A few weeks ago I was contacted by the Icelandic Consulate here in Athens and asked whether I would accept to do an interview for the Σχεδία magazine ( http://www.shedia.gr/) which would also involve giving an easy2make recipe from Iceland for publication.

As this magazine, the only Greek road magazine that is member of the International Network of Street Papers (INSP), which lists 122 street magazines in 41 countries, with 14,000 homeless, unemployed salesmen, I accepted without a second thought and started thinking about what type of recipe I should share.

After some thought, I decided on my granny’s porridge pancakes (grautarlummur) which are delicious and nutritious . . . . and will keep you going for hours!

In Iceland, comforting oatmeal porridge has always been integral breakfast item where it’s often served with sugar and cream or fresh berries or berry sauce.

My namesake, Granny Karitas normally enjoyed her porridge every morning sprinkled with sugar and served with a splash of cream. Personally, I have never been too keen on porridge for breakfast but, as a young kid, what interested me more were the porridge left-overs which made up the basis for warm and satisfying pancakes that really hit the spot on many a visit to my Granny!

Most modern Icelandic kitchens are equipped with special pancake/crepe pans but in my granny’s time heavy iron griddle pans were used that could bake four pancakes (lummur) at a time. Nowadays, instead of a heavy iron griddle, I would recommend using a non-stick blini or pancake pan which will give you excellent result and healthier pancakes too, as you will only need a fraction of the butter to bake the pancakes!

I hope you will like the Grautarlummur as much as I do. Please see recipe below:

Granny's Porridge Pancakes (Grautarlummur)

Ingredients

250 g oatmeal porridge, room temperature
125 g flour
1 tsp baking soda
30 g sugar
½ tsp salt
1 egg
1 – 2 dl milk
Butter or margarine for frying

For serving: Sugar and/or Plum Preserve, Berry or Rhubarb Jam

Preparation Method

In a large bowl, mix together the flour, baking soda, salt and sugar. Make a well in the center and pour in ½ of the milk, the egg and mix. Lastly add the porridge and enough additional milk to make a smooth batter.

Heat a thick bottomed skillet or a pancake pan over medium heat. Lightly brush pan with melted butter and drop or spoon batter into hot pan and cook until tiny bubbles appear and the underside is golden brown. Now flip pancake over and cook the other side until golden brown.

Once cooked, transfer pancake onto a backing rack and sprinkle with a little sugar (optional). Serve warm or at room temperature with jam, yogurt with fresh fruit & granola, honey or other sauce of choice.

Yield: Will depend on the size and thickness. Normally I get about 16 pieces!

Tips!

Porridge made with 1 cup of oats and 2 cups of water + ½ tsp salt is enough for this recipe.

Since Granny wanted us to savor the pancakes with her deliciously tasty homemade plum preserve, berry or
rhubarb jam, she normally omitted raisins which are often added to porridge pancakes in Iceland.

©KaritasM – July 2018

For further info about the magazine, here is a link to their website: http://www.shedia.gr/

In short though, please note that . . . . The Σχεδία magazine, as is the case with all street magazines in the world, is only sold by accredited sellers who come from vulnerable social groups: homeless, unemployed, and generally people who are proven to live below the poverty line. I get my copies at my local metro station. Each magazine costs €4.00 and from that the seller gets €2.50.

As is written on the magazine’s website, this is d on the magazines website: it’s a unique opportunity to ensure a minimal, decent income, as well as a means of escaping the vicious circle of social isolation and exclusion.

For those living in Greece and in countries that have these type of magazines, please support this great cause . . . always a good read that makes you feel really good too!

Thanks . . . and until next time!