When life hands you lemons (and snow the first weekend of spring)... 

...make pancakes?

If it's Sunday morning and you're hungry, then why not? What else are you going to make with beautiful lemons?

Lemonade is more of a hot afternoon drink... 
Pound cake takes much longer to bake and I'm hungry... 
Crepes with lemon curd and honey are delicious but curd takes awhile... 
So really your best bet is these pancakes. 

Or to get back in bed and ignore the snow. 

I was hungry so food won. 

Start by warming milk and butter together until the butter just melts.

Sift flour, salt and half the sugar into a separate bowl.

Separate 3 eggs and add half the sugar, lemon zest and vanilla to the bowl with the yolks. Whisk in the warm milk and butter.

Slowly add the dry ingredients and mix until just combined.

Whip the egg whites until soft peaks form, then add the remaining sugar and continue mixing. Fold into the batter mixture until combined. 

Gently fold in the ricotta. Small lumps are fine. 

Heat up your griddle and scoop batter to make 4 inch pancakes. Cook until bubbles form on the top, then flip and cook until the bottom is golden brown.

Stack em up, throw on some syrup and devour!

Lemon Ricotta Pancakes

By Jill Santopietro

Ingredients

• 5 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1 cup milk
• 1 1/4 cups all purpose flour
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 3 eggs, separated
• 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
• Zest from 2 lemons
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 3/4 cup ricotta cheese

Instructions

1. Microwave butter and milk in a mug until the butter melts, about 1-2 minutes. Let cool.
2. In a medium bowl, combine flour, baking powder and salt
3. In a large bowl, combine egg yolks, 1 tablespoon of sugar, lemon zest and vanilla. Slowly whisk in warm milk-butter until combined. Add dry ingredients and mix until just combined.
4. Whip the egg whites in a separate bowl to soft peaks. Add the remaining 1 tablespoon of sugar.
5. Fold egg whites into the batter, then gently fold in ricotta. Small lumps will remain.
6. Heat a griddle to 350F. Scoop mounds of batter onto griddle to form 4 inch pancakes. Cook a few minutes until bubbles form on the top. Flip the pancakes and cook until the bottom is golden brown. Top with syrup or lemon curd and enjoy.