Secrets of the chef queenstown

Have you been to No 5 Church Lane yet? I love the name of it as it makes me think of London for some reason. Like I expect a victorian couple to come wandering out of there saying ” No 5 Church Lane. How frightfully marvellous. And it is. Marvellous. It’s all dark with sexy lighting and gorgeous food and having recently been taken over by Eichardt’s I knew it would remain a goody. And it did.

Here is a gorgeous wee recipe for buttermilk pancakes. Which I actually like to eat for dinner when I feel homesick as they’re all comforting and lovely. Thank you No 5 Church Lane.

Buttermilk Pancakes

Buttermilk, the liquid left over when cream is made into butter, is a magic baking ingredient which always results in a lighter, fluffier and moister version than the usual. It works a treat in muffins, scones and these here pancakes.

Makes enough for 4 servings:
300g flour
95g icing sugar
2tsp baking powder
2tsp baking soda
1tsp vanilla essence
2 eggs
200g buttermilk
200g water
30g melted butter

Put everything into a big bowl and stir it just to combine, not until perfectly smooth; still a little lumpy is good.

Preheat a frying pan over a medium-low heat and lightly grease it; either by quickly rubbing the cooking surface with a stick of butter, or with canola oil spray.

Drop dollops of the batter into the pan, leaving room for them to spread out as they cook. At this stage you can drop in a few blueberries if you wish. Fry for about  2 minutes or until you see bubbles appearing on the top of the uncooked side, then flip and cook for another 2 minutes or until golden brown and cooked through.

Serve with whatever takes your fancy; bacon, banana, cream, mascarpone, it’s all good. Just please show them some love by using real maple syrup rather than “maple-flavoured” frankensyrup. It’s twice the price but ten times tastier.

I love the Frankensyrup comment. Well played No 5, well played.

No 5 Church Lane
Church Lane
Queenstown
03 441 0004