Pancake Day is flipping marvellous

On the evening of Shrove Tuesday my kitchen becomes a flour-coated, batter-spattered production line, as a succession of pancake flippers work hard to meet demand. Meanwhile, my dining table groans under the weight of dozens of different toppings. Around the table, the age-old argument of sweet vs savoury rages.

Jennifer likes her pancakes sweet

‘Pancake Day is one of my favourite days of the year. I’m effectively given free license to eat endless pancakes! But without a doubt, every pancake I eat will be sweet. My fillings of choice are fresh orange juice and sugar, chocolate spread or, most naughtily, a choc-ice cut into sections. But I’ll never understand the savoury pancake. Believe me, I’ve tried – I even had a smoked bacon, ham, mushroom and cheese pancake once – but it just tasted bizarre. I’m sticking to sweet pancakes for pudding, not savoury for supper!’

Patrick likes to experiment with savoury toppings

‘Although I have a penchant for the sweet pancake – banana and jam is a childhood favourite – I love savoury pancakes too. Pancakes are basically plain wrappers in the same vein as pasta, tortillas and bread. I love making (and eating) pancake cannelloni, rolling spinach and ricotta in pancakes, grating parmesan on top and crisping the rolls up in the oven. Delish. I’ve even made a savoury pancake gateau, layering lots of fancy ingredients with pancakes, which can then be sliced like a cake. What’s not to like?’

Charlotte likes to play it safe with pancake mix

‘When it comes to baked goods I’m a bit of a disaster in the kitchen. My cupcakes seem to erupt like volcanoes and my biscuits crunch beyond a ginger nut’s belief. I have a rather teeny kitchen and have only recently invested in a mixing bowl and kitchen scales. Most of my cooking is done on instinct or taste. Winging it clearly doesn’t do the job. For these reasons I’m more than happy to use a prepared pancake mix – add water – and voilà, pancakes-a-plenty. Although the cost of the raw ingredients is usually cheaper than the mix, four leading supermarkets currently have special offers on pancake mix, so I prefer to cut my losses and go straight for the bottle.’

Do you celebrate Pancake Day? Are you a fan of sweet or savoury toppings? Can shop-bought options compete with the real thing? There’s one sticky question that I’ve never been able to answer – is there such a thing as too much golden syrup on a pancake?

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