I was in CA a couple weeks ago and stopped for breakfast in Berkley. The pancakes were like eating lemon flavored air. I made it my mission to recreate these wonderful things. My husband is loving my interpretations, hoping I don't get it right so he can keep eating my failures.
Here is my latest version, I started with Ann Burrell's recipe and really have only changed the directions. Taste has never been the problem, it is the lighter than air texture that I am after. Two very important things to achieve that, one, the egg whites MUST be beaten to stiff peaks, and the ricotta very well drained and kept lumpy so that it doesn't incorporate smoothly. My next attempt will be without adding the ricotta until the pancakes are on the griddle, sprinkling some over the top of freshly poured batter.
Enjoy.
Pancakes:
2 cups all-purpose flour, sifted
2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup sugar
a pinch salt for egg whites
4 eggs, separated
1 heaping cup ricotta cheese
3/4 cup milk
2 Meyer lemons, zested and juiced, large lemons if Meyers aren't available
Butter, for cooking the pancakes
Directions
Pancakes:
Sift together all of the dry ingredients in a large bowl. In another bowl, combine the egg yolks, milk and lemon zest and juice, and mix until it becomes homogeneous. Make a well in the dry ingredients, add the wet ingredients to the well and whisk until barely combined.
Preheat a griddle.
In another bowl, using a whisk or electric mixer, beat the egg whites with a pinch of salt to stiff peaks. Fold the egg whites into the flour mixture in thirds. Do this quickly and gently so the pancakes will be light and fluffy. Gently fold in the ricotta.
Melt small pats of butter onto the preheated griddle, and spread it around with a paper towel to remove any excess butter. Spoon or ladle the pancake batter onto the prepared griddle to desired size of the pancake. When the top of the pancake is full of holes, like bubbles have risen to the surface and burst, the pancake is ready to flip. Flip the cakes and cook until the bottom is golden brown.
