Cook, writer and food stylist, Debbie's reputation for foolproof, delicious recipes is second to none. She is renowned for her dedication to seasonal home cooking and her love of all things rustic and authentic. Simplicity over cheffy is her motto!
See more of Debbie Major’s recipes
Debbie Major
Cook, writer and food stylist, Debbie's reputation for foolproof, delicious recipes is second to none. She is renowned for her dedication to seasonal home cooking and her love of all things rustic and authentic. Simplicity over cheffy is her motto!
See more of Debbie Major’s recipes
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Ingredients
For the pancakes
350ml whole milk
1 large egg, plus 1 yolk
30g butter, melted
100g plain flour, sifted
¼ tsp fine sea salt
For the Bolognese sauce
50g smoked streaky bacon, finely chopped
2 tbsp vegetable oil
1 small onion, finely chopped
3 garlic cloves, crushed
1 small carrot, peeled and finely diced
1 large celery stick, finely diced
1 x 500g pack 12% fat minced beef
1 x 400g carton basics chopped tomatoes
150ml chicken stock, from ½ cube
3 tbsp tomato purée
For the cheese topping
150ml soured cream
2 tbsp whole milk
75g basics full flavour cheese, finely grated
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Get ahead
The Bolognese sauce and pancakes can both be made ahead ready to assemble, and chilled for 2-3 days, or frozen.
For the pancakes, blend the milk, the egg, egg yolk, 1 tablespoon of melted butter, flour and salt in a liquidiser to a smooth batter with the consistency of single cream (or whisk together in a bowl). Set aside for 30 minutes.
Meanwhile, for the Bolognese sauce, fry the bacon in the oil in a large pan or casserole, until lightly golden. Add the onion and fry for 5 minutes, then add the garlic, carrot and celery, and fry gently for a further 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Increase the heat, add the beef and cook until it has all changed colour, breaking up the meat as you go.
Stir in the tomatoes, stock and tomato purée and simmer uncovered for 45 minutes, until the sauce has thickened and all the excess liquid has disappeared – it needs to be thick for this recipe. Season to taste.
Meanwhile, cook the pancakes. Briefly re-blend the pancake batter. Heat a 17-18cm base diameter nonstick frying pan over a medium-high heat. Brush with a little melted butter, ladle in 2½-3 tablespoons of batter and swirl around so that it thinly coats the base of the pan. Cook for about 40 seconds, until lightly golden underneath and biscuit-brown around the edges, then flip and cook for about 30 seconds more until marked with light-brown spots. Slide the pancake onto a plate. Repeat with the remaining batter to make 12 pancakes in total, layering baking paper in between them on the plate.
For the cheese topping, mix the soured cream, milk and 25g of the cheese together in a bowl with some seasoning. Preheat the oven to 220°C, fan 200°C, gas 7. Fill each pancake with 2 heaped spoonfuls of Bolognese and roll up. Place them side-by-side in a well- buttered baking dish, spoon on the cheese topping and sprinkle with the remaining grated cheese. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until the cheese is golden brown and the filling is piping hot. We like to serve them with a salad.
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Baking soda should be no more than six months old. Stir the batter only until the wet and dry ingredients are incorporated; overbeating will make pancakes tough and chewy instead of fluffy. No Buttermilk, No Problem!
A cup per person. A cup is not that much, and if you have a sauce with a lot of meat and veg in it (like a bolognese) that doesn't really leave much liquid sauce to coat the pasta. It depends also on if you're planning on saucing the pasta before or after portioning.
According to our Food Director Amira, not only does milk add a rich flavour to the bolognese, but it also “helps cut through the acidity of the tomatoes and red wine”. She adds: “It also makes the mince meat nice and tender, creating that melt-in-your-mouth deliciousness.”
However, along with that ease, you may be taking a hit in the overall taste department. Restaurants tend to use real, farm-fresh eggs and real milk when making their pancakes, which as you might guess, adds to a richer, higher-quality eating experience.
Beat two eggs with 4 tablespoons of sugar and about one teacup (or 3/4 of a cup) of milk. Add 4 teacups of flour and mix in another teacup of milk "as required" Mix in 3 teaspoons of cream of tartar and 2 tablespoons of bicarbonate soda (baking soda) Fold in 2 tablespoons of melted butter.
Most diner kitchens cook their pancakes using a batter that's either malted or fermented, maybe with a sourdough base. That's why, on their own, these special hotcakes feature a bit of malty, tangy sweetness that plays so well with all that syrup we plan on using.
Milk is a magical ingredient when it comes to bolognese. First, the lactic acid and calcium in milk help to tenderize the meat. More than that, though, milk balances the wine and tomato, creates a creamier texture and adds richness (similar to how butter or yogurt add more richness and flavor to dishes).
Even though both are considered meat sauces and are thusly chunky, ragù is more like a thick tomato sauce with recognizable bits of ground beef within it.Bolognese, though, is creamier and thicker because it is made with milk. It is not considered to be a tomato sauce.
If the tomatoes are too acidic or you add wine to the sauce, and you don't plan on cooking it for hours like an authentic Sunday Sauce, then a teaspoon of sugar can help reduce the acidity.
Unfortunately for garlic lovers, it has no place in a traditional bolognese as the dish doesn't usually involve aromatics - it rarely even involves a bayleaf.
IHOP, for instance, requires its pans to be heated to 350 degrees Fahrenheit, and uses Crisco instead of butter to grease it, says Grimm. IHOP also has designated griddles that never cook anything other than pancakes, as Jon Kotez, IHOP's senior manager of field operations support, told Restaurant Business.
Flour is the main ingredient to any pancake. It provides the structure. Different types of flours alter the structure because some flours absorb more moisture or create more gluten (which binds the structure together) than others.
While the griddles themselves likely vary from one diner chain to the next, diners are pretty much all working with a waffle iron or griddle that's already piping hot. IHOP, for instance, requires its pans to be heated to 350 degrees Fahrenheit and uses Crisco instead of butter to grease them, says Grimm.
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Prep time: 50 mins
