Thanks to some magazine flipping and Curtis Stone, I made these a few weeks ago.  As you can guess, making a good breakfast on Saturday morning has become part of our norm these days.  My Mom has been buying blueberries for the days, so it's been easy to use a cup or two without depleting the bounty. 


These pancakes are extremely light and flaky.  Although the pancakes themselves don't have blueberries in them, the compote you make for the topping is so easy and tasty, you'll be sure to use the recipe for other things.  For example, this past week my Mom needed to take a dessert to a friends.  She bought a plain cheesecake, and I made this compote for them to pour on top.  I didn't try it, but she said it was a hit.


Here's the Recipe- thanks to Curtis.  



BLUEBERRY COMPOTE
18 ounces fresh blueberries
1/4 cup sugar
Grated zest and juice of 1 lemon
1/4 cup coarsely chopped fresh mint leaves (optional)

HOTCAKES
1 cup fresh ricotta cheese
4 large eggs, separated
3/4 cup buttermilk, shaken
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
Pinch of salt
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup fresh blueberries
About 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
Butter, for serving

1. To make the blueberry compote: Combine the blueberries, sugar, lemon zest, and 2 tablespoons of the lemon juice in a medium saucepan over medium heat and cook for 2 minutes, or until the sugar dissolves. (Don't let the berries cook too long or they will become mushy and lose their beautiful shape.) Remove from the heat. Gently stir in the chopped mint if using. Keep warm.
2. To make the hotcakes: Whisk the ricotta and the egg yolks together in a large bowl; then whisk in the buttermilk. Sift the flour, baking powder, and salt into the ricotta mixture. Stir with a whisk until just combined.
3. Using an electric mixer, beat the egg whites and sugar in a large bowl until stiff peaks form. Using a large rubber spatula, gently fold the egg whites through the batter in 2 batches. Gently fold the fresh blueberries into the batter.
4. Melt some butter on a hot griddle pan over medium-low heat. Ladle the batter onto the griddle (you should be able to fit 3 hotcakes at a time) and cook for about 3 minutes per side, or until the hotcakes puff, become golden brown, and are just cooked through.
5. Transfer the hotcakes to plates. Spoon the warm blueberry compote over the hotcakes, and then top with a dollop of butter. Serve immediately.