Pancakes with Warm Maple Syrup & Coffee Butter

Preparation 1. In a medium bowl, whisk the pancake mix, flour, milk, eggs, and melted butter together until smooth. Cover the bowl tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 2 hours, and as long as overnight. 2. Put the coffee in a small saucepan, bring to a simmer over medium heat, and cook until reduced by about half. Remove from the heat and cool completely. 3. Put 4 tablespoons of the softened butter in a small bowl and whisk in the cooled reduced coffee until completely incorporated. Set aside until ready to serve. 4. Melt 1 tablespoon of the butter on a pancake griddle or heavy skillet over medium-low heat. Add the batter by 1/4-cup amounts to make 4- to 5-inch pancakes and cook until bubbles appear on the surface and the bottoms are browned and crisp, 3 to 4 minutes. Flip the pancakes and continue cooking until browned on the bottom, 2 to 3 minutes more. Transfer to a plate in a low oven to keep warm until ready to serve. Continue with the remaining batter, adding the remaining butter as needed. 5. To serve, put 3 warm pancakes on each plate. Top each serving with 1 tablespoon of the coffee butter and some warm syrup, garnish with the fruit, and serve immediately. 2.0 Whipped Maple SyrupMaple syrup is sweet and delicious, but I give it more textural interest by using Versawhip, a soy protein. It's one of the cooler so-called "molecular" ingredients that chefs play with; it's probably no coincidence it's also one of the most forgiving and easy to use. It aerates maple syrup until it's the consistency of whipped cream, without using any cream. Versawhip is available from the manufacturer Will Powder (WillPowder.net); the online gourmet retailer L'Epicerie (Lepicerie.com); and Amazon. To make whipped maple syrup, put 1 cup of pure maple syrup and 2 teaspoons Versawhip in the bowl of a standing mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Mix on low speed until dissolved, then increase the speed to medium-high and whip until the syrup holds soft peaks. The whipped syrup can be held at room temperature for up to 1 hour. Reprinted with permission from Try This at Home by Richard Blais, © 2013 by Trail Blais, Inc. RICHARD BLAISE is the chef-owner of The Spence, Flip Burger Boutique, and HD1 in Atlanta. The winner od Bravo's Top Chef All-Stars, he is a graduate of the Culinary Institute of America and been featured in the New York Times, Food & Wine, and many other media outlets.