Prepare peameal: Cut the large piece of peameal into ½-inch slices. Pour maple syrup into a small bowl, add black pepper and stir to combine. Set aside with bacon and a small pastry brush.
Prepare the pancake batter: Place flour, sugar, baking powder, and the salt in a large bowl, stirring to combine. Pass through a fine sieve to sift together. Place buttermilk, eggs, melted butter, and vanilla extract into a liquid measure. Stir or whisk to combine. Pour the milk mixture into the flour mixture then stir together with a wooden spoon to remove the large lumps. Don’t overmix, as small lumps are fine. Set batter aside for 5 minutes.
Cook griddle breakfast: Preheat the griddle to moderate-low heat.
Cook the peameal bacon: Brush one portion of the griddle with oil. Add bacon and cook for 4 minutes. Flip and brush top of each slice with maple syrup mixture. Cook for 3 minutes more. Flip slices and brush each slice with more of the maple syrup mix, cooking for a final 2 minutes.
Cook pancakes: Once the bacon has been flipped, cook the pancakes. Brush cooking surface with oil. Pour about ½-cup of batter onto griddle, shaping it into a circle. Continue, creating 6 pancakes per batch. Cook for about 2 minutes or until pancake’s top surface goes dry and bubbles appear and pop. Flip, cooking for 2 minutes more. Move cooked pancakes to the side and repeat.
Cook eggs: Once the second set of pancakes have been flipped, brush the remaining area on the griddle with oil. Add eggs one at a time. Season with salt and pepper then sprinkle each egg with 1/4 cup of cheese. Cook for 1 minute, then flip.
Assemble stacks: Place one pancake onto each plate. Add a slice of peameal bacon on top of each pancake. Add another pancake onto of each slice of bacon. Add an egg onto the pancake, inverting it cheese-side up. Add 1 more pancake on top of each egg.
Serve with fresh berries and a sprig of fresh mint on the side, along with a drizzle of any remaining peppered maple syrup. Serve pure maple syrup on the side.
Canadian Griddle Breakfast
Ingredients
For the peameal bacon:
1 ½ pound portion of peameal bacon
2 tablespoons pure Canadian maple syrup
1 teaspoon freshly cracked black pepper
For the pancakes:
1 ½ cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
2 teaspoons granulated sugar
½ teaspoon kosher salt
1 ⅓ cup buttermilk
2 large eggs, lightly whisked
4 tablespoons butter, melted, and cooled
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
For the eggs:
4 large eggs
1 cup grated Canadian cheddar cheese
neutral oil, like canola oil or vegetable oil
fresh berries
mint sprigs
pure Canadian maple syrup
Directions
Prepare peameal: Cut the large piece of peameal into ½-inch slices. Pour maple syrup into a small bowl, add black pepper and stir to combine. Set aside with bacon and a small pastry brush.
Prepare the pancake batter: Place flour, sugar, baking powder, and the salt in a large bowl, stirring to combine. Pass through a fine sieve to sift together. Place buttermilk, eggs, melted butter, and vanilla extract into a liquid measure. Stir or whisk to combine. Pour the milk mixture into the flour mixture then stir together with a wooden spoon to remove the large lumps. Don’t overmix, as small lumps are fine. Set batter aside for 5 minutes.
Cook griddle breakfast: Preheat the griddle to moderate-low heat.
Cook the peameal bacon: Brush one portion of the griddle with oil. Add bacon and cook for 4 minutes. Flip and brush top of each slice with maple syrup mixture. Cook for 3 minutes more. Flip slices and brush each slice with more of the maple syrup mix, cooking for a final 2 minutes.
Cook pancakes: Once the bacon has been flipped, cook the pancakes. Brush cooking surface with oil. Pour about ½-cup of batter onto griddle, shaping it into a circle. Continue, creating 6 pancakes per batch. Cook for about 2 minutes or until pancake’s top surface goes dry and bubbles appear and pop. Flip, cooking for 2 minutes more. Move cooked pancakes to the side and repeat.
