Hot machine for cooking hotcakes

My sister Molly in Seattle has a new toy; she calls it her "girlie grill" and loves it.

It's a Breville Professional Indoor Grill, and she uses it for grilling meat, veggies, making panini, grilled cheeese sandwiches and a lot more. It sounds quite a bit more upscale than the George Foreman grill I bought some years back when we lived in our Philly apartment. The George was fine to cook just a chicken breast or pork chop for myself when Dave was working late (as he always did back then) but too small for a lot more than that.

This Breville machine sounds cool. Though it's big, with a cooking surface the size of half of a newspaper page, it folds up flat for easy storage. And, unlike my George, it's versatile enough that Molly can use it to quickly cook pancakes or French toast for her whole family.

We're competitive, we sisters. I may have to get me one of these.

Molly also sent me a very excellent summertime tip that she got from a vendor who sells her fresh strawberries. Use an egg slicer to make perfect strawberry slices. I love that idea. What a beautiful way to top a big stack of freshly cooked pancakes.

I asked Molly how she made her pancake batter. Topped with fresh fruit, this sounds like a very healthy breakfast:

2 cups Bisquick HeartSmart™ Mix
1 egg
1 1/4 cups skim milk

Stir ingredients until blended.
Pour by slightly less than 1/4 cupfuls onto hot griddle.
Cook until bubbles break on surface. Turn; cook until golden. Makes 14 pancakes.