Finally. Finally it’s beginning to feel like spring. On May Day we went to see the Ellington Morris Dancers perform their first dance for the season. Based in the Maidenhead area, this gang call themselves the Ellington troupe because Ellington was the name of Maidenhead in the Doomsday Book. The Ellington dancers perform early 20th century morris dances from Cotswold villages such as Adderbury, Bledington and Bampton, and Lichfield in Staffordshire and of course from Ellington’s own tradition and a few Border Morris dances. You can catch these marvellous morris dancers do their thing each Wednesday evening at village pubs around East Berkshire, and at weekends at fairs, fetes, carnivals and other local celebrations.
And what a glorious way to ring in the first of May. The sun was shining and we’d had a splendid meal at Hurley’s The Dew Drop Inn. After a brief closure for refurbishment, the pub is now back open and the team are doing their thing with the same love and attention as ever. The next morning, bank holiday Monday, was spent making and eating a monster serving of pancakes. This is a recipe I swear by and is ideal for anyone looking to eat those big, fluffy, wholesome pancakes that can get so easily in the States, but are as rare as a sunny day in the UK.
It’s surprisingly easy to whip up some blueberry sauce to go with your pancakes. I did so at the very last minute as my last batch of batter was on the hob. It takes a moment for the berries burst and release their wild, magenta colour but once they do you know you’re in for a treat. I absolutely adore the flavour of cooked blueberries and I could think of no better way to enjoy it than with this meal.
Buttermilk Blueberry Pancakes Recipe
Ingredients:
For the dry bowl
2 cups flour
2 tbsp sugar
4 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp fine salt
For the wet bowl
2 cups buttermilk
4 tbsp melted butter
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 beaten eggs
For the blueberry sauce
2-3 cups of fresh blueberries
1/2 cup of maple syrup
Method:
For the pancakes
Add the wet ingredients to the dry and whisk until just combined – and still a bit lumpy.
Let the mixture sit for 5 minutes to become light and airy.
Fry in a pan with butter.
For the blueberry sauce
Put the syrup and berries into a saucepan on high heat.
Stir occasionally and wait until the blueberries begin to burst and stir until you’ve got something that looks like blueberry sauce.