Yeast Pancakes -- The Morning I Fed Five Grandchildren and Almost Ran Out of Syrup

All five grandchildren for a week. Teddy is nine, Anna six, James three, Ben five, Lucy two. David and Karen brought theirs from Montpelier on Sunday. Sarah and Tom brought theirs from Portland. The farmhouse, which holds a quiet retirement with equanimity on normal weeks, became something else entirely: a logistics operation disguised as a vacation, managed by Helen with the calm authority of a woman who has been doing this since 1982.

The mornings were mine. I was up first, as always, and I made pancakes — the full Vermont version, with my own syrup, the batter made from scratch with some cornmeal in it for texture. By seven-thirty there were five children at the table ranging from two to nine, in various stages of wakefulness and opinion. The syrup disappeared at a rate that suggested I might need to tap more trees next spring. James ate his pancakes with his hands, which I decided was fine for a three-year-old. He looked pleased with himself. He usually does.

I took Teddy and Ben to the sugarhouse one afternoon and showed them the evaporator, cold now, and the account books on the shelf. Teddy knew about the books from March. Ben hadn't seen them. He asked if he could touch them. I said yes, carefully. He turned the pages of the 1921 book with the focused carefulness he brings to things he considers important. He asked who wrote it. I said my grandfather. He asked if my grandfather was old. I said he was about sixty when Ben's age would have been, which Ben considered for a moment before accepting.

By Thursday the house was chaotic in a way that I pretend to find exhausting and which I do not. The noise, the running, the competing questions, the meals stretched to accommodate all the opinions. By Sunday when they left, the farmhouse settled back into itself and the quiet was enormous and precise. Helen and I did the dishes together in the silence. She washed. I dried. The way we always do. Everything was right. Everything will always be right, for as long as we have this.

Those mornings with five children at the table — syrup vanishing, James eating with his hands, Lucy still half-asleep — called for a pancake that could hold its own under that kind of joyful pressure. Yeast pancakes are what I reach for when breakfast needs to mean something: they’re lighter than the standard recipe, with a slight tang that pairs beautifully with real maple syrup, and the batter rewards you for planning ahead the night before, which suits the way I like to run my mornings. This is the recipe I’ve come back to more times than I can count, and after a week like that one, I can’t imagine any other.

Yeast Pancakes

Prep Time: 15 minutes (plus overnight rest) | Cook Time: 20 minutes | Total Time: 35 minutes active | Servings: 6 (about 18 pancakes)

Ingredients

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/4 cup fine yellow cornmeal
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 packet (2 1/4 teaspoons) active dry yeast
• 2 cups warm milk (about 110°F)
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled
• 2 large eggs, lightly beaten
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda dissolved in 1 tablespoon warm water
• Butter or neutral oil, for the griddle
• Pure maple syrup, for serving

Instructions

1. Proof the yeast. The evening before, combine the warm milk and sugar in a large bowl. Sprinkle the yeast over the top and let it sit for 5–10 minutes until foamy.
2. Mix the batter. Whisk the flour, cornmeal, and salt into the yeast mixture until a smooth, thick batter forms. Cover the bowl with a clean kitchen towel and leave it at room temperature overnight, at least 8 hours. The batter will bubble and rise.
3. Finish the batter. In the morning, stir the melted butter and beaten eggs into the rested batter. Add the dissolved baking soda and stir gently to combine — the batter will loosen and become pourable.
4. Heat the griddle. Warm a cast-iron griddle or heavy skillet over medium heat. Brush lightly with butter or oil. When a drop of water skips across the surface, it’s ready.
5. Cook the pancakes. Pour about 1/4 cup of batter per pancake onto the griddle. Cook until bubbles form across the surface and the edges look set, about 2–3 minutes. Flip and cook another 1–2 minutes until golden brown.
6. Keep warm and serve. Transfer finished pancakes to a baking sheet in a 200°F oven to keep warm while you work through the remaining batter. Serve with real maple syrup.

Nutrition (per serving)

Calories: 285 | Protein: 10g | Fat: 8g | Carbs: 42g | Fiber: 2g | Sodium: 390mg