Food Network Kitchen’s  Year of Pancakes, February, Chocolate Pancakes with Caramel Strawberry Sauce
Recipe courtesy of Food Network Kitchen

Chocolate Pancakes with Caramel Strawberry Sauce

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  • Level: Easy
  • Total: 1 hr 15 min
  • Active: 30 min
  • Yield: 4 servings (12 pancakes)
These rich chocolate pancakes are stacked high with chunks of white chocolate between each layer and served with a warm caramel-strawberry sauce. They make an indulgent weekend breakfast or after-dinner dessert for chocolate fans.

Ingredients

Caramel Strawberry Sauce:

Pancakes:

Directions

  1. Preheat the oven to 200 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with two kitchen towels stacked on top of each other and place in the oven. This will keep your cooked pancakes warm.
  2. For the sauce: Combine the strawberries, 1/3 cup of the sugar and the salt in a bowl and toss to coat. Let stand for 10 minutes, toss again and mash half the berries with a potato masher or fork; set aside. Combine the remaining 2 tablespoons plus 2 teaspoons sugar with 2 tablespoons water in a medium skillet and bring to a simmer over medium-high heat, stirring to dissolve the sugar. Continue cooking and stirring until the syrup turns medium amber in color, about 2 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat and add the strawberry mixture (it will bubble up). When the bubbling stops, return the pan to medium heat and continue cooking, stirring often, until the sauce thickens slightly and the caramel is completely dissolved, 2 to 2 1/2 minutes. Stir in the vanilla and pour sauce into a serving bowl; keep warm.
  3. For the pancakes: Whisk the flour, cocoa powder, cornstarch, sugar, baking powder, salt and baking soda together in a medium bowl. Whisk the milk, butter, eggs and vanilla together in another bowl. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and stir until just incorporated (it's okay if there are some lumps). Let the batter rest for 5 minutes. 
  4. Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Ladle a 1/4 cup of the batter into the skillet, spreading it into a 5-inch round; repeat to make a second pancake. Cook until the pancakes are golden on the bottom and bubbly on top, about 45 seconds. Flip the pancakes and cook until the undersides are golden and batter is cooked through, about 30 seconds more. Transfer the pancakes to the baking sheet in the oven, tucking them between the kitchen towels. Repeat with the remaining batter to make more pancakes. 
  5. When ready to serve, stack 3 pancakes on each plate, layering 1 1/2 tablespoons white chocolate between each pancake and on top (you should have 4 stacks). Serve with warm Caramel Strawberry Sauce.

Cook’s Note

When measuring flour, we spoon it into a dry measuring cup and level off the excess. (Scooping directly from the bag compacts the flour, resulting in dry baked goods.)