I love to have a homemade treat to serve when people come to visit and stay for a cup of tea and I usually make a cake or biscuits during the week so I'm not often caught unprepared. At the moment there is a moist banana and walnut cake sitting on our kitchen bench. It's such a small thing to offer homemade cakes, they only take five minutes to mix, then 30 minutes or so in the oven. But what happens when there is no homemade cake or biscuits and someone rings to tell us they're on their way and will be here in 20 minutes.
I'm sure this will be different for everyone but my main two standbys are scones or pikelets. Both can be mixed, cooked and on the plate in 20 minutes. If you don't know how to cook pikelets, here is my quick recipe. They're similar to the flapjacks or hotcakes that some people have for breakfast, although these are apple and cinnamon pikelets. And they are delicious.
Into a mixing bowl add:
- 50 grams melted or very soft butter
- 1 cup self raising flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- splash vanilla
- 1 grated and peeled apple
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
Pour half the wet ingredients into the dry and mix
- 1 egg beaten slightly and added to:
- ¾ cup milk, whey or buttermilk
Add the rest of the milk mixture and finish mixing. The batter should be a thick pouring consistency.
Into a hot frying pan, add a little butter to stop sticking, turn the heat down to about medium and pour in small circles of batter. You should be able to fit four into a regular size frying pan. Allow to brown on one side and when you see small holes appearing in the uncooked side, flip them over. Brown the second size and remove.
I used the new Sundowner apples for this recipe. A daughter of Pink Lady, they're a very good eating and cooking apple - crisp and sweet. I'd never tried them before but I'll be buying more of them.
Serve with a knob of butter if they're still warm, or buttered if they cold. These make a good treat in the lunch boxes as well.
What is your go-to fast homemade treat?
What is your go-to fast homemade treat?
We whip up brownies from scratch pretty quickly. They look great and can be dressed up with whipped cream and chocolate sauce or left plain. Both ways are delicious!
ReplyDeleteI think scones or a quick biscuit are my go to. It's great to always have some cookie batter in the freezer.
ReplyDeleteLoved this recipe, Rhonda.
ReplyDeleteMy partner and I are in Germany at the moment, and we've had this dish quite a lot.
Hope you're well,
Rebecca.
Hi Rhonda - are your cup measurements metric (ie 250ml) or American cup volumes. I am in the UK we don't tend to use cups as measurements.
ReplyDeleteHi Lily, our cups are 250 mls although with this recipe, near enough is good enough.
DeleteHi Rhonda,
ReplyDeleteYour pikelets are what I've always known as 'drop scones' (presumably because the batter is 'dropped' into the pan) and I remember as a child they were a treat for Sunday teas. I used to make them for my children too, with butter dripping off, of course! I've only ever made plain ones before but I'll give this recipe a go - looks delicious.
Michelle, IW
Is this what drop scones are! I have a recipe but with no picture. I've always known these as pikelets and they are excellent for little hands. I'm glad I saw your post:)
DeleteI know these as Flapjacks. My grannie used to make plain ones and they were delicious. Mind you, she always used to complain that we would eat them as fast as she could cook them.......aren't Grandmothers wonderful
DeleteApplesauce cake donuts. Quick to mix up, quick to fry. Dusted with cinnamon sugar. Even guests on a diet cannot say no to them. Their aroma alone is a treat. The only downside is that once you start eatting them, it's hard to stop. They make a great guest "take some home to your husband, boyfriend, kids" treat.
ReplyDeletePikelets with a dash of nutmeg or date scones. My grandsons aged 1,4 and 6 (who live next door- I`m so lucky) come over most mornings for morning tea and get through a whole batch on their own. Yesterday morning, the 4 yr old munched his way through 9 pikelets before I stopped him. I shudder to think what he`ll be like as a 14 yr old! And a quick aside here- Rhonda, I thought I was an early riser, getting up sometime between 4 and 5 but I felt like a lazy lay-a-bed when I kept seeing your postings timed at 3.30-4.00 a.m. Then it dawned on me that this may be due to the fact that Queensland isn`t on daylight savings time. Please tell me that this is so!
