Chef John Grainger, from the 1060 Restaurant, shared a recipe from his new breakfast menu. The restaurant is located inside the Genesee Grande Hotel, on East Genesee Street in Syracuse.
Visit their website by clicking here.“Chef” JOHNNY CAKES
Recipe Yield: 2 quarts
3 cupAP Flour
4 cup Cornmeal (preferably organic)
4 tspBaking Powder
4 cupWhole Milk (hot)
4 eachEggs
¼ cupHoney
4 tspKosher salt
METHOD:
In a large mixing bowl combine the first 3 (dry) ingredients with a whisk until well incorporated. Next in a medium sized saucepot, on med-high heat, bring the milk to just before boiling. Now, crack the 4 eggs into another large mixing bowl and while whipping vigorously, using a large ladle, add the milk into the eggs in 4 separate small stages. Note: if you do not whisk the eggs quickly while you are adding the small increments of milk, the eggs will scramble on you and ruin the recipe! Once all of the milk is incorporated into the eggs, whisk the honey and salt into the milk mixture. Next add the milk/egg mixture to the dry ingredient bowl and whisk together vigorously until the batter is smooth and all of the ingredients are well incorporated. Now go onto a med-high heat griddle or very large non-stick pan and add apprx 1 oz of clarified butter. Lay the batter down onto the hot surface using 3oz portions per one “cake”. Cook for 1-2 minutes on each side just like you would a pancake until golden brown and cooked through. Please note that these cakes do not take a long time to cook (on average of 1 ½ minutes per side). They will not be very good at all if they are overcooked. Cooking them to “just done” ensures that they remain light and fluffy, like a cake! You can serve these cakes with a variety of toppings, butter, maple syrup, etc……
*For a cool twist on this recipe, peel and medium dice one Granny Smith apple and toss the dices into a small bowl with 2 tblsp granulated sugar and 1/2 tsp of ground cinnamon. Place the cut/coated apple dices on a very hot griddle (without butter!) and caramelize them on two sides for 1-2 minutes per side. At this point, simply lay all of the apple dices flat on the griddle and divide them into 3 equal amounts still laying flat and not “piled” on top of each other. Place just about a 1/2 tsp of clarified butter on top of each set of apple dices. Now, pour 3 oz of your batter over each set of apples and continue cooking until each side is golden brown and the Johnnycakes are cooked through (no more than 1-2 minutes per side). Carefully slip an offset metal spatula underneath each cake and remove them from the hot surface and onto a plate. Top with whipped butter, maple syrup and sweetened whipped cream. Enjoy!
