That feeling when all your dreams come true?
That’s how I felt last weekend when my (old) roommate got engaged to her longtime boyfriend.
I might have shrieked like a woman unhinged in the middle of Union Square when she called to tell me.
YES. (!!!)
She and I have been waiting (and waiting and waiting) for this day for SO.LONG; gossiping about it, making predictions about when it might happen, trying to send telepathic messages to her boyfriend to get his act together, trying to send not-so-telepathic messages to her boyfriend via my boyfriend to get his act together….yeah, it’s been a process. But he (finally) followed through last weekend in front of the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool in DC.
Ain’t that romantic??
And now, not only does she get to become a bride in the next year…but I get to become an official unofficial maid-of-honor!
Yes, it is true. She is creating an entirely new position in the traditional Indian wedding ceremony. Just.For.Moi!
I’ll get to wear a sari and everything. It’s really going to be the best.
With an entirely made up title comes a lot of responsibility. Like any normal maid-of-honor, one must concern themselves with the bridal shower and bachelorette party, but because we are totally shirking tradition, I feel like we kind of have to go the extra mile. You know…to prove that I’m worthy.
And how else does one win people over but through food? I suppose personality, but no…food is definitely the way to go with this one. So I’ve been experimenting with “girl food”. You know, the kind of stuff that boys would say isn’t really a meal but that girls would be totally content to eat? Like pancakes-for-dinner and salad-for-lunch? Ex.Act.Ly.
So this past weekend, when The.Boy conveniently absented himself to his parents’ place for two days, I made savory pancakes! For lunch! Or dinner! Or when you feel like standing in front of the refrigerator eating a pancake smothered in spicy tangy lime butter!
Which, after trying these…is totally going to be all.the.time from here on out. I’m adding them to the bridal-shower-potential list. And the anytime-I’m-craving-pancakes list. (Again, which is…all the time.)
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Before I go for the day, I just want to say THANK YOU to all the men and women out there who fight to make our freedom possible.
I also want to let you guys know about a pretty cool contest being held by Bob’s Red Mill. They are currently hosting their “Spar for the Spurtle”, the aim of which is to seek out the best oatmeal maker in all of the US! To enter, you must create a recipe that uses oatmeal and then make a video (less than 3 minutes) that details the recipe and how to make the dish! The deadline is July 22nd. Three winners will be chosen and flown to Portland, Oregon, where they will compete in a live cook-off on August 16th. The winner of this round will head to Scotland on a once-in-a-lifetime, all-expenses-paid trip for two hosted by Bob’s Red Mill! Click here for more details on how to enter!
One year ago…Strawberry Balsamic Ice Cream
Two years ago…Muhammara-Style Shakshouka, Coconut Macadamia Nut Mahi Mahi with Tropical Salsa, Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Cupcakes
Three years ago…Blueberry Buttermilk Cake with Strawberry Whipped Cream, Roasted Garlic Soup with Cherry Black Pepper Focaccia
Green Pancakes with Lime Butter
Serves 3-4, adapted from Plenty
Ingredients
For the lime butter:
- 8 tbsp (1 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature
- grated zest of 1 lime
- 1 1/2 tbsp lime juice
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp white pepper
- 1 tbsp chopped cilantro
- 1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
For the pancakes:
- 2 bunches swiss chard, washed and leaves torn from stems
- 3/4 cup self-rising flour (to make blend 1 cup flour with 1 1/4 tbsp baking powder and pinch of salt)
- 1 tbsp baking powder
- 1 egg
- 4 tbsp unsalted butter, melted
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- 2/3 cup milk
- 6 scallions, finely sliced
- 2 jalapenos, thinly sliced
- 1 egg white
- olive oil, for frying
Instructions
- For the lime butter, put the butter in a medium bowl and beat it with a wooden spoon until it is is soft and creamy. Stir in the rest of the ingredients. Put on a sheet of plastic wrap and form into a log. Twist the ends to seal and chill until firm.
- For the pancakes, wilt the swiss chard in a pan with a bit of water. Drain and, when cool, squeeze with a paper towel to remove as much liquid as possible. Coarsely chop.
- Put the flour, baking powder, whole egg, melted butter, salt, cumin and milk in a large bowl. Whisk until smooth. Add the scallions, chiles and swiss chard and mix in with a fork. Whisk the egg white to soft peaks and fold it into the batter.
