Sweet Potato Buttermilk Pancakes with Maple Creme Fraiche and Fig Butter

Ingredient of the Week: Sweet Potato

When I refer friends and family to Birch, they initially list two concerns: food quality and meal planning. Given that we live in the Pacific Northwest, we are steeped in a culture that makes much of organic, healthful ingredients. And given that most of us are in a busy season of raising families, we want to be able to plan our meals and then shop for what we need, which admittedly is highly convenient. The following recipe is my answer to both concerns. Not only is it made with organic, seasonal ingredients, but it highlights the creative benefit to meal planning after a Birch shop. I have learned to love coming home with bags of seemingly unrelated ingredients, only to discover some new and delicious way of combining them.

The week I developed this recipe, my Birch shop yielded several cans of organic sweet potato puree, a bag of whole wheat flour, a quart of buttermilk, and a carton of crème fraiche (the richer, milder cousin of sour cream). I also had some real maple syrup from a discount grocery store and a bag of frozen green figs from a generous neighbor’s tree. I adapted my favorite pumpkin pancake recipe to make it even more healthful, swapping out the refined sugar for honey and white flour for whole wheat. The result was incredibly tender, perfectly sweet pancakes that were just as good after freezing and reheating. The crème fraiche and fig butter can of course be replaced with your favorite toppings.

For the pancakes:

3 eggs

1/3 cup honey

1/3 cup olive oil or browned butter*

1 ½ cups buttermilk

¼ cup milk or whey

½ cup sweet potato puree

2 tsp vanilla

1 tsp pumpkin pie spice

2 cups whole wheat flour (white whole wheat or whole wheat pastry flour work too)

2 tablespoons baking powder

½ tsp salt

Blend the wet ingredients (eggs through vanilla). Slowly mix in the dry ingredients, whisking just until incorporated. For each pancake, pour ¼ cup batter onto a greased pan over medium heat. Flip when the edges are slightly dry.

*Using browned butter in this recipe will produce a nutty, savory flavor that complements the sweet potato perfectly. To make browned butter, heat 1/3 cup butter over low-medium heat in a light-colored pan until the butter is golden brown and fragrant. Remove from heat immediately to prevent burning.

For the maple crème fraiche:

½ cup crème fraiche

2-3 tablespoons real maple syrup, to taste

Mix together, adding maple syrup little by little until desired sweetness is achieved.

For the fig butter:

4-8 cups fresh (or frozen and thawed) figs

Honey to taste

Coarsely chop the figs and place them in a slow cooker on low heat. Cook for 8 hours. Blend a bit with an immersion blender if you want a smoother result. Add honey to taste. Apples, quince and other fibrous fruits can also be turned into sauce this way.