How to Make Pancakes

The first step to making pancakes would be to gather all the ingredients, but for a 10 year old it was to call for mom. Mom has straight, black hair with some red strands. Although she is a tiny woman, she can help with anything. She won’t let you struggle alone.

        “Mom! I need help making pancakes,” I yell from the kitchen. She’s in the kitchen within seconds. The smile on her face tells me she’s excited. Any chance she gets to spend time with me, she takes it.

        First, you mix 1 cup of flour, 2 teaspoons of baking powder, 2 teaspoons of sugar and a pinch of salt. Baking powder is optional, but it will make your pancakes fluffier.  These are your dry ingredients.

        “It’s not considered cooking if you don’t get messy,” Mom says. She gets flour and smears it on my cheek like frosting on a cake. Mom knows how to have fun. She always makes things so much better. There’s never a dull moment with her.

        After mixing your ingredients, crack an egg into your bowl of dry ingredients. You also pour about ¾ cup of milk into the bowl. Now that you have both the egg and milk, stir and make sure you beat the egg. For a thicker batter you could use less milk. A teaspoon of oil is also optional. Oil helps the ingredients hold together.

Just like mom holds us together. She’s the glue to our family. The peacemaker of our family. She’s like the eye of a hurricane. Calm while everything else around is a disaster. If my sister and I are arguing, she’ll talk to both of us at separate times. She listens to both of our sides and makes peace between us.

“Mom! She stole my shirt again!” my sister yells from her room. Since me and my sister are the same size in everything, it’s really tempting to steal her well taken care of clothes.

“She doesn’t even want to wear it today mom. She's only complaining because she saw me walk by her room with it on,” I probably should’ve asked first.

“Be nice to each other, you guys are sisters,” she tells us after every argument. She doesn’t pick sides. She doesn’t worry about who is right or wrong, just works things out. She’s what keeps us all happy.

Whisk your bowl until the batter thickens. You’ll know when to stop mixing when you have a thick and creamy consistency. Let the batter rest for 3-5 minutes. Stir the batter often to eliminate air bubbles. At this time you can add chocolate chips, blueberries, etc.

“We should add chocolate chips,” I say with a smile.

“Of course, these are your pancakes,” she says back. The chocolate chips we thought we had were nowhere.

“It’s okay we don’t need chocolate chips.” I say after a few cabinets were searched. That doesn’t stop her from looking though. After a few minutes she finally finds them. Mom does anything to please us. Even if it seems impossible she makes it work. Even if she has to spend hours searching for something. Or if she has to go out her way to do something for us. Mom does anything for us.

After 3-5 minutes, prepare a large griddle or a skillet. Turn on your stove to a medium heat. Place the skillet or griddle on top of the cooktop and let it heat up. Let 2-3 teaspoons of butter melt, making sure to coat your entire cooking surface.

Now your cooking surface is ready. You can either tilt your bowl of batter into the skillet or use a ladle to pour the batter. Either way, pour the batter in small circles. Make sure to not pour too much batter on one pancake or the outside will be done while the inside will be goopy.

“I’ll tell you when to stop.” Mom hands me the batter. I slowly take the bowl and bring it over the stove. I hesitate to tilt the bowl. As a 10 year old this is very intimidating.

“Here. I’ll show you first and then you can try again.” She takes the batter back and pours it onto the pan. Mom makes everything look easy. I know to call for her when I need help. Whether it’s advice I need, finding my shoes, or even peeling an orange, she’s always helping me. She is the reason I try my best at anything. I want to be like her.

Let the pancakes cook until the top side is bubbling. Once it's bubbling you should flip the pancake to the other side. Wait 20-30 seconds for the other side to cook. Keep an eye on the underside so they don’t burn.

Once both sides are golden brown it is time to take them out the pan. Place them on plates and enjoy.

“Mmm, these are good.” I said.

I thanked my mom. For being patient with her 10 year old. For helping me when I ask. For everything she does for me.