How cute is that?

We’ve been talking about the need to add a “breakfast for dinner” night to our menu and I found a way to make a pancake supper that also celebrated winter (although it’s still in the 60s here) and Christmas. Enter, the reindeer pancake. I saw this idea online somewhere and couldn’t wait to try it. The version I saw used candy for the eyes and nose, but I subbed out some of our frozen fruit instead. So easy, so cute and it put everyone in a cheery mood at the table–given the news this past week, that was really needed.

Reindeer Pancakes

• Whole wheat buttermilk pancake batter
• Mae Farm local bacon, 3 slices per person
• Frozen blueberries, 2 per person
• Frozen strawberries or raspberries, 1 per person
• Maple syrup

1. Preheat oven to 250 degrees.
2. Line a rimmed baking sheet with paper towels or a tea towel. Sit a wire cooling rack on top of the towel and put in the oven.
3. In a frying pan, cook bacon until crisp. As bacon is done, lay strips on the cooling rack in the oven to keep warm. This will keep your bacon crispy yet let it drain as well.
4. Clean the pan, coat with a thin layer of butter or cooking spray and heat over medium/low heat.
5. Make one 8-9″ pancake per person and one 3-4″ pancake per person, plus extra for eating later. As pancakes cook, add them to the cooling rack in the oven to keep warm.
6. When ready to serve, arrange a big pancake on the plate, with a smaller pancake (to be the muzzle of the reindeer) on top and toward the bottom of the larger pancake.
7. Arrange bacon antlers on either side of the large pancake.
8. Add blueberry eyes and raspberry/strawberry nose.
9. Serve immediately with warm maple syrup and plenty of good cheer!