Cook eggs: Once the second set of pancakes have been flipped, brush the remaining area on the griddle with oil. Add eggs one at a time. Season with salt and pepper then sprinkle each egg with 1/4 cup of cheese. Cook for 1 minute, then flip.
Assemble stacks: Place one pancake onto each plate. Add a slice of peameal bacon on top of each pancake. Add another pancake onto of each slice of bacon. Add an egg onto the pancake, inverting it cheese-side up. Add 1 more pancake on top of each egg.
Serve with fresh berries and a sprig of fresh mint on the side, along with a drizzle of any remaining peppered maple syrup. Serve pure maple syrup on the side.
Canadian Griddle Breakfast
5 / 5. 2
The fluffiest buttermilk pancakes stacked with maple syrup-seared peameal bacon and a cheesy fried egg…
Everyone loves THE GREAT CANADIAN GRIDDLE BREAKFAST, eh!
What can we say? This very delicious breakfast idea answers one of the most important questions asked by weekend cottage guests: “What’s for breakfast?” It’s easy to prepare, and in true Canadian overachiever fashion, we crafted something that appeals to everyone. One breakfast idea that delivers three favourites on one plate? Sounds like a dream, but we made the stellar combination of pancakes, fried eggs and perfectly prepared bacon a reality. We’ll show you how the GREAT CANADIAN GRIDDLE BREAKFAST always stacks up!
Before sharing a few tips and ideas on how to make this breakfast recipe, we wanted to also share a few leads on other breakfast options that always work. Those looking for make-ahead recipes will love this ULTIMATE BREAKFAST CASSEROLE or our APPLE FRITTER CASSEROLE. If you need something for a grab-and-go crowd, serve these GOOEY CINNAMON ROLLS. Sit down, plated ideas include breakfast sandwiches, PERFECT OMELETTES and our HOLLANDAISE SAUCE-drizzled EGGS BENEDICT. Lastly, something that disappears in record time, our easy BREAKFAST SKILLET. Trust us, each and every one ensures a very good morning!
Let’s continue with some tips on making this GREAT CANADIAN GRIDDLE BREAKFAST:
INGREDIENTS
The idea for THE GREAT CANADIAN GRIDDLE BREAKFAST evolved after a visit to a local diner where a friend ordered a “full breakfast”, AKA the Workingman’s Special. The full breakfast is a plate composed of a whole bunch of breakfast favourites, with options like bacon, over-easy eggs, hash browns, potatoes sautéed with onions, French toast, pancakes, breakfast sausage, ham, baked beans and, if in the UK, a black pudding and toast. Seems like a lot, right? We decided to edit our breakfast idea down a little. How about pancakes, bacon and a cheesy fried egg? With a few little tweaks and embellishments, we think we’re on to something exceedingly delicious.
PEAMEAL BACON
So, there’s bacon and then there’s peameal bacon. PEAMEAL BACON is perfect for this recipe as it’s a truly Canadian ingredient. It is a wet-cured, unsmoked bacon made from a trimmed lean boneless pork loin. The loin is then rolled in cornmeal and sold either sliced or as a cured loin portion. It is produced and sold mainly in Ontario and is sometimes referred to as Canadian back bacon. Its creation is often credited to British pork industry titan William Davies, who is rumoured to have developed it after moving to Canada in 1854 and starting his own pork processing company.
For this recipe, we purchased a larger piece of peameal bacon that we then sliced into ½-inch thick pieces. During the testing of this recipe, we found cooking these thicker, hand-cut rashers of bacon yielded tender, juicer results.
PANCAKES
In developing this recipe, we considered lots of variations. Should we make our famous BLUEBERRY PANCAKES? How about savoury pancakes made with cheese? What about CORNMEAL CORN CAKES? Although each and all sound delicious, and certainly could have worked, we decided to go with light, fluffy buttermilk pancakes instead. You’ll be able to find all of the ingredients needed to make these pancakes in your local grocery store. These buttermilk pancakes pair perfectly with the flavours of both the peameal bacon and the fried eggs.