- Pour a bit of olive oil into a heavy-bottomed frying pan over medium-high heat. Put 2 tbsp of batter into the pan for each pancake and press down gently so it is flat. When the center of the pancake starts to have small bubbles, flip it and let cook for another 30 seconds-1 minute or until it is a golden-green color. Transfer to a paper towel-lined plate and continue with remaining batter.
- To serve, give three warm pancakes per person with a slice of lime butter in between each to melt.
This is my submission to this week’s IHCC!
Congrats to your friend! I am sure being the maid-of-honor at an Indian wedding will be a very interesting emotional journey for you, too!
What a devastatingly gorgeous combo!
These look really tasty! I’d love an excuse to wear a sari too.
Gorgeous pancakes! And congratulations to your friend!
Those green pancakes look really good and I like the jalapeno heat int them!
Just last night I was staring at a glass container I have on the highest storage spot in my kitchen – it has self rising flour. It is not labeled, so I placed it there as a reminder: highest spot = rising flour… And I said to myself I need to find uses for it, because I bought for one particular recipe months ago, and now there it sits.
I might just make these pancakes for my lunch!
Congratulations to your friend! How exciting! I’m a little jealous of you coz I’ve never been a bridesmaid, let alone a maid of honor. Also, these pancakes are a inner. Made them before and love them!
Omg. So jealous that you get to be a maid of honour in an Indian wedding! That sounds so freaking fun. Also, I love all the green in this. Heaven!
I am loving your romantic pancakes! They are a nice compliment to dinner! Very creative recipe!
Ah, congrats! I recently photographed an Indian wedding reception, and gorgeous does not even begin to describe the experience. That should be amazing! Great celebratory recipe.
Congrats to your friend! 🙂
I could easily eat these pancakes for any meal – they look fantastic!
Congrats to your friend. Now pass me pancakes…and ALL of the lime butter too. I mean…I just have to.
your pics are just gorgeous! I want to reach out and grab something green for breakfast 🙂
Congratulations to your friend on her engagement! What a great story and sounds like lots of excitement to come.
And I’m excited about these pancakes! Great idea and I’m thinking of all the possible ways to play with the greens in the recipe. Good eats!
These, like many recipes from Plenty, have been calling my name for a while now. I definitely need to try them!
How exciting for her! I imagine I will let out a shriek when I get the news about your engagement 😉
Oh I am trying not to make new recipes and I am so tempted by this one – exactly what I would love for dinner – or lunch – or breakfast – those boys don’t know what they are missing – am sure you will make up such a wonderful maid of honour role with all the trimmings that it will fit perfectly with the wedding
That’s so wonderful – congrats to her (soooo romantic)! And how excited are you to get to wear a sari…I want pictures!
And yes, these pancakes need to be in front of me. Pronto.
Aww, how sweet! I guess those telepathic messages much have worked … 😉
I would totally be won over by these savory pancakes. Why is it that we think pancakes are totally awesome for dinner, but many men don’t? One of those mysteries, I guess. Happy Memorial Day, Joanne 🙂
Savory pancakes with lime butter? Genius! I love your creativity, and they’re just so pretty.
That’s so awesome that your best friend got engaged! An Indian wedding with best friends sounds like a great experience. My best friend got married last month. She did a country wedding with a mechanical bull and all. Not the same as an Indian wedding, but interesting all the same. Lol.
How exciting for your friend and for you! And the boyfriend/fiancé did a great job choosing the proposal local–what a gorgeous spot in DC.
Even though I only met your roommate once, I’d really love an invite to that shower:-) Congrats to her and her fiance!
I love these pancakes but I’m currently wondering how many excuses I can come up with to make / eat lime butter.
I hope there is still a horse at this wedding. Totally the best part of Indian weddings… Savoury pancakes ftw! You can impress them by saying besan correctly and making chilla. 🙂
Love this recipe – and so happy for your friend!!!
Congratulations to your friend! And congratulations to you on your role in her wedding 🙂
These definitely, definitely, look like eat-beside-the-fridge food…. the kind of food that you think you’ll just eat one and then they are so delicious that you accidentally end up eating eight haha. At least they have greens in them, so that’s totally ok right?
Congratulations to your friend! My best friend is getting married at the end of the year and I swear it’s more fun than my own wedding could ever be.
Pancakes are SO versatile – my boyfriend always has the issue of wanting pancakes but not wanting them all to be sweet. So we have been working on savory – this is a great recipe to explore. Yum girl!
