Blueberry Sour Cream Pancakes

Spring break. One week. The school empties out and the city keeps going, which is one of the things I like about Chicago — the city does not slow down for spring break. I did not go to Oak Lawn for the whole week, only for the weekend. I stayed in Pilsen and worked on the book outline and went to the farmers market and walked around Chinatown one afternoon because Claudia recommended the good dumpling place on Wentworth and she was completely right.

The book outline is getting more specific. I have been writing sample chapters, or pieces of them — the chapter about the butter pasta in the dorm after Jess died, the chapter about Babcia Rose's "enough flour," the chapter about the chicken and dumplings and what it means that Patty always makes it when someone needs comfort. The writing feels different from the blog. The blog is conversational and immediate. The book is trying to find something underneath the recipe, which is a bigger excavation.

Made scallion pancakes this week — from a recipe I found at the Chinatown bookstore, a small spiral-bound Chinese cookbook. Flour dough rolled thin, scallions and sesame oil layered in, rolled and coiled and rolled flat again. Fried in a hot pan. Crispy outside, slightly chewy, intensely scallion. Under a dollar fifty per serving. I spent an hour making them, which is an hour I consider very well spent.

I brought some to Claudia. She said "What is this?" I said Chinese scallion pancakes. She tasted one. She said "The layers are right." I said thank you. She said "Where did you learn?" I said Chinatown. She nodded like this was the correct answer. Then she handed me back the plate, empty, and went back inside. Every culture has its version of the layered flatbread. That is not a coincidence. That is people figuring out the same truth independently, which is what good cooking usually is.

After Claudia handed me back that empty plate and went inside, I walked home thinking about what she meant by “the layers are right” — how the whole point of a layered flatbread, whether it’s a scallion pancake or a paratha or a crepe, is the tension between crisp and soft, between what holds together and what pulls apart. Back in my own kitchen the next morning I made these blueberry sour cream pancakes, which are not Chinese and not spiral-coiled and not fried in sesame oil, but they have that same quality I was chasing: a batter rich enough to have texture, a fruit that bursts and pools, a result that is somehow more than its parts. Every culture has its version of the pancake. That is not a coincidence either.

Prep Time: 10 min | Cook Time: 20 min | Total Time: 30 min | Servings: 4 (about 12 pancakes)

Ingredients

1 cup all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup full-fat sour cream
2 large eggs
1/4 cup whole milk
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and slightly cooled
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup fresh or frozen blueberries (do not thaw if frozen)
Butter or neutral oil for the pan

Instructions

Mix dry ingredients. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt until evenly combined.
Mix wet ingredients. In a separate bowl, whisk together the sour cream, eggs, milk, melted butter, and vanilla until smooth and uniform.
Combine. Pour the wet mixture into the dry ingredients and stir gently with a spatula until just combined — a few lumps are fine. Do not overmix or the pancakes will tighten up. Fold in the blueberries last.
Rest the batter. Let the batter sit for 5 minutes while you heat the pan. This allows the baking powder to activate and gives you a lighter, more even rise.
Cook the pancakes. Heat a nonstick skillet or griddle over medium heat and brush lightly with butter or oil. Pour about 1/4 cup of batter per pancake. Cook until bubbles form across the surface and the edges look set, about 2 to 3 minutes. Flip and cook another 1 to 2 minutes until golden and cooked through. Adjust heat as needed — the sour cream makes these brown faster than standard pancakes.
Serve. Serve immediately with maple syrup, a small pat of butter, or a handful of fresh blueberries. These do not hold well — eat them hot off the pan.

Nutrition (per serving)

Blueberry Sour Cream Pancakes — Because Every Culture Has Its Version of the Perfect Flatbread