corn, cheddar & bacon pancakes

Hearty, rich, thick, cheesy and all around delish. I've wanted to make a corn pancake for a while now. I love corn muffins, but I have to have them with some cheese or heat in them, I just can't eat a plain old corn muffin. So I guess the same is true with these pancakes; I had to make them with a bit of stuff in them.
They are very rich, filling and heavy, so eating one or two just maybe enough.
The next time I make these I will add in some corn kernels, I just think it was begging for that extra texture. I didn't have any fresh scallions on hand, but you should put them in here if you plan on making them.
The best topping for these pancakes are sour cream and/or salsa. I didn't have either, so the pics look a little naked without them. But if you make these make sure to top them with sour cream and/or some salsa at room temp. Maple syrup will be a no no here. If had corn relish on hand, oh yeah, I would have totally put some of that on here.
Thank you Marisa over at Slashfood, for that little ditty on these pancakes.



corn, cheddar & bacon pancakes
from vanillasugarblog.com
print recipe

2 cups cornmeal
1 ts salt
2 ts baking powder (don't use this if you have self rising cornmeal)
1 ¾ cups buttermilk
4 TB butter, melted/cooled (or 3 TB bacon fat)
1 egg
¼ cup mild cheddar cheese, shredded (I have used Monterey jack too)
½ cup +/- of cooked bacon, chopped up
Couple dashes of hot sauce
A couple good dashes of onion powder
A good handful of freshly chopped scallions

Some butter or bacon fat for frying pancakes
chopped scallions or decorating

Toppings:
serve with butter, sour cream, salsa, fresh guacamole, corn relish, etc..

In a large bowl, combine cornmeal, salt and baking powder. (I’ve also just used self-rising cornmeal; if you do use this then don’t add in the baking powder).
In a small bowl crack open the egg, add in the hot sauce and the onion powder and whisk. Next whisk in the buttermilk and melted butter or bacon fat until fully combined. Add in the dry ingredients, then fold in the bacon bits, shredded cheese, and scallions.
Melt about 1/2 teaspoon butter in a large non-stick skillet over medium heat. Once completely melted, pour about ¼ +/- cup batter in pan. These pancakes don’t really spread like normal pancakes so you will have to mold them with your spatula to form them into circles. Cook till golden brown then flip over. Maybe 4-5 minutes each side? They take a bit longer to cook than normal pancakes.
Keep in mind when pouring these onto the griddle, don’t make them too thick as they are heavier than normal pancakes and will take longer to bake; you don’t want a gooey middle.

Should make about 6-8 (depending on size).