How exciting for your friend… and you 😉
I have a bunch of swiss chard in the crisper that was meant for beans and greens but is now begging to be used in these babies! Gracias!
How exciting Joanne!!!! Congrats to your BFF and to you. Let the (food) planning begin 😉
Congratulations on your new honorary title! I have not even one doubt that you will fulfill all of your honorary obligations and surpass all expectations! Your green pancakes sound and look superb! How can they not love you?
congrats!!!! I love the look of the pancakes – just the right amount of green! the sound delicious:))
mary x
Hi! I’ve been following your blog for quite a while now, and I feel like I can finally comment since I now have my own blog to write under. Anyway, this is the perfect way to use up excess spring greens. Congratulations to your friend! It’s so funny to grow up with your friends and realise that “scary grown-up things” get closer on the horizon. How exciting!
I think I could eat these pancakes all day long. Big fan of compound butter–I like to keep different kinds in the freezer. I must try this lime butter. Bet it will be added to my collection.
These pancakes look like they’d be perfect for breakfast, lunch or dinner. I do like the sound of the lime butter. Congratulations to your friends and I do hope you post a photo of the Maid of Honour in her sari xx
I love the idea of savory pancakes made with chard for dinner – right up my alley with jalapenos!
These pancakes look awesome! Love the idea of a savory pancake, and lime butter sounds soooo good. Congrats on your official, unofficial wedding role!!! So exciting 🙂
I love everything about this dish (except the cilantro, but that’s another story!).
Love this.. you really seem to like Indian food. Loved the story about your friend, Indian weddings are so much fun, I had one too.. very colorful. OMG, post pics of yourself when you wear a sari.. it’s definitely not easy to walk in them, I’m Indian and I’m still not used to it, but it’s fun. 🙂
That’s so exciting, I’ve always wanted to go to an Indian wedding, they look so beautiful! Your friend is lucky to have you so eager to make food; I’m sure anything you make will be delicious!
I love lime anything. My husband just informed me he opened my lime wheat thins, he almost was murdered until he informed me he didn’t finish them.
How exciting for your friend, and for you 🙂 And I LOVE the look of these pancakes!
How exciting! Congratulations on your roommate’s engagement!
These pancakes look beautiful!
You had me at lime butter. 🙂 Yum!
That’s exciting about the engagement and truly romantic.
Awwww congrats to your roomie, how romantic!
These pancakes look super tasty by the way, very innovative 🙂
Cheers
Choc Chip Uru
Yay! I’m happy for your friend and you!! Also- these “pancakes” look so wonderful for any old meal- they look so healthy but also very rich and delicious!!
This will be the wedding of the century I’m sure. It certainly promises to be fun! The pancakes look tempting and the lime butter takes them right over the edge. I hope your week is off to a great start. Have a good day. Blessings…Mary
Those are the healthiest pancakes I’ve ever seen 🙂 You will be the best brides maid, hope your friend has fun with all the planning.
These pancakes look absolutely mouthwatering! And congratulations to your friend for her engagement!! It is going to be a very fun experience for you!
Congrats to your friend – you are going to rock that sari!!
What a fun recipe, and congrats to your friend!!
congrats to your friend it is such an exciting news!! hope you are posting pictures in sareee. On a different note – these pancakes look delicioussssss and lime butter yes yes yes!
I knew I was at EWWO when I saw the title ‘green pancakes’ 🙂 Congrats to your friend… sounds like the wedding will be great fun.
Congrats to your friend – it’s so exciting! The pancakes would make me happy for breakfast, lunch, OR dinner. YUM!
Yes congrats to your friend!
I love how they are called green pancakes!
Lime butter is really good with lobster–just saying because I know you would dig it.
That’s so exciting for your friend!
And people could definitely win me over with food. Especially if they made me this, yum!!
Congrats to your roomie — and to you! You will undoubtedly be a fabulous MOH, especially if you keep preparing delicious, figure-friendly meals like this!
Congrats to your roomie! I have never been to an Indian wedding but I heard its quite the affair. These pancakes look delicious and that lime butter is calling my name.
A huge congrats to your friend! How exciting! Meanwhile, I am excited for these pancakes because I have a fridge full of greens and really needed something to do besides saute them or make soup. Love this! I am going to try it tonight.
Maybe the Plenty version of Okonomiyaki? This sounds like a delicious light summer meal, especially with that lime butter.
