Happy Pancake Tuesday! Here’s one of my favourite pancake recipes – they’re on the menu today in Clodagh’s Kitchen in Arnotts – so stop by if you’re in Dublin!

Serves 4

Ingredients:

For the Orange Pancake Batter

130g (1 cup)  plain flour (all-purpose flour), sifted

2 eggs

180ml (2/3 cup) milk

zest and juice of 1 orange

2 tbsp melted butter

For the Chocolate Cardamon and Orange Sauce

225g (8 oz0  of dark chocolate broken into pieces

60g (1/3 cup) caster sugar (superfine sugar)

10 cardamon pods, crushed and seeds taken out (you use the seeds)

50ml (3 tablespoons) cream (heavy cream)

Method

First, make the pancake batter.  Put the flour into a large bowl and make a well in the centre. Break the eggs into the centre and gradually mix in the flour. Pour in the milk, orange juice and zest a little at a time, whisking continuously. Put in the fridge to settle for 1-2 hours. Just before you want to use the batter, stir in the melted butter to help prevent the batter from sticking to the pan.

Meanwhile, make the Chocolate Cardamon and Orange Sauce.  Put all of the ingredients into saucepan over a gentle heat and stir until the chocolate has melted.  Set aside.

When the batter has rested for 1 hour,  take it out of the fridge and give it a good whisk.  Heat a 20 cm (8in) non-stick frying pan and add just enough melted butter to glaze the pan.  Swirl the pan to coat evenly with butter.

Preheat the oven to 150 oC  / gas mark 2/300 oF . Pour enough batter to cover the pan and swirl around to make sure you get an even spread. Cook for 1-2 minutes , flip over the pancakes with a spatula and cook for about another minute on the other side. Transfer to a warm plate, cover with tin foil and put it in the oven to keep warm. Continue until you have used all of the batter.

Re-heat the chocolate sauce over a low heat: if it has thickened whisk in 1-2 tablespoons of water. Pour the sauce over the pancakes and serve.

Recipe taken from Clodagh’s Kitchen Diaries, published by Kyle Books 2012. Photograph by Kate Whitaker.