DOUBLE CHOCOLATE PANCAKES

Double-Chocolate Pancakes

SAM SIFTON

• YIELD
4 servings

• TIME
45 minutes

Craig Lee for The New York Times

Few adults would want this meal for breakfast, but it is an excellent recipe for parents to make the morning after a sleepover that had the children and their friends up late watching horror films and unfathomable YouTube comedy. I adapted it slightly from Bobby Flay’s “Brunch at Bobby’s” cookbook, released in 2015. Watching the effect of the sugar and chocolate on a sleepy child is its own sort of joy – and you can hustle the guests home before the inevitable crash. Serve with raspberries for reasons of taste and elegance (though strawberries or bananas would do in a pinch), and salted caramel sauce. Yes, you could insist on eating muesli and almond milk instead. But in Mr. Flay’s words, “If you’re going to cave, you might as well go all out.”

INGREDIENTS

• 2 large eggs

• 1 tablespoon granulated sugar

• 2 tablespoons dark brown sugar

• 1 ¼ to 1 ¾ cups buttermilk

• 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

• 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour

• ¼ cup unsweetened cocoa powder

• 1 teaspoon instant espresso or coffee powder

• 2 teaspoons baking powder

• ½ teaspoon kosher salt

• 3 ½ ounces semisweet chocolate, finely chopped

• 1 tablespoon or so neutral oil, like canola

• Raspberries, for serving

• Salted caramel sauce, warmed, for serving

PREPARATION

1 Heat oven to 250 degrees.

2 In a small bowl, whisk together eggs, sugars, 1 1/4 cups buttermilk, the melted butter and the vanilla extract.

3 In a medium bowl, sift together flour, cocoa powder, coffee powder, baking powder and salt.

4 Add the egg mixture to the flour mixture and whisk until combined. Add remaining buttermilk if mixture is too thick. Fold in the chocolate and allow to sit for 10 to 15 minutes.

5 Heat a large griddle or cast-iron pan over medium heat. Brush with the neutral oil and allow it to get hot. Drop ¼-cup portions of the batter onto the griddle and cook until bubbles begin to rise to the surface, approximately 2 minutes, then flip and cook for another minute or two. As pancakes are ready, place them on a baking sheet and keep them warm in the oven.

6 Serve stacked, with raspberries and drizzled with warm caramel sauce.

Sauce...

INGREDIENTS

• 1 cup granulated sugar
• ½ cup heavy cream
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
• ¾ teaspoon kosher salt, or to taste

PREPARATION

1. In a medium saucepan set over medium-high heat, combine the sugar with 1/4 cup cold water and stir to combine. Cook, without stirring, until the sugar has turned a deep amber hue, approximately 10 to 12 minutes.
2. Meanwhile, warm the cream in a small saucepan. When the caramel is ready, slowly whisk in the warm cream and continue simmering the mixture until it is smooth, another 2 to 3 minutes. Remove from heat, then whisk in the butter, and then the salt, to taste. Serve warm.