Everything about this dish sounds amazing. I could eat this anytime of day 🙂 You are always so creative with new ways to cook things!
whoa I can see myself putting that lime butter on everything this summer haha! I love reading your posts, you always crack me up 🙂
The proposal sounds so sweet :)! You are going to have SO much fun since it’s an Indian wedding…especially with all that food :P!
I want to marry these pancakes! Totally delicious with that lime butter! Congrats – love the proposal! All I could think when you said it was an Indian wedding is of that Seinfeld episode when Elaine goes to India. . .
We are totally pancake twins this week! I just made a green batch yesterday for breakfast and devoured them. Now, reading this post, I want more!!! I mean, lime butter?! You’re a little genius!
Congrats to your friend on her engagement, good luck with your unofficial role official role 🙂
Look delicious Joanne!
savory pancakes?!? this i gotta try! 🙂
Aw, that is seriously the cutest/most romantic thing ever! Congratulations to her. On another note, these savory p-cakes look awesome. Perfect for summer!
I just saw some veggie pancakes in Taste of Home that looked great!
Congratulations to your friend…how romantic…
The green pancake looks fabulous Joanne, I love the idea of savory pancakes.
Have a great week 🙂
These look amazing. I could definitely eat savory pancakes any time of day! And congrats to your friend!
Joanne wearing a Sari… I d like to see that! 😉
I am in love with your green pancakes and wow lime butter? I need to have this asap.
Congrats to your friend! I’ve never been a maid of honor. I’ve also never tried green pancakes!
i love hearing engagement stories–they’re pretty much always unique. i’m liking this lime butter, joanne. a lot.
I love savory pancakes and you photograph this so beautifully Joanne. Sounds like a wonderful and delicious meal.
I want to try this with zucchini instead of chard. I think you might have done one like that a long time ago, I need to look.
congratulations to your friend. also to you for having such an honor bestowed on you and yes there would be a lot of responsibility with it. though I have to ask – why if she wanted to get married so much why in the world did she just not simply ask him? while I know that might be harder in some cultures than others, why don’t women take more control of their lives and futures? if you are mature enough to make an important decision such as getting married shouldn’t you be able to ask for it?
Big congrats to your friend! And yes – you had me at lime butter!
How lucky is your ex-roomate to have a super supportive friend and talented, witty chef! Love your site Joanne =)
Congratulations to your friend on her exciting news! You two are going to have so much fun planning the wedding.
I simply have to make these pancakes soon! I’ve been drooling over them ever since I opened Plenty for the first time. Everything about them sounds perfect.
Aw, congratulations to your friend 🙂 sounds lovely! This green pancake recipe is awesome, can’t wait to try it!
love the butter and the narration too!!!
Ah … I love it! Great minds think alike! Were these stellar pancakes OR WHAT ???
Ok, I’ve had these bookmarked for a while now, but with not one, not two, but three people I totally respect raving about these pancakes, not to mention the lime butter (oh, God, I am dreaming about that butter), I obviously need to rocket this recipe to the top of my Ottolenghi “have to make” list.
I definitely have been wanting to make these–if I wasn’t sold just on the pancakes, the lime butter drives it over the top! 😉
You are going to look adorable in the sari–congrats to your friend.
Your green pancakes looks so delicious! I have bookmarked this to try ever since I was browsing thru Ottolenghi’s recipes months ago! But then have bookmarked so many other recipes! 🙂 I like the lime butter, sounds so good!
Congratulations to your friend and you will look beautiful in a sari!
I love Swiss Chard and will be making these soon, Joanne!
I am usually not a fan of pancakes but since you made it “green”, I am already sold on the idea.
Made this for dinner, but subbed coconut oil for butter. Super tasty. The jalapeno and lime really come through. Oh and I added chopped, cooked bacon to half the batch for my fiance. He was skeptical before trying, but ended up loving these. Thanks so much for sharing!
Big congrats to you and your friend! It’s going to be a fun year. Thanks for the idea behind these pancakes!
yessss to savory pancakes 🙂 and congrats to your old roomie!!
OK this post cracked me up. And yay for you! My best friend was married in a half Hindu-half Western ceremony, so we bridesmaids wore saris for the whole event, although she changed dresses halfway lol.
I want a green pancake. And I want lime butter even more.
Holy these sound and look amazing!!! Just thought I’d say hi. I’m finally starting to get back into looking at actual recipes to make instead of throwing together whatever is quickest/easiest. So of course I came by your blog to see what you’ve been making. 🙂 Lots of yummy stuff of course!