Brown Butter Winter Citrus Pancakes

December 30, 2010

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My goodness.  This world has these seasons planned out just perfectly.  Amidst super rain, chilly wind and grey skies, we get blood oranges, tangerines and grapefruit!

Big, bright, cheek puckering citrus is perfect for winter breakfast.  I know… it happened this morning.

I’d also like to thank the good world for creating coffee and hot cocoa and whole milk… and putting them all in my coffee cup this morning.

Just swell.

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You have to treat your citrus right for this breakfast.  That means peeling and segmenting.  Do you know how to do this?

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Cut the bottom and the top off of the citrus, exposing the flesh.  Run a pairing knife down the sides of the citrus, peeling off the skin and white pith.  At a slight angle, slice in between the white lines of the citrus, creating clean little grapefruit flesh slices.

It takes time, but is totally worth the effort.

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See all the brown specks in the blue bowl?  That’s the browned butter.  Ooooh goodness.  So delicious.  It’s rich and nutty and a wonderful balance to the  bright citrus.

These are my new favorite winter pancakes.  Such a treat to my heart.

ps.  If you’re as obsessed with citrus as I am, you might also enjoy this Super Citrus Smoothie.

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Brown Butter Winter Citrus Pancakes

makes enough pancakes for two people, double the recipe for a larger group

Print this Recipe!

3 tablespoons butter

1 cup buttermilk

1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1 large egg

1 cup all-purpose flour

1 tablespoon granulated sugar

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon citrus zest

2 tangerines peeled by hand and separated

1 grapefruit, peeled and segmented

1 blood orange, peeled and segmented

feel free to use any citrus that makes you happy

Melt butter in a small saucepan over medium heat.  The butter will foam and froth then begin to brown.  When the butter solids begin to brown, keep an eye on them so they don’t burn.  The butter will smell rich and nutty.  Cook until butter  bits are brown then remove from the hot pan and place in a small bowl.

Whisk together egg, buttermilk, vanilla extract and citrus zest.  Whisk in the browned butter.  Set aside.

In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt.  Add the buttermilk mixture all at once to the dry ingredients.  Stir together with a fork until well incorporated.  If the batter is a little lumpy… well that’s just fine.

Let batter rest while you heat up the skillet or griddle pan over medium heat.  Great skillet with a teaspoon or two of oil or butter.  Spoon pancake batter by the 2 tablespoonfuls into the hot pan.  Let cook until browned on one side, flip and brown on the other side.  Place cooked pancakes on an oven-proof plate in an oven heated to 150 degrees F.  This will keep the pancakes warm while you cook the rest.

Arrange the pancakes on a plate, top with segmented citrus and pure maple syrup.

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{ 68 comments… read them below or add one }

jenna laughs January 1, 2011 at 11:58 am

I love this idea. Brown butter is incredible, especially when I don’t burn it…

Happy New Year, Joy!!

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Gluten Free Diva January 1, 2011 at 1:48 pm

Hmmm, I’ve never tried browning butter before putting it in my gluten free pancake batter. This sounds fabulous! I think I know what we’re having for supper tonight! After last nights’ indulgence, a simple dinner of pancakes with a touch of citrus sounds perfect. Thank you!

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Erica January 2, 2011 at 6:11 am

Joy, I didn’t think anything could top the Single Lady Pancake…until browned butter and citrus had a party in a pancake this morning! Thanks for a delicious recipe! Happy New Year!

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Lauren January 2, 2011 at 10:31 am

Looks amazing and I must say, your silverware is the cutest thing I have ever seen.

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Celia January 2, 2011 at 9:18 pm

Great idea to keep pancakes light and fresh! Wonder if they travel well – gotta cook soon for a baby shower brunch…

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Sushi Lover January 4, 2011 at 9:12 am

Yay! I will try ANY pancakes… without maple syrup. Growing up I had to smother my pcakes in peanut butter and jelly to choke them down. Thanks for yet another delicious looking recipe.

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Lindsay January 5, 2011 at 8:36 pm

I made these tonight and they were awesome. The browned butter is a game changer. I am for sure making these again soon.

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Magpie January 17, 2011 at 2:33 am

Ooooh! I am so making this for breakfast tomorrow! Thank you, you wonderful, genius, magic person!I think I just found the ultimate pancake!

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Magpie January 17, 2011 at 2:35 am

also how pretty is that crochet piece! where is it from? Makes me want to pick up my crochet needles again!

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joythebaker January 17, 2011 at 2:46 pm

my mom gave me all sorts of crochet pieces a while back. they’re all from my family one way or another.

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patricia February 21, 2011 at 12:33 pm

I made these this morning! Um. Wow. Sooooooooo good. New favorite breakfast/brunch/lunch/dinner.

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Erica Joy Whitson February 26, 2011 at 12:23 pm

I just discovered your blog and I’m addicted. This morning I made these pancakes for my book club brunch. It was unanimous that they were fantastic and it seemed appropriate that we were looking out the window at a beautiful winter snowfall.

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Rachelle April 25, 2011 at 10:03 pm

Joy. I made these tonight in a “crap. I haven’t gone shopping so what can I make out of what I have in the fridge?” frenzy (I happened to have a huge basket of clementines on hand because my kids LOVE them). I omitted the eggs because I didn’t have any. I doubled the recipe for the family and it turns out they’ve requested I TRIPLE it next time. The kids (and husband) all but licked their plates. My husband said the only thing that would make them better is if I cooked them on a grill that has been “seasoned” for the past 50 years. Another hit, mlle.

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Mariana D V November 9, 2011 at 6:29 am

Will be attempting for Sunday Brunch-wish me luck ;)
YUM!

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Emmy January 21, 2012 at 10:00 am

Made these this morning in “Single Lady Pancake” size – incredible!

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Emily February 21, 2012 at 6:55 pm

I made this recipe (cut in half) for dinner tonight and it’s outstanding! I omitted the citrus (except for the zest) and used up the strawberries I had leftover from Valentines Day sales. I added some almond extract to complement the berries — thanks so much for the recipe…it just may replace my regular (and already memorized!) pancake recipe.

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