Perfect Crêpe-Style Pancakes

Method

1. In a bowl, whisk together the flour, eggs, milk, and salt until you have a smooth batter. Let it rest for 10 minutes.
2. Heat a frying pan over medium heat and add a little butter or oil.
3. Pour in a ladleful of batter, swirling the pan to coat the base evenly.
4. Cook for 1-2 minutes until golden, then flip and cook for another minute.
5. Stack them up, ready for racing—or serving with your favourite toppings!

How to Host a Pancake Race

Mark out the area where you’re going to race—it could be your garden, a nearby park or field, or, with the school’s permission, the playground.

As well as a start/finish line, you’ll need a couple of obstacles for people to run around and markers to show them where to toss their pancake.

Hang up bunting or banners to get everyone in the mood for racing. You could even stretch a string of bunting across the race track—participants go under, and their pancakes must go over!

You’ll only need one pancake per team to race with (tip: make extra-thick ‘racing pancakes’—they’re easier to toss and less likely to fall apart). But you’re bound to work up an appetite, so make a big batch and keep them warm, ready for a post-race feast.

Decide on a penalty for dropping the pancake—perhaps racers must keep tossing until they get it right, or they could perform a fun forfeit.

Think about who will start the race and who will ensure the rules are followed. And of course, how about a prize for the winning team? Or maybe they simply get to tuck in first!

The Race Itself

Divide participants into teams—these can be as big as you like.

Give the first person a frying pan with a pancake and either an apron or a chef’s hat to wear.

When the whistle blows, the first runner dashes down the course, rounds the first post, tosses the pancake (successfully!), runs to the end, circles another post, tosses the pancake again, and sprints back to the start.

They then pass the hat and frying pan to the next team member.

Finally, and most importantly—once the race is over, get those (hot) pancakes out of the oven and devour them immediately, with everyone’s favourite toppings on hand.

And remember—you don’t have to wait another year to enjoy pancakes again!

For more about pancake races and plenty of recipes, check out The River Cottage Family Cookbook in the River Cottage online shop.