A stack of johnnycakes on a white plate topped syrup and butter.

5 / 2 votes

Johnnycakes

These johnnycakes, an old-fashioned Rhode Island classic, are lighter and lacier and crunchier than standard pancakes and are just as lovely at supper as they are at breakfast.

Prep Time15

Cook Time30

Total Time45

Course: Breakfast

Cuisine: New England

Servings: servings

Calories: 35

Ingredients

▢ 1 1/4 cups water
▢ 1 cup finely ground white cornmeal*
▢ 1 teaspoon granulated sugar
▢ 1/2 teaspoon salt
▢ Bacon fat or unsalted butter, for cooking and serving
▢ Warm maple syrup, for serving

US - Metric

Instructions

Heat a griddle or large cast-iron skillet over medium-high heat or preheat an electric griddle to 380°F (190°C).
Bring the water to a rolling boil.
In a heatproof bowl, combine the cornmeal, sugar, and salt.
Carefully and gradually add enough of the boiling water, stirring constantly, until the mixture is smooth and thick enough to plop off the spoon in a blob. It should be the consistency of Cream of Wheat.
When you flick a drop of water on the griddle or skillet and it skitters across the cooking surface, generously slick it with bacon fat or unsalted butter.
Drop the johnnycakes batter by the tablespoonful onto the griddle or skillet. Using the edge of the spoon, chop across the surface of the blob of batter to release any air bubbles. Let the johnnycakes cook, without budging, until the edges begin to brown, 5 to 6 minutes.
Flip and cook until the johnnycakes are cooked through, 4 to 6 minutes more.
Slide the finished johnnycakes onto warmed plates and serve hot with maple syrup while you make the rest of the johnnycakes, adding more bacon fat or butter to the cooking surface as necessary.

Notes

*What You Need To Know About The Right Cornmeal For Johnnycakes

Traditional johnnycakes recipes call for Rhode Island’s signature white cornmeal, which is ground by a process that leaves the particles flat rather than granular. This recipe, however, comes from Kenyon’s Grist Mill in Usquepaug, where they’ve been grinding it properly pebbly and granular since 1886. You can use whatever coarsely ground white cornmeal you find, depending on how gritty you like it. But do not substitute standard yellow cornmeal.

Nutrition