Pancakes and Waffles

March 7, 2005
For those who hear "pancake" and think "buttermilk" or see "waffle" and expect "Belgian," Pappas, the author of numerous cookbooks for Chronicle (including Biscotti, The Christmas Cookie Book and Crepes), offers dozens of new ways to think about such familiar favorites. She does include recipes for Classic Buttermilk Pancakes and Classic Buttermilk Waffles (the recipes, naturally, are quite similar), but she also suggests such deluxe fare as Cottage Cheese Pancakes with Blackberries and Sour Cream, Buckwheat Pancakes with Chevre, Salmon and Dill, and Triple Ginger Pancakes. Waffle options include Hazelnut-Orange Waffles, Five-Grain Fitness Waffles and Olive-Semolina Waffles. Pappas also provides recipes for a variety of syrups and toppings, from Flavored Butters, Blueberry Sauce and Sugar-Free Apple Spread to Tapenade and Sun-Dried Tomato Pesto. Pearson's pastel, soft-focus photographs are highly appealing, as are Pappas's recipe notes ("Nuggets of fresh pear and toasty almonds bejewel these crispy orange-scented waffles"). Add in clear directions and a clean layout, and you've got a little book that promises to break waffles and pancakes out of the breakfast box.

Copyright 2005 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.