ReplyDeleteQueensland never has daylight saving (thank goodness). I usually get up at 4am but lately I've sprung out like at shot at 3 or 3.30am. Who knows why. I just do what I'm told, Corinne. LOL.
DeleteMuffins - mini muffins if time is really short but I prefer the regular size and depending on the time of day and available ingredients, they'll be either silverbeet and feta, blueberry or apple and sultana.
ReplyDeleteYes pikelets, scones, or these days biscuits using frozen mixture from the freezer (the recipe from your book Rhonda) can see something hot and sweet on the table quick smart. They biscuits make the house smell especially nice and welcoming too!
ReplyDeleteYes, I love those biscuits too and the smell is divine.
DeleteEven gluten free people can have their pikelet and eat it too.....
ReplyDelete1 cup almond meal
2 tblspn chia seeds
3/4 arrowroot
1 tspn bicarb soda
2 tblspn apple cider vinegar
3 eggs
pinch salt.
Put it all in a bowl and stir with a wooden spoon. ready -
our favourite way to have them is with fresh squeezed orange juice over the top : )
If you want bread, double the recipie and put in a cake tin (use non stick paper).
Thanks for sharing your recipe, Narelle.
DeleteI whip up pancakes when the family is in need of a sweet fix. I don't do packet food because of the preservatives and it's a waste of money. Scones is one I often do for visitors. My mum whips up a big batch of perfect crepes in a blink of an eye. She's quite amazing! My mum survives on the pension so this is an accessible and cheap recipe ready to go at a moments notice. I can remember my mum doing this all my life in fact. No one ever leaves my mums house unfed!
ReplyDeleteI use the recipe: 1 egg, 1c flour, 1 c milk, for pancakes because I can remember without looking it up LOL. I made your Yoghurt recipe a few days ago (with 2L milk) and it turned out perfectly, so thank you! I've already enjoyed it with banana and honey for tea, with fresh garlic chives on toast for brekky, made a Greek yoghurt banana cake that was fantastic, AND made it into a cheese ball also with fresh garlic chives. It cost me less than half the price of Greek yoghurt or cream cheese at the supermarket to make it myself, so Thank you VERY MUCH! xx debbie
ReplyDeletefrench toast with maple syrup, baked rice with sultanas, banana loaf with different addictions like chocolate or walnuts and definately pancakes with lemon and sugar. I'm definately going to try these with the grated apple, thanks Rhonda. Warm regards Jan
ReplyDeletewww.agluttonouswife.blogspot.com
Definitely scones for me. So easy, and I always have the ingredients in the pantry. Mind you, my preference is to have them with cream and jam, so if they are being made as an impromptu morning or afternoon tea, I have to make do with butter instead.
ReplyDeleteBy the way, I just LOVE your quick and easy biscuit recipe. I make it up on a regular basis (no putting it in the freezer for me!). It's great because I can just change the toppings to cope with personal preferences. My other half can't eat chocolate, but I'm a chocoholic, so my bikkies get choc bits, and his get jersey caramels. My other half loves peel, but I loathe it, so his get mixed peel and mine get chopped apricots and coconut. The possibilities are endless.
Timely recipe Rhonda, as I am just harvesting the last of my apples before our first frosts next week. Looking forward to trying these out. Thank you.
ReplyDeleteGreat recipe Rhonda. I made some this morning for our breakfast. It was a perfect cold morning meal... with a nice cuppa.
ReplyDeleteI make these too when I want something sweetish; or potato latkes as a snack, which I made today for my daughters and their friends.
ReplyDeleteI ve just discovered sundowner apples here in South Africa which I enjoy - love the pink lady ones - didn't know they were related - thank you for the recipe
ReplyDeleteOooh! Pancakes! This is my Saturday morning I-couldn't-care-less-if-I-get-diabetes treat! Why? Because I can't eat them without drowning them in real maple syrup.
ReplyDeleteI never have guests. Like, ever. But if someone should come over, there's always deli for sandwiches and Coke.
Rhonda, i made these today for afternoon tea for my husband, my 13 month old daughter & myself. We ate them with ice cream & maple syrup (bubba had them on their own) They didn't look as good as yours but they were delicious. Thank you :)
ReplyDeleteyou're welcome, freckles. I'm glad you all liked them.
Delete