Gingerbread Pancakes with Carmel and Chocolate Chips

I have had an open jar of molasses in my cupboard since last Christmas.  I used that very jar to make these gingerbread pancakes.  I didn't feel ill after eating them so it seems molasses has a long shelf life.

This is as good a time as any to talk about molasses.  Molasses is also called black treacle.  Molasses sounds much more appetizing than black treacle.  Black treacle sounds like a kind of moss that grows in dark and damp places.

Molasses is a by-product of refining sugarcane or sugar beets into sugar.  To make sugar, the liquid is extracted from the sugarcane or sugar beet.  The liquid is boiled down and the sugar is removed.  What remains is called cane sugar.

The liquid is boiled again, and the sugar crystals are again removed.  The liquid that remains in molasses.  The liquid can be boiled again.  Once the sugar crystals are moved, blackstrap molasses is all that remains.  Blackstrap molasses has a stronger flavor and is more viscous.

This gingerbread pancake recipe came from food.com.  I added more flour.  More importantly, I added chocolate chips and caramel bits.  

The ingredients are 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour, 1 teaspoon baking powder, 1/4 teaspoon baking soda, 1/4 teaspoon salt, 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger, 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon, 1 egg, 1 1/4 cup milk, 1/4 cup molasses, 3 tablespoons vegetable oil, 1/2 cup chocolate chips, and 1/2 cup caramel bits.

I added the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, ginger and cinnamon into a bowl.

I whisked the dry ingredients together.

In another bowl, I combined the milk, egg, molasses, and oil.

I vigorously whisked the wet ingredients together.

I poured the flour mixture into the wet ingredients and stirred.

I added the chocolate chips and caramel bits and stirred again.

I greased a skillet with a little butter and poured a fourth to a third of a cup of batter into the pan.  I flipped the pancakes when little bubbles started forming near the center of the pancake and the edges were dry.  I cooked the other side for a few minutes.

 These pancakes were delectable.  They were full of warm, homey spices and flavors.

The pancakes were light, tender, and fluffy.  The molasses gave the pancakes a distinct rich, sweet taste.

The caramel softens and becomes chewy and smooth.  The chocolate melts into pools of creamy cocoa.

The pancakes were festive and yummy.  They would make a quick, yet special holiday breakfast.  There is nothing I would change about these scrumptious pancakes.