Chocolate Chip Ricotta Pancakes
As much as I enjoy food, cooking and baking, I’m not the biggest fan of grocery shopping. Even before Covid, I availed myself of pick up and delivery options whenever and wherever possible. While there were definitely some issues and hiccups early on, over the years the services have expanded and improved. But, there are still the occasional mix-up – missing items, strange substitutions, extra and/or duplicate items, etc. Recently, I ordered a container of ricotta cheese for a dinner I had planned, but instead of the single container I ordered, I received two containers. What do you do when your grocery store delivers an extra container of ricotta cheese? I suppose you could contact the store and try to return and/or refund the extra item. But, if you are me, you make breakfast! Specifically, you make these delicious chocolate chip ricotta pancakes, loosely inspired by cannoli filling.
Cannoli are a popular Italian dessert featuring a crispy fried pastry tube filled with a lightly sweetened, creamy filling traditionally comprised primarily of ricotta cheese. It is also common to add mini chocolate chips or chopped chocolate, either folded into the filling or adorning the ends of the cannoli, providing both a flavor and textural contrast. It was the thought of that subtly sweet, creamy filling, studded with bits of chocolate, that inspired these pancakes.
When added to pancakes, the ricotta cheese brings a naturally sweet, creamy flavor as well as imparting moisture that keeps the pancakes light and tender. The addition of cinnamon, vanilla and the mini chocolate chips help sell the cannoli vibe. We enjoyed these pancakes drizzled with maple syrup, but if you want to amp up that cannoli vibe even more, you might want to consider topping them with a dusting of powdered sugar, a bit of orange zest and toasted, finely chopped pistachios.
I am happy to say that these pancakes were a huge hit with the family and absolutely no ricotta cheese went to waste!
Chocolate Chip Ricotta Pancakes
Equipment
- As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.kitchen scale (or measuring cups and spoons)
- large pitcher or measuring cup
- large bowl
- small bowl
- griddle
- scoop (60 ml or 1/4 cup)
- spatula
Ingredients
- 280 g ricotta cheese room temperature
- 400 g buttermilk room temperature
- 4 eggs room temperature
- 56 g unsalted butter melted
- 34 g sugar
- 10 ml vanilla bean paste
- 330 g white whole wheat flour
- 140 g oat flour
- 26 g flaxseed meal
- 13 g baking powder
- 10 g baking soda
- 5 g cinnamon
- 5 g salt
- 2 egg whites room temperature
- 228 g mini chocolate chips
Instructions
- In a large measuring cup or pitcher, blend together the ricotta, buttermilk, eggs, butter, sugar and vanilla bean paste.280 g ricotta cheese, 400 g buttermilk, 4 eggs, 56 g unsalted butter, 34 g sugar, 10 ml vanilla bean paste
- In a large bowl, whisk together the white whole wheat flour, oat flour, flaxseed meal, baking powder, baking soda and salt.330 g white whole wheat flour, 140 g oat flour, 26 g flaxseed meal, 13 g baking powder, 10 g baking soda, 5 g salt, 5 g cinnamon
- In a small bowl, beat the egg whites to medium peaks2 egg whites
- Add the liquid ingredients to the dry ingredients and mix just until combined, fold in the chocolate chips.228 g mini chocolate chips
- Add 1/3 of the egg whites and fold to combine, this lightens the batter slightly making it easier to incorporate the remainder of the egg whites.
- Add the remainder of the egg whites, fold just until no streaks of white remain. Set the batter aside to rest while you preheat your pan or griddle to 350°F.
- Use a 60 ml (1/4 cup) scoop to portion the batter onto the griddle. Make sure to leave enough space between the pancakes to allow you to flip them.
- Cook until the edges look dry and bubbles are coming up in the middle of the pancakes. Gently flip and continue cooking on the other side. When both sides are golden and the middle is set, the pancakes are done. Continue until all of the batter is used.
- Serve immediately, or reserve in a warm (180°F – 200°F) oven until ready to serve. Leftovers can be stored in the refrigerator in an airtight container, or frozen in a freezer bag with parchment between the layers.
Notes
- If you’d like, you can replace the white whole wheat flour, oat flour and flax seed meal with just all purpose flour. I like using a blend of flours/meals to help boost the nutrition a bit, but using all purpose flour will result in an even lighter texture.Â
- This recipe was loosely inspired by cannoli, if that is a flavor vibe you want to intensify, try serving these pancakes with a dusting of powdered sugar, a bit of orange zest and toasted, finely chopped pistachios – all of which are very common to the cannoli flavor profile.Â
Nutrition
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