Making the batter for the pancakes is easy, with the only caveat to make sure you sift the dry ingredients together before adding the wet ones. This ensures the baking powder is evenly distributed throughout the batter. One tip on mixing the batter: don’t overdo it. Stir to eliminate the big lumps. It’s okay to have a few smaller lumps, but overworking this batter creates tough pancakes. No one wants that. Once the pancake batter is crafted, leave it to sit for five minutes. In getting ready to cook the pancakes, you’ll want to have a ½ cup measure at the ready to help portion the pancakes. We also suggest cooking the pancakes, AKA flapjacks, using a neutral oil like vegetable oil or canola oil.
FRESH EGGS
If you have the opportunity, try to make this simple breakfast recipe using fresh eggs. Look for them in a local farmer’s market or purchase them through an organic farm producer. Eggs contain a wide range of vitamins and minerals, including vitamins A, B12 and D plus essential nutrients like choline and selenium. They’re also an excellent source of high-quality protein. LOVE!
In the above photo, you can see how we paired them with cheese. In this recipe, the fried eggs get topped with a sprinkle of grated cheese before we flip them on the griddle. The cheese melts perfectly, adding a pleasing savoury flavouring to the pancakes and eggs. We suggest keeping with our Canadian theme when selecting cheese for this recipe. Look for a medium or sharp Canadian cheddar, an Oka cheese or a smoked applewood cheddar. Cheese curds will also work, just give them a light chop before adding them.
GRIDDLE
We prepared this griddle breakfast on a WEBER SLATE, but you can use a Blackstone Griddle, Pit Boss, or Lodge griddle insert too. As mentioned in the VIDEO attached to this post, you can also cook the pancakes, bacon and eggs in a large skillet on stovetop or on a grill with a griddle insert. We found using this large flat griddle surface allowed us to cook the three elements in sequence based on the length of cook time for each. The elements on the griddle were set on a medium heat to low setting, and we preheated the griddle before cooking. The peameal bacon cooks for about nine minutes, the pancakes about four and the eggs about two minutes, total. Of course, you can adjust this recipe to suit your personal needs, remembering to transfer cooked items to the side or to a platter until ready to serve. Make sure to have a metal spatula and tongs on hand to help flip everything like a pro.
HOW TO COOK PEAMEAL BACON
Here’s how we cook thick-cut peameal bacon. Begin by brushing a bit of neutral oil on the flat top grill or griddle surface. Then add the bacon, cooking undisturbed for about four minutes. If you’re worried that your bacon is cooking quickly, go ahead and lift the edge of one of the slices just to be sure – better safe than sorry. After flipping, brush each slice with our combination of pure Canadian maple syrup and black pepper. This sweet and spicy syrup gives the bacon a ton of flavour. Cook for three minutes more, then flip, brush with more syrup, and cook for a final two minutes. Best peameal bacon we’ve ever had!
HOW TO MAKE BUTTERMILK PANCAKES
Making the pancakes for this easy breakfast idea could not be simpler. You’ll have enough batter to make 12 pancakes, where we’ve allowed 3 pancakes for each stack, serving 4 total. If you’re serving a crowd, feel free to double or triple the recipe. We made our pancakes in 2 batches, keeping the first batch warm to the side of the griddle.
To make perfect pancakes, brush the griddle with neutral oil, then measure about ½ a cup of batter. Add the batter to the flat surface, trying to create an even, circular shape. Leave the pancakes undisturbed until the top of the batter goes dry and small bubbles burst on the surface. This will take about two minutes to get them golden brown. Then, flip and cook for two minutes more. Perfectly light and fluffy pancakes every time.
HOW TO COOK EGGS ON A GRIDDLE
Cooking eggs on a griddle is easy. Add a bit of neutral oil, crack an egg over the shimmering oil, then add another. Sometimes the yolks stay perfectly intact; other times they split and you’ll have broken yolk mingling with the cooking egg whites. Fear not, the eggs are going to get flipped, after all. After the eggs have been cooking for maybe a minute, season with a sprinkle of kosher salt and black pepper, add a little pile of shredded great Canadian cheese, then flip. Cook for one minute more.
