Oatmeal Pancake with Poached Rhubarbs

I'm grateful today that...

...a big genuine smile can make for a really great day :D

...not being always in control (as much as i'd like to be) humbles and frees us.

...i have a roof over my head and that i can wake up and not have to worry about soooo many things i take for granted. but it saddens me that i can just flick through the channels between devastating news around the world and the silly reality TV shows and feel...normal.

...in quietness and trust i get my my strength.

...no one saw me when i fell flat on my face at the station :P

...that people encourage one another. let's keep it going because we all need that!

...i have access to amazing produce which made up my delicious breakfast.

So one Saturday morning, we visited Sydney's Pyrmont Grower's Market for the morning grind and weekly grocery. Happy times!

I foresee lots of oven baked fries in the upcoming days...with lots of garlic and pepper!

Poppies are such cheerful and whimsical flowers, don't you think?

Despite the busy-ness of the market, my eyes turned to these vibrant dark strands of ruby red rhubarbs and recipes after recipes appeared in my mind about what I'd do with them. If I could, I would buy them all!

I love rhubarbs in crumbles, with cream cheese on tarts, but my favourite way of eating them is poached with a bit of lemon and cinnamon!

So for breakfast today, it's poached rhubarbs (prepared previous day) with oatmeal pancakes and a bit of greek yogurt! (I wanted to make some waffles initially...but then realised that I do not have a waffle maker! D'uh.)

But the good news is, this pancake is delicious - soft and tender as all pancakes should be! If you're an oatmeal lover, then this pancake is for you. Cooked rolled oats combined with some oat flour is used to make up this 'double oated' goodness!

You can prepare the poached rhubarb in advance as I did. They keep well in the fridge for up to a week and you can have them with everything (well almost!). My favourite is with rice puddings!

Don't forget to sweeten up your greek yogurt with some honey too, as you may find the rhubarbs slightly tart!

Oatmeal Pancakes
adapted from Kim Broyce’s Good to the Grain
makes enough for 4

• 1 cup of all-purpose flour
• 3/4 cup of oat flour
• 2 tablespoons of sugar
• 2 teaspoons of baking powder
• 3/4 teaspoon of sea salt
• 3 tablespoons of butter
• about 1 1/4 cup of milk (more if needed to thin out the batter)
• 1 cup of cooked oatmeal (not quick-cook or steel-cut)
• 1 tablespoon of unsulphured molasses
• 2 large eggs

1. Whisk together the flours, sugar, baking powder and salt in a medium bowl.

2. Melt the butter and allow it to cool slightly before whisking it with the milk, eggs, oatmeal and molasses in a separate bowl.

3. Fold in the milk and oatmeal mixture into the dry ingredients, gently mixing until combined (don’t use a heavy hand if you’re aiming for tender pancakes).

4. If the batter is too thick, thin out with a little bit more milk.

5. Heat about a tablespoon of butter in a heavy cast iron skillet over medium-high heat and ladle 1/4 cupfuls of batter into the skillet once it’s hot (no more than 3 at one time).

6. Once the pancake batter starts to bubble, flip and cook for another minute or two before transferring to a plate.

7. Continue to scoop in 1/4 cupfuls of batter (re-butter the skillet as necessary) until you have used up all of the batter. Adjust the skillet temperature if you feel that the pancakes are burning or not browning evenly.

Poached Rhubarb

• 600g pink rhubarb (~one bunch)
• 200g caster sugar
• 500ml water
• 1 lemon, sliced
• 1 cinnamon stick

1. Trim the tops and ends of the rhubarb and cut diagonally into 3cm lengths. Put the sugar, water, lemon and cinnamon stick into a pan and stir over a low heat until the sugar has dissolved. Increase the heat and simmer for 2-3 minutes until the syrup has thickened slightly.

2. Tip in the rhubarb and gently poach for 3-5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the pieces are just tender but still holding their shape. Transfer the rhubarb with a slotted spoon to a bowl.

3. Boil the syrup until reduced by two thirds to a thick, syrupy sauce. Pour over the rhubarb, leave to cool completely, then chill; the rhubarb will continue to stain the poaching syrup pink with time. This can be kept chilled for up to one week.

Weekend is almost here!