Pancakes with lemon-orange syrup

These small pancakes can be eaten at breakfast or as a light supper. The orange zest in the batter adds a tantalizing bitter note. You can add sliced bananas to the hot syrup if you want something a little more filling (though the pancakes are filling enough). The sauce can be made ahead.

You will need:

For the sauce, you will need: 100ml of golden syrup, the finely grated zest and juice of a lemon and an orange, some fresh mint for garnish (optional).

For the pancakes, you will need: 285g of plain flour, a pinch of salt, half a teaspoonful of bicarbonate of soda, two teaspoonfuls of baking-powder, one large egg (beaten), the finely grated zest of an orange, 450ml of full cream milk, 50ml of water, one tablespoonful of melted butter, vegetable oil for frying.

Preheat the oven to its lowest possible setting. Put the golden syrup in a saucepan with the grated zest and juice of the sauce ingredients. Set this over a low flame on the hob and bring it to a simmer, then cook it gently for five minutes. Now make the pancakes by sifting together the flour, salt, bicarbonate of soda and baking-powder, into a bowl. Make a well in the centre and add the beaten egg and orange zest. Gradually beat in the milk, then the water and warm butter, until you have a smooth, very thick batter. Grease the inside of a frying-pan, heat up some vegetable oil in it, then fry dollops of the batter, turning them over so that each side is equally cooked. Transfer the cooked pancakes to the low oven to keep warm while you cook the rest of the batch. Serve the sauce hot with the warm pancakes and a garnish of mint.