put down the ready-made pancake batter & nobody gets hurt

Could there be a better way to start off a weekend than making pancakes? I don't really think so, but then I again I'm the type that frowns on ready-made batter you can buy at the grocery store. My quips are that:

1) making your own is one of the least involved recipes anyway {take it from me, I'm a simple recipe kinda gal} 

2) I don't know what all those ingredients are on the label & after watching all these food documentaries I'm getting a little paranoid

3) you can't lick the batter out of the bowl if it comes in an aerosol can, & pancake batter ranks right on up there with cookie dough & poppy seed cake batter on favorites to dip your finger into ;)

4) it's hard to have the right chocolate chip to batter ratio when it comes straight out of a can to the griddle, & let's face it: chocolate chips are the best part of the deal

In summation: pancakes are worth the time to make by hand. Plain & simple. The go-to in my family has always been the recipe from Joy of Cooking {easily the most referenced cookbook in our clan}. So for all you who tend to grab a can of ready-made at the store, try this recipe next time you get a hankering & tell me it doesn't taste better than the mystery mix you usually buy. 

Chocolate Chip Pancakes

Yield: about sixteen 4" pancakes

Whisk together in a large bowl:

1 1/2 c. all-purpose flour

3 T. sugar

1 3/4 t. baking powder

1 t. salt

Combine in another bowl:

1 1/2 c. milk

3 T. butter, melted

2 eggs

{optional: 1/2 t. vanilla extract, I never use this}

Create a little crater in your dry ingredients. Mix the liquid ingredients quickly into the dry ingredients, but don't overbeat it. Lumps are expected. 

Now the best part:

Add the chocolate chips {the quantity is totally up to you}! We tend to add almost a 1/4 of a bag of Nestle Toll House semi-sweet chocolate mini chips & about 25+ Ghirardelli 60% Cacao bittersweet chocolate baking chips.

Once your griddle/pan is warm enough {leaning towards low or medium-low heat for us}, scoop the batter out using a 1/4 measuring cup, making sure to stir the mix every time you scoop to prevent the chocolate from settling to the bottom & creating less than optimal chocolate to batter ratio pancakes {the horror!}. I'm assuming you know how to cook pancakes, but just in case, the time to flip them is when the edges begin to dry out & bubbles have started to rise & break on the surface {2-3 minutes}. 

Oh and if you're one of those well-disciplined types, these pancakes freeze really well for a week or so & make for the best microwaved breakfast since chocolate chip Eggos came out in elementary school {another food I'm not sure of what it's made of, but I made it this far so I think I'm in the clear}. 

So there you have it. For most, a pretty redundant recipe, but for you slackers out there {you know who you are}, a simple way to make your Saturday mornings that much sweeter. Hope everyone had a great weekend!