FoodieWest.com

It's the weekend, and anyone who has kids will probably understand the weekend pancake (or waffle) tradition. OK, sometimes french toast too. In our home, the pancake can have many variations, mostly in the batter. Rare is the time, if ever, has a box of Bisquick or Aunt Jemima type mix been a starting point before the batter hits the griddle. If a mix is going to be used, it's either the Trader Joe's whole grain, or something from the co-op or health food store. Other times, it's a basic recipe from Joy of Cooking or another resource that offers a foundation to get creative on. My personal flair is to throw in some last minute partial substitutions for the grain flours i.e. almond meal, quick oats, corn meal etc. I usually prefer not to cook in bigger items like fruit and nuts, instead, add those things later as a topping or accessory.

This weekend made me realize I had become a creature of habit, at least pertaining to the pancake arena. If you have kids, when was the last time you opened the refrigerator, only to find like, 1/4 cup of milk in the carton? 3 tablespoons of OJ in the pitcher?, a spoonful of peanut butter in the jar? Such was the case with maple syrup this weekend.
I will add now that I am a maple syrup snob, only the real deal for me, I am ok with AA, A and B grades, but please don't give me a jug of food colored corn syrup called "maple syrup", even if it's shaped like somebody's Grandma!  Back to the realization I had....
I opened the door of the frig to grab the amber goodness and warm some up before the cakes went on the griddle. There it was, 1 Tablespoon lightly covering the bottom of the bottle!! I panicked! I felt ashamed and forlorn, I was at a loss. I actually thought I wouldn't have pancakes without syrup!
I then realized I had a jar of really good honey we had bought at a farmers market a while back, I felt comforted again. I opened up the pantry, where the jar had been pushed aside to have access to other baking items in the past months. IT WASN'T THERE! I looked all over the kitchen (I don't have a big kitchen) HONEY? WHERE ARE YOU?

Enough of this nonsense, it was time to eat, I couldn't let all this get in my way of enjoying a weekend breakfast. Boysenberry preserves to the rescue! The cakes were fantastic, just a nice dolop of the fruity goodness on top, and I sat back to read the morning paper with the good feeling I have killed yet another creature of habit.