
- •Use bleached instead of unbleached flour to make a more tender pancake.
- •If using salted butter, reduce salt to ¼ teaspoon.
- •You can substitute 1 tablespoon of lemon juice (or vinegar) in milk for the buttermilk.
- •Pancake batter should pour, not glug! On the other hand, runny batter makes thin, oddly shaped pancakes that frequently collide on the griddle. Stir in a touch more flour into thin batter. For batter that's too thick, whisk in water, a teaspoon at a time.
- •The temperature of the pan or griddle is important: too hot and the pancakes are dark and raw; too cool and they're blond and hard. For tender, golden brown pancakes, heat the pan or griddle on low while you make the batter. Then increase the heat to medium and generously brush the pan or griddle with oil. It's ready when the oil starts to shimmer and, in any skillet or griddle other than non-stick, sends out tendrils that resemble an octopus or spider. But if the pan starts to smoke, set it down off the burner until the smoking subsides and the oil cools a bit.