Strawberry Pancakes with Fresh Whipped Strawberry Cream

Last week, I bought some beautiful, fresh, sweet, delicious strawberries from a local stand.  A perfect introduction to the summer.  After buying them, I instantly longed to make something creative with them and on one Saturday morning, that's just what I did!  Light, fluffy, delicious and creamy...you will not be disappointed!  This made a little extra whipped cream, so I'd suggest making a few extra pancakes or making shortcakes (like I did) to use up the rest!

Strawberry Pancakes
makes 6-8 pancakes
3/4 c. milk
2 Tbs. apple cider vinegar
1 egg
2 Tbs butter, melted
1 tsp. almond extract
1 c. flour
2 Tbs. sugar
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
4 oz fresh strawberries, trimmed and sliced

Preheat a griddle to 300 degrees or a lightly buttered skillet to medium.  In a medium bowl, stir together the milk, vinegar, egg, butter and almond extract.  Set aside.  In another slightly smaller bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients.  Slowly add the dry ingredients to the wet, whisking to mix thoroughly.  There should be no dry spots, but still some clumps left.  Stir in the sliced strawberries. 

Pour 1/4 c. of the pancake mixture onto the hot skillet.  You will know the first side is about done when you see bubbles start to come through the top of the batter.  Check before flipping, the other side should be evenly golden brown (after about 3 minutes of cooking).  Flip and cook on the other side about another 2 minutes, until golden.  Serve immediately or keep warm in oven until ready.  Garnish with the strawberry whipped cream (recipe below) and anything else deemed necessary and delicious!

Strawberry Whipped Cream
makes about 1 cup
1/2 pint whipping cream
3 Tbs powdered sugar
1 Tbs granulated sugar
1/4 tsp. almond extract
2 oz. fresh strawberries, pureed (I used my magic bullet since it's such a small amount)

In a cold metal bowl, with cold beaters - beat the cream, sugars and extract on medium-high speeds until stiff peaks form (about 4-5 minutes).  Gently fold in the pureed strawberries until evenly combined.  Enjoy (trust me you will)!  It actually made a bit more than needed for the pancakes, but it's a hard amount to reduce down, so feel free to suggest either making a double batch of pancakes or making shortcakes like I did to use the rest!