Few recipes are versatile enough to be served as both a sweet breakfast treat and a savory appetizer, but these quick corn cakes are just that.
Make them big and top them with maple butter and you've got a tasty dish for breakfast or brunch. Make them small, top them with whipped cream cheese and smoked salmon or pepper jelly and you've got a great add to an appetizer buffet.
I tested the recipe several years ago at a children's cooking camp I taught at Augusta Prep, and the children gave them rave reviews. The measuring and mixing are easy enough that you can get the kids involved, and they can ladle on the batter and flip the corn cakes with adult supervision.
I made the corn cakes last fall at an appetizer-focused cooking class at Plum Pudding in Aiken, topping them with a little cream cheese and homemade tomato jam. (Send me an e-mail and I'll send you the recipe for the jam.) You can vary the recipe by adding chopped canned green chilies or jalapeo peppers and shredded cheddar or Monterrey Jack cheese and topping them with guacamole and a seared sea scallop or boiled shrimp for a Southwestern cocktail nibble.
Leftover corn cakes can be frozen.
Cakes: Stir pancake mix, cornmeal and baking powder together in a medium bowl. Stir in the eggs, corn, milk and oil, stirring just until moistened. Drop batter from a -cup measuring cup onto a hot, greased griddle for breakfast-size cakes, or from a tablespoon or small cookie scoop for appetizer-size cakes. Cook on first side until surface is covered with bubbles. Turn and cook on other side for one minute, until golden.
Maple butter: Beat the butter and syrup together with an electric mixer until fluffy. Serve immediately or chill for a firmer texture.
122 calories, 5 grams fat (1.1 grams saturated), 16.5 grams carbohydrates, 0.75 grams protein, 27 milligrams cholesterol, 0.9 grams fiber and 216 milligrams sodium.
Recipe analyzed by Jeannie Hartfield-Laube, research dietitian at the Georgia Prevention Institute, Medical College of Georgia, in conjunction with the Augusta District Dietetic Association.
