Cinnamon & nutmeg ricotta hotcakes with poached pears and honey butter

When I was asked by Hubbub (my fave local business, delivering top quality produce from north London's independent food shops to the lucky residents of N1 and beyond) to contribute a pancake recipe for Shrove Tuesday, I knew it had to be a version of Bill Granger's infamous ricotta hotcakes.

Hubbub have just launched a new recipe section on their site and there's some gorgeous stuff on there. For Shrove Tuesday they'll be adding a selection of lovely pancake recipes, including this one.

Many years ago I made Bill's ricotta hotcakes and piled them high with berries and honeycomb butter for Christmas morning breaky. This time I played with the recipe a little and used some poached pears (see last week's post here for the pears poached in Prosecco recipe), honey butter and a sprinkling of cinnamon and nutmeg. What better justification for getting out of bed on a Sunday morning than to devour light fluffy hotcakes whilst trying to keep discs of melting butter from sliding off the top?

Cinnamon and nutmeg ricotta hotcakes with poached pears and honey butter
(based closely on Bill Granger's recipe, found here)

serves 2-3 people

200g ricotta
90ml milk
2 eggs, separated
1/2 cup self raising flour
2 tablespoons icing sugar
1/2 tablespoon cinnamon (or a little more to taste)
1 teaspoon nutmeg
pinch of salt
butter for cooking

2-3 poached pears, sliced (see recipe here. Alternatively use fresh pears or bake halved pears in the oven sprinkled with brown sugar and dotted with butter until tender.)

honey butter
125g lightly salted butter
2 tablespoons of honey
2 teaspoons cinnamon

To make the honey butter, leave the butter out to soften and then whip/whisk (although massaging with your hands is far more satisfying) together with the honey and cinnamon. Lay out a piece of cling film. Mould the butter into a log and roll up in the cling wrap. Refrigerate until ready to use. You can do this a day or two ahead if you trust yourself not to eat it with crumpets in the meantime.

For the hotcakes, mix the ricotta, egg yolks and milk together in a bowl.

Add flour, salt, icing sugar, spices and combine.

Beat the egg whites until stiff peaks are formed. Add one dollop of egg whites to the ricotta mix, and once that is combined, fold through the remaining egg white.

Heat a frying pan over low-medium heat and add a generous dollop of butter. Meanwhile, have your sliced pears ready and cut some discs of the butter.

Dollop the hotcake batter into the frying pan (about 2 dessertspoons per hotcake). Cook for about 3 minutes each side - they will be lovely and golden. Before turning the hotcakes to cook the second side, make sure your eager diners are seated and waiting, salivating at the table, knives & forks at the ready.

Place a hotcake on each plate, lay the sliced pear on top, add another hotcake and balance a few discs of honey butter on top. If you can bear it, leave for about 30 seconds so the butter has a chance to melt atop the hot hotcake.

You'll soon discover that you don't need an excuse such as Shrove Tuesday to make these!