Sweet Potato Surprise Pancakes

This is what Todd requested for his first-day-of-school breakfast. (Yes, Brett, he really did ask for sweet potato pancakes.) The real surprise is that although the pancakes contain vegetables, they are loaded with sugar. In fact, they are so sweet that I felt too guilty to add maple syrup. I just put some butter on mine. (Though I think they would be heavenly with maple syrup.)

After you pour the batter on the pan you sprinkle (or carefully place) mini marshmallows on the pancake. I find that my spatula tends to get very sticky and the pancakes become increasingly more difficult to turn over. So, you probably want to clean off your spatula from time to time.

Sweet Potato Surprise Pancakes
Source: Scholastic Parent & Child

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
6 tablespoons packed brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
3 eggs
2 cups buttermilk
3/4 cup cooked, mashed sweet potatoes, canned or fresh [I used one 15 oz.-can of yams]
4 tablespoons butter (1/2 stick), melted
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 cups mini marshmallows

1. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon. In a separate bowl, whisk together eggs, buttermilk, sweet potatoes, butter, and vanilla.
2. Pour liquid ingredients into flour mixture and whisk until just combined--a few lumps are OK. 3. Lightly coat a griddle or nonstick skillet with oil. [I didn't bother greasing my nonstick pan and had no problems with them sticking to the pan.] Heat to medium-high heat [I like to err on the side of lower heat to make sure the pancakes cook through without burning.] and spoon 1/4 cup batter for each pancake. Sprinkle a few marshmallows onto each spoonful of batter.
4. Cook until bubbles form on top and batter is set--about 4 minutes. Using a thin, flexible spatula, flip pancakes and cook until golden brown, 2-3 minutes more. Serve with warm pure maple syrup and extra marshmallows if desired.