My Mother’s Day has always started with breakfast in bed. I can remember some days I would wait for hours pretending to be asleep while my husband and children scurried around the kitchen making me the perfect breakfast. They would present a beautiful tray full of beautifully prepared goodies and gifts. I would pretend to wake up, unaware of all of the preparation going on in the kitchen and be surprised! I am not sure who had more fun. Was it me, or the children and my husband as they created the perfect breakfast? Still to this day, I cherish the gifts and the delicious meals that my children have made for me throughout the years for Mother’s Day.

I thought I would share this perfect Mother’s Day recipe with you. Why buy a bouquet of flowers when you can create heart and flower shaped pancakes! These “Griddle Art” pancakes give your children an opportunity to create something extra special for Mother’s Day, while using their creativity in the kitchen. Whip up some of my delicious fresh Strawberry Honey Butter, and these pancakes become a real gourmet treat! I also share my delicious recipe for Homemade Buttery Maple Syrup. Once you give this syrup a try, you may never buy store bought syrup again. I hope you have a wonderful Mother’s Day spent with your mother and your children. Hmm….I wonder what my kids will make me this year. I’m hoping for pancakes!

Pancakes

Ingredients

  • 3 cups cake flour
  • 3 Tablespoons sugar
  • 3 Tablespoons baking powder
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • 2 cups milk
  • 2 eggs, lightly beaten
  • 1 Tablespoon vanilla
  • 4 Tablespoons Challenge Butter, melted
  • Assorted food coloring (note-if using any red or pink coloring, use the “no-taste” variety)
  • Strawberry slices-optional

Directions

  • 1

    Mix together flour, sugar, baking powder and salt in large bowl.

  • 2

    Mix together milk, eggs, and vanilla in a separate bowl.

  • 3

    Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients, stirring very gently until just combined.

  • 4

    Add butter to the batter. Stir in more milk if needed for thinning. The pancakes should easily come out of a squeeze bottle. Divide batter into three bowls. Color each bowl with desired food colors. Using a spoon or funnel, transfer batter into squeeze bottles. Squeeze designs out onto a well-greased griddle. Cook over medium-low heat until bubbles appear Flip, and continue cooking until cooked through.

  • 5

    To create heart cakes, slice strawberries into thin slices. Cut a triangle out on the top section to create a heart shape. Place on grill and trace around strawberry with batter to create the perfect heart shaped pancake.

Stawberry Honey Butter

Ingredients

  • 1 cup (2 sticks) Challenge European Style Butter (I love using the European style for this recipe.)
  • 2-4 Tablespoons honey
  • ½ cup diced fresh strawberries

Directions

  • 1

    Mix all ingredients together in a bowl. Serve with Griddle Art Pancakes. Refrigerated until needed, best used the same day.

Maple Butter

Ingredients

  • 4 Tablespoons Challenge Butter
  • 1 cup brown sugar
  • ½ cup granulated sugar
  • 1 cup water
  • 1 teaspoon maple flavoring-optional

Directions

  • 1

    In a medium saucepan, combine all ingredients. Bring mixture to boil. Reduce temperature to create a gentle boil, and cook for 4-5 minutes. Remove from heat and cool slightly. Stir in Maple flavoring if desired. Serve warm with pancakes!