Rustic Cornmeal Pancakes Dappled with American Breakfast Sausage and Slicked with Maple Syrup

Name: Rustic Cornmeal Pancakes Dappled with American Breakfast Sausage and Slicked with Maple Syrup
Yield: makes 6 plate-size pancakes
Ingredients: 1 1/2 cups yellow cornmeal; 1/2 cup polenta; 1 1/2 cups boiling water; 3/4 cup all-purpose flour; 2 teaspoons baking powder; 1 tablespoon sugar; 3/4 teaspoon kosher salt; 1 cup milk; 1 large egg; 3 tablespoons butter, melted; 6 ounces American Breakfast Sausage (page 10); Butter or ghee (see page 71), for cooking the pancakes; Maple syrup, preferably grade B, for serving

January 24, 2012

The advantage of including the sausage in the pancake batter is that you don’t have to use a second pan to cook the sausage for a side. It saves thermal unit energy, making it ecofriendly, and it saves the energy of the cook because there are fewer dishes to wash. The addition of polenta, which is more coarsely ground than cornmeal, makes for a slightly nubby texture and pleasing “bite.” For an everyday breakfast, I usually make the pancakes plate size, but they make a fine stack of dollar-size pancakes, too, if you’d like to go for “more” rather than “bigger.” Use about 2 tablespoons for each dollar-size cake; you should end up with about 18 pancakes. The batter, without the added sausage, can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 4 days; just before cooking, stir in the crumbled sausage. Using grade B maple syrup accents the rustic theme. It is also the grade recommended by savvy Vermonters, who prefer its deeper, browner lushness over grade A.

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