Pumpkin Pancakes with Cinnamon Butter

I just realised my life was incomplete before I tried homemade cinnamon butter.

It seems so simple; just a bit of butter, cinnamon, brown sugar and vanilla. But whip it all together and mould it into cute little pats of butter and melt it on top of a stack of fresh, warm pancakes and it is unbelievable. And not just any normal pancakes - pumpkin pancakes! Golden orange thanks to some beautiful rich pumpkin puree, fluffy and moist thanks to buttercream. This makes one impressive breakfast....or dessert?

I am a little embarrassed to admit where the inspiration for this came from. Gilmore Girls is my ultimate guilty pleasure TV show, and it worked out so well when I decided to make a Blueberry Shortcakes after I heard someone mention it on the show. This time it was pumpkin pancakes. With homemade cinnamon butter. YUM. How could I resist? Seriously that show might all be fast talking and cuteness but damn, it's led to some seriously good breakfasts/brunches in my house. It's a shame that A hardly eats breakfast, and never eats sweet breakfasts. Oh well, more for me!

A bit of googling let to this pumpkin pancake recipe from Nigella Lawson. The recipe is fairly easy, just mix it up in one big bowl. It's a little bit more work if you want to make your own pumpkin puree - I just chopped up and roasted half a butternut pumpkin for half an hour under foil. The cinnamon butter is a little bit orgasmic. It really is. I was surprised by how brown it turned out, I was expecting it to just be lightly speckled with cinnamon. It might not be the prettiest colour, but all will be forgotten when you let it melt all over pancakes or some toast with the amazing smell and taste. I made it a little more fun by setting the butter in some silicon ice cube trays I had. The pumpkin pancakes are very mild in flavour, so you could eat them just with maple syrup. And the butter is so amazing, you could eat it with anything.

Pumpkin Pancakes with Cinnamon Butter
(pancakes adapted from this recipe, serves approx 10)
450ml pumpkin puree, fresh or canned (15-oz can) (I made fresh using half a butternut pumpkin)
360ml buttermilk (1 1/2 US cups, for those too lazy to convert. Sheesh.)
2 eggs
260g plain flour (1 3/4 US cups)
3 tbsp caster sugar
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp bicarb soda
1/4 tsp salt

For the cinnamon butter:
125g unsalted butter (a little over 1/2 US cup)
3 packed tbsp brown sugar
1/2 tsp pure vanilla essence
1 tbsp ground cinnamon

To serve: Maple syrup

Prepare the cinnamon butter ahead of time: remove the butter from the fridge 30 mins before you begin. Beat butter, sugar and vanilla essence until the mixture is smooth then slowly add cinnamon and beat until combined. You can either place the mixture in clingfilm and shape into a log or press into silicon moulds, and chill until it sets or overnight.

For the pancakes, whisk together the buttermilk and eggs in a large mixing bowl until frothy, then add pumpkin puree and whisk again. Gradually add flour, sugar, baking powder, bicard soda and salt, whisking continously to combine until smooth.

Add some vegetable oil or butter to your frying pan, wiping away the excess with a paper towel so the pan is lightly oiled. With the pan on low heat, use a ladle or cup to pour 1/4 cup measurements of batter into the pan, gently coaxing them into 3 inch diameter circles. When bubbles start to form on the top of the pancake and the edges are cooked, flip the pancakes over and fry until cooked through (another 2 mins or so). Transfer to a plate and keep warm under foil while you cook the rest of the batter. Serve warm with pats of cinnamon butter and maple syrup.