Pancake day is here! We thought, why not mix things up this year and make Crêpes! The main difference is they are thinner and flatter but are equally as delicious!

Cook up this easy recipe on the one day of the year where the whole family are genuinely excited to get involved in the kitchen!

This simple, cheap, delicious staple across the world comes in in many varieties, and are in fact ancient! Whether it’s crêpes or bannocs, Serabis, American pancakes, blinis, Aebleskiver or beyond, all pancakes are made of batter and fried in a pan or griddle.

So in time for this momentous Pancake Day which is believed to be around 10,000 years old, we are giving a brief history of the pancake, as well as an easy Crêpe recipe and a few fun art ideas!

Where did it all begin?

Typically, pancakes have been eaten on Shrove Tuesday (or ‘Pancake Day’), traditionally a day for feasting and partying before the beginning of Lent. Pancakes were an excellent way to use up the soon-to-be-forbidden ingredients before a church-mandated fast – the last hurrah! However, you would be mistaken in thinking this is where pancakes were created.

It turns out pancakes may have begun as far back as the Stone Age. Ötzi the Iceman is from around the time when the pancake story may have begun. Researchers found traces of einkorn wheat in his remains, which they believe was eaten in a flatbread form as starch grains were found on grinding tools believed to be 30,000 years old. It is also believed that these grains were likely mixed with water and baked on a hot, possibly greased rock!

There are also signs that the ancient Greeks (2500 years ago) and the Romans (2000 years ago) ate pancakes! By this time they had begun to sweeten them up with honey, and by the Elizabethan era, they were flavouring theirs with spices, rosewater, sherry and apples!

Crêpe recipe:

All you need is the following ingredients, lots of butter and a good pan!

Time: 15 mins

Cooking time: 3 minutes

Quantity: 12 crêpes

Ingredients:

250g of flour

1 tbs of sugar

1 1/2 tsp of salt

3 eggs

25 g slightly salted butter – melted on a low heat

500 ml of milk

NOTE: if you want to cook up a thick and fluffy pancake, just add a tsp of baking powder to the flour

Method:

1) Sift and mix the flour and sugar in a bowl and add the salt

2) Make a well in the middle of the dry mixture and crack the eggs into the centre

3) Start to mix together, slowly adding in the butter

4) Mix everything, adding in the milk little by little

5) Mix well, until dough is smooth, and let cool for at least 1 hour

6) One hour later, take the mixture out of the fridge and heat up the pan

7) Add a ladle of batter and spread it over the whole surface of the pan by tilting it to each side

8) When the underside is cooked, flip the Crêpe over

9) Cook for a minute or so more, until evenly cooked all over

10) Serve up and add your toppings!

Easy pancake art ideas!

Pancake Bear

Peppa Pig pancake

Pancake Bunny

Pancake Faces

Dinosaur Pancakes

If you are looking to keep it simple, here are some recommended toppings!

Bacon, blueberries & maple syrup
Classic lemon and sugar
Baked peach slices and drizzled caramel
Melted dark chocolate and banana
Apple, cinnamon and chocolate drizzle
Hazelnuts, honey, strawberries and cream

What is your favourite topping? Or will you be giving one of our artwork ideas a go? Which ever one you choose, enjoy!

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