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Pancakes with Cinnamon & Sugar
By Michelle | February 5, 2008
Happy Shrove Tuesday, everybody! For those outside the UK, today is also known as Pancake Day. Funny that. In South Africa, whenever we have a grey, cloudy and rainy day, we call it a “pancake day”. Outside privately owned coffee shops notice boards will appear on the sidewalk, inviting you in for pancakes and tea. No wonder they don’t have this tradition over here, otherwise all the Britons will end up looking like this popular dessert! Cinnamon and sugar is the traditional South African way to serve pancakes with. Try it and you’ll understand why.
These pancakes are my entry for Bee and Jai’s monthly CLICK contest.
Pancakes with Cinnamon & Sugar
Preparation: 5 mins - Cooking: 30 mins

Ingredients
- 125ml (¼ cup) granulated sugar
- 10ml (2 tsp) ground cinnamon
- 100g (4 oz) plain flour
- 2 eggs
- 300ml (10 fl oz) milk
- 15ml (1 tbsp) sunflower or vegetable oil, plus extra for frying
Method
- Mix the sugar and cinnamon and set aside.
- Sift the flour into a large bowl and make a well in the centre. Crack the eggs into the well and whisk the mixture together. Gradually whisk in the milk until you have a smooth batter. Stir the oil into the pancake batter.
- To get the right thickness, heat the pan over a moderate heat, and then wipe it with oiled kitchen paper. Ladle some batter into the pan, tilting the pan to move the mixture around for a thin and even layer. Quickly pour any excess batter into a jug, return the pan to the heat, then leave to cook, undisturbed for about 30 seconds. Pour the excess batter from the jug back into the mixing bowl. If the pan is the right temperature, the pancake should turn golden underneath after about 30 seconds and will be ready to turn. Flip over and cook for a further minute. Transfer to a plate and keep warm. Repeat with the remaining batter to make 8 pancakes.
- Sprinkle the cinnamon and sugar liberally over each pancake and roll tightly. If the pancakes are stacked and kept warm, the sugar will slowly melt. This will be the best time to eat them.
Topics: Desserts, Fry, South African, b) 30 - 60 mins |



February 5th, 2008 at 21:20
Mmm, looking at those photos reminds me of the lefse my mom used to make (minus the potatoes in the dough). When shmeared with butter and cinnamon-sugar, they made for an awesome treat.
February 5th, 2008 at 21:57
Those are beautiful the way you wrapped them up like that! They look like a variation on cinnamon rolls! I would LOVE them for breakfast.
February 6th, 2008 at 03:06
These sound simple and delicious. Nice photos.
February 6th, 2008 at 20:04
Wow, your photos really are stunning.
February 7th, 2008 at 16:17
I’m bookmarking this recipe now - I love thin pancakes like these and with cinnamon I can’t resist!
February 8th, 2008 at 17:45
I can say for a fact that these pancakes are absolutely gorgeous - i wasnt a pancake lover until i tried these - thank you michelle
February 10th, 2008 at 15:42
Interesting, I remember when I lived with a South African family when I studied at SA, they put cinnamon and sugar on their pancakes. However, I didn’t know that is South African way of eating it until now!
February 14th, 2008 at 13:40
I grew up thinking it’s the ONLY way that pancakes could ever be eaten! My dad had his with more sugar than cinnamon and my mom had hers with a little squeeze of lemon. Cinnamon is so big in SA cuisine - we permanently had a pot of cinnamon sugar beside the normal sugar bowl for using in desserts or on pumpkin/gem squash.
November 10th, 2008 at 17:24
I must say pancakes (crepes) are one of the favourite desserts in my family, although my recipe is a quite different.
I prefer them with home made plum jam or nutella.