Theatrical Pancakes (it's not just a makeup!)

Hooray for Shrove Tuesday – the tastiest day of the year!

A day where it is considered perfectly acceptable to feast on pancakes for breakfast, lunch and dinner and even have mini ones as snacks.

However, creating the ‘perfect pancake’ can be an absolute minefield as, similar to making the perfect cuppa, everybody has their own unique way of going about it. From crepes, to American style, to protein pancakes there seems to be a multitude of different ways just to cook them, and that’s not even counting the millions of different possible toppings that you can choose from!

No doubt many of you will be tucking into these!

You can even eat your way around the world by sampling toppings favoured by each country, from (my personal favourite!) the American buttermilk pancake, served with lashings of syrup (preferably maple!) and sometimes accompanied with crisp, streaky bacon, to the delicate sweet or savoury filled French crepe, or the classic English topping of lemon juice and sugar. At the German Christmas Markets there are always a handful of pancake stalls selling crepes smothered in chocolate sauce, fruits and cinnamon, and of course we must never forget the Scottish drop scones.

However, we are theatre lovers and therefore enjoy things that are a little more unique, so rather than offering a list of already well-known mixtures we thought we could present you with inspiration for some rather more creative recipes.

Scroll down through this post and see if there’s anything you might try tonight instead of your traditional go-to recipe – you may even find a new favourite!

• Birthday Cake Pancakes

For those who love colour and can handle something a little bit more sweet. These are perfect for occasions such as birthdays. The icing and coloured sprinkles help make a stack of pancakes that are not only extra delicious, but also look just that bit more special. 

Accompany with extra long lit candles or sparklers for that finishing touch!

These are the kind of super sweet pancakes a character like Cinderella would crave (if she ate carbs) 

For the recipe click here

• Strawberry Funfetti Pancakes

Again with the sprinkles- but you could choose to not include them and just have strawberry heart pancakes.

If you like having strawberries (or any fruit) on your pancakes then this is a pretty cool way to incorporate them into the design. Plus if you took some care with cutting them these could be some pretty show stopper Valentines pancakes! (or just show stopper anniversary pancakes)

The sprinkles and the strawberries make these pancakes look like something Truly Scrumptious from Chitty Chitty Bang Bang would whip up!

For the recipe click here

• Somewhere Over the Rainbow Pancakes

Officially Dorothy's favourite. 

This is definitely one for the children as they seem to get a real kick out of 'normal' food that's a wacky colour (does anyone else remember Heinz green ketchup?) 

To make these just make sure you have easily washable surfaces, yards of wipe clean tablecloth, gallons of food colouring - and that you don't mind your hands looking tie dyed.

For the recipe just use any buttermilk pancake recipe and add food colouring!

• Bunny Bobtail Pancakes

For any picky eaters or animal lovers these require very little effort but look adorable. Also, with just cream and some strawberries they are very simple and won't overpower anyones taste buds.

These would work well at Easter - not just because of the rabbit theme, but also their simplicity may also work well with all the chocolate eggs that were no doubt consumed pre-breakfast! 

What we would call a 'deceptive treat.'

Alice would snack on these as she dreamt about Wonderland and her old friend, the White Rabbit.

When Pinterest Strikes...

Pinterest is a great resource for anyone looking for unique recipes and if you liked the 'bunny bobtail pancakes' recipe there are a whole host of different animals you can recreate. Be careful though as some of the recipes can be very tricky and your cute teddybear can quickly become the stuff of nightmares. If you're recreating lots for a children's party or brunch event then we'd recommend testing the recipe first, so that you can make sure you're serving 'Mr Fox' rather than Toad of Toad Hall!

Strawberries & Champagne - a perfect combination!

• Champagne Pancakes

The perfect pancakes for those who celebrated well into the early hours after a wonderful closing night. How else could you finish off that finale champagne as well as enjoy a good breakfast? 

For the recipe click here

• Baked Apple Pancakes

This decadent and intricate dessert is rather more Evil Queen than Snow White.

Featuring plenty of cinnamon and a spicy apple cider syrup this is the perfect pancake to warm you up on a cold day.

For the recipe click here

Pancake Heaven when served with a dollop of ice cream

We hope you enjoy your pancakes as much as we've enjoyed putting this post together! Our mouths have certainly been watering at all the pictures!

Let us know how you get on, and what you think of our slightly more off the cuff recipe ideas.

Written by Tamsin

Picture sources:

taste.com.au

tumblr

health.india.com

betterbakingbible.com

iambaker.net

thechickncoop.blogspot.com

veggieandthebeastfeast.com

pinchofyum.com

howsweeteats.com

pinterest.com

bettycrocker.com