HOW TO SERVE
From the very start, the goal was to serve a breakfast stacked with an ensemble of tasty components. To accomplish this, begin by placing a pancake on a breakfast or luncheon plate. Then add a piece of the peameal bacon on top. Add another pancake to that stack, followed by the fried egg, inverted so that crispy cheese side is facing up. Complete the stack with one more pancake, for the win.
Of course, we think when you go to serve something so delicious, it should be presented creatively, so let’s do this right, eh? Add a few fresh berries with a sprig of fresh mint on the side, and then add a drizzle of the remaining peppered maple syrup over each.
PIN IT!
This amazing meal idea is like a bonus round for all the breakfast lovers out there. We suggest you PIN it to a favourite breakfast or brunch board on PINTEREST or BOOKMARK this tab for easy access. SHARE it with friends so they can make it too. We’d also appreciate seeing pics of all the delicious dishes you’re making these days. Use #weekendatthecottage when you post those pics on Facebook and Instagram. Thanks!
Let’s hear it for THE GREAT CANADIAN GRIDDLE BREAKFAST. What a way to start the day, eh?
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Ingredients
For the peameal bacon:
1 ½ pound portion of peameal bacon
2 tablespoons pure Canadian maple syrup
1 teaspoon freshly cracked black pepper
For the pancakes:
1 ½ cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
2 teaspoons granulated sugar
½ teaspoon kosher salt
1 ⅓ cup buttermilk
2 large eggs, lightly whisked
4 tablespoons butter, melted, and cooled
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
For the eggs:
4 large eggs
1 cup grated Canadian cheddar cheese
neutral oil, like canola oil or vegetable oil
fresh berries
mint sprigs
pure Canadian maple syrup
Directions
Prepare peameal: Cut the large piece of peameal into ½-inch slices. Pour maple syrup into a small bowl, add black pepper and stir to combine. Set aside with bacon and a small pastry brush.
Prepare the pancake batter: Place flour, sugar, baking powder, and the salt in a large bowl, stirring to combine. Pass through a fine sieve to sift together. Place buttermilk, eggs, melted butter, and vanilla extract into a liquid measure. Stir or whisk to combine. Pour the milk mixture into the flour mixture then stir together with a wooden spoon to remove the large lumps. Don’t overmix, as small lumps are fine. Set batter aside for 5 minutes.
Cook griddle breakfast: Preheat the griddle to moderate-low heat.
Cook the peameal bacon: Brush one portion of the griddle with oil. Add bacon and cook for 4 minutes. Flip and brush top of each slice with maple syrup mixture. Cook for 3 minutes more. Flip slices and brush each slice with more of the maple syrup mix, cooking for a final 2 minutes.
Cook pancakes: Once the bacon has been flipped, cook the pancakes. Brush cooking surface with oil. Pour about ½-cup of batter onto griddle, shaping it into a circle. Continue, creating 6 pancakes per batch. Cook for about 2 minutes or until pancake’s top surface goes dry and bubbles appear and pop. Flip, cooking for 2 minutes more. Move cooked pancakes to the side and repeat.
Cook eggs: Once the second set of pancakes have been flipped, brush the remaining area on the griddle with oil. Add eggs one at a time. Season with salt and pepper then sprinkle each egg with 1/4 cup of cheese. Cook for 1 minute, then flip.
Assemble stacks: Place one pancake onto each plate. Add a slice of peameal bacon on top of each pancake. Add another pancake onto of each slice of bacon. Add an egg onto the pancake, inverting it cheese-side up. Add 1 more pancake on top of each egg.
Serve with fresh berries and a sprig of fresh mint on the side, along with a drizzle of any remaining peppered maple syrup. Serve pure maple syrup on the side.
Until Cottage Season
