Blueberry Lemon Ricotta Pancakes

Ricotta Pancakes. Sounds super weird, doesn't it? I first came across it while watching Tyler's Ultimate on the Food Network. Prior to that, I hadn't ever seen ricotta used as an ingredient in pancakes, and mainly used it for savory foods like lasagna and calzones. Making a mental note that it was interesting, I put it on my recipe to-do list, and forgot about it until recently.

A week ago, my friend Lindsey left me the funniest message. It read:
Are you taking suggestions on what to make next? When I was in LA a few months ago, I had the BEST lemon ricotta pancakes. I have been wanting to make them ever since, but I don't really have the time to play with recipes. Help, Domestic Goddess, help!!!

Sympathizing with her plight, I set out to find a great Lemon Ricotta Pancake recipe to try. Since I love blueberries, I decided to make them into Blueberry & Lemon Pancakes- an amazing flavor combination!

And I am now on a mission to try to inspire her, and fellow Career Goddesses alike, to spend a little bit more time in the kitchen! However much time they can afford, anyway. =)

The recipe calls for pretty simple ingredients. I used part-skim ricotta.


Combine the wet ingredients, along with lemon zest.
Add only the egg yokes, set the whites aside in a separate bowl.

Combine the dry ingredients separately. Then sift over the wet mixture. Mix well, but gently. Stop mixing immediately when everything is combined. Set aside.

Now, go back to the egg whites and beat until white and frothy.
Add salt and beat continuously until soft peaks form.


The whites should look like this when you're done.
It's really pretty and creamy, similar to whipped cream.

Very gently fold the beaten egg whites into the batter. Add 1/3 of the egg whites, fold, then add the rest, and fold until combined. It's really important to fold gently and to be really careful during this step. If you over mix, you will destroy the air in the egg whites. When this happens, your pancakes will be dense and heavy. The whipped egg whites gives it body and makes the pancake light and fluffy.

It should look like this when combined, you can still see the air bubbles in the batter.

And now for the blueberries! Feel free to skip this step. =)


Onto the griddle they go! 1-2 minutes on each side.

And there you have it!

Lindsey was right! These were by far the best pancakes I have ever tasted! They had a rich, creamy taste to them and they were so light and fluffy! We didn't even use syrup. It was really delicious on its own, with a little bit of butter and powdered sugar!

I think I've only ever made pancakes out of a Bisquick box and I can say right now that once you've had these home-made ones, you'll never go back!

To those of you who are skeptical about the ricotta, I strongly encourage you to give these pancakes a try. I think it will win over even the toughest critic!