Thanks to new 'living with covid' guidelines, most of us are back in the office for Pancake Day 2022. So, there's little opportunity to sneak off and create a culinary masterpiece between Zoom meetings. Sob.
The trouble is, of course, that Pancake Day, aka Shrove Tuesday, falls on an actual Tuesday. Which means the likelihood is - if your routine and ability to organise your life is as hopeless as mine - that you'll get to work, wonder why talks of Nutella vs. lemon and sugar are travelling at speed across the office floor and then suddenly realise that you have neither eaten a pancake yet, nor have made appropriate plans to do so at a fancy, Instagrammable restaurant later. More tears.
It's around this time that I start to sulk about the fact that there isn't a pancake delivery service (a business opportunity if I've ever seen one) to fulfill the day's obligation of gorging on a breakfast-desert type dish at any and every time of day. But this year, we're not having any of that.
Plans or no plans, you're going to have pancakes my friends. This year, come lunchtime you march yourself over to the nearest convenience store and pick yourself up some eggs, flour and butter (you can nick the milk from the office fridge) because in 2022, you're having pancakes on an actual Tuesday. All you need is a plate, a mug and your shitty office microwave.
If we're going to get technical about it, I suppose a microwaved pancake isn't a pancake at all. It's a platecake. Also you kind of have to sacrifice the novelty of flipping the traditional pancake up in the air and praying you catch it before it splatters across the floor. But beggars can't be choosers and at this point, we're all about convenience. So here's how to make sure you get at least one pancake in your stomach before you shuffle home at the end of the day.
You need:
A splash of milk
An egg - medium is fine
Three spoons of plain flour
A teaspoon of butter
How to make a pancake in the microwave
First, crack your egg into a mug.
Add your flour, milk and give it a good whisk with a fork until well combined and there are as few lumps as possible. But don't stress too much about that. With three spoons of flour my pancake came out quite thick and in the style of a slightly more dense American pancake, so if you prefer yours on the thinner, crepe-like side, and a little more milk until you're happy with the consistency.
Smother your plate with butter. It feels odd to do but this'll stop your platecake/pancake from sticking and will give it a bit of flavour. Also the smell of melted butter is hard to resist.
Then, pour the mixture out onto the plate and allow it to run to the sides and form a bit of a circle.
Next, pop the plate in the microwave and set it to medium high. This bit is important otherwise it'll just cook the outside and leave you with a little pool of batter in the middle and that's not what we're here for.
Heat for 30-40 seconds at a time and keep a watchful eye on how it progresses. You don't want to overcook otherwise it'll be gross and rubbery, okay? A good way to make sure it's cooked is to prod the pancake in the middle to make sure its hot and if it is, you're safe.
Then transfer your beautiful lazy pancake to a butter-free plate and top with your delicious topping of choice (aka, the generic white sugar that's kept in the office kitchen). Sorted.
Follow Jazmin on Instagram @JazKopotsha
This article originally appeared on The Debrief.