Despite what many men may think, Pinterest really is a girl’s best friend. As Valentine’s Day rolls around, students at BYU-Hawaii shared how helpful Pinterest can be in finding festive crafts, activities and recipes like this recipe for red velvet pancakes with cream cheese topping. For a video on how to make the pancakes, click HERE.
“Pinterest is pretty much the greatest thing ever invented,” said Levi Avans, a freshman in marine biology from Utah. “It’s kind of like searching for stuff on the Internet but the pins are all pretty much home grown ideas that people have used, and it’s worked out for them.”
Becca Gulden, a graphic design graduate of BYU-Hawaii, uses Pinterest to get ideas for things to make.
“Pinterest is my source of inspiration. Whenever I want to see what the rest of the creative world is up to, I find gem ideas that put me in a creative mood.”
Aside from using Pinterest to spark a creative mood, pins can be found to make simple yet delicious foods for that special someone on Valentine’s Day. After making and eating some red velvet pancakes with cream cheese topping found off of Pinterest, Gulden shared, “These pancakes are surprisingly easy and taste so good. The color red adds a fun Valentine’s feel.”
But Gulden wasn’t the only one who enjoyed these breakfast sweets. Kelsi Carlson, a sophomore in elementary education from California, said she enjoyed the Valentine-themed pancakes. “They were so good. I loved every bite. The frosting was the best part.” Carlson said she also appreciates how easy it was to bake them. “Basically, it’s just one or two more ingredients than regular pancakes.”
Katie Bak, a junior in political science from Minnesota, said she uses Pinterest to help her cook and bake because of how easy it is to use. She said this pancake recipe is no different. “These Valentine’s pancakes were surprisingly simple. And the cream sauce gave it the perfect amount of sweetness. I’m adding this to my breakfast menu even after Valentine’s Day.”
Heart-Shaped Red Velvet Pancakes with Cream Cheese Topping
Ingredients:
Pancakes
2 cups Original Bisquick® mix
1 tablespoon granulated sugar
1 tablespoon unsweetened baking cocoa
1 cup milk
1 to 1 1/2 teaspoons red paste food color*
2 eggs
Powdered sugar, if desired
Cream Cheese Topping
4 oz (half of 8-oz package) cream cheese, softened
¼ cup butter, softened
3 tablespoons milk
2 cups powdered sugar
Directions
• 1. To make the topping, in a medium bowl beat cream cheese, butter and 3 tablespoons milk with electric mixer on low speed until smooth. Gradually beat in 2 cups powdered sugar, 1 cup at a time, on low speed until topping is smooth. Cover, Set aside.
2. To make the pancake batter, in large bow stir all pancake ingredients except powdered sugar with wire whisk until well blended. Heat griddle or skillet over medium-high heat (375°F). (To test griddle, sprinkle with a few drops of water. If bubbles jump around, heat is just right.) Brush with vegetable oil if necessary or spray with cooking spray before heating.
• 3. For each pancake, pour slightly less than 1/4 cup batter onto hot griddle. Cook 2 to 3 minutes or until bubbles form on top and edges are dry. Turn. Cook other side until golden brown. •
4. Spoon cream cheese topping into resealable food-storage plastic bag; seal bag. Cut off tiny corner of bag; squeeze bag to drizzle topping over pancakes. Sprinkle with powdered sugar.
The recipe is courtesy of Betty Crocker and Pinterest. Further instructions for making Red Velvet Pancakes with Cream Cheese Topping, and other recipes, can be found at www.bettycrocker.com
Writer: Makaila Bergeson ~ Multimedia Journalist