Put dry ingredients in a deep, narrow bowl: 1 cup flour, 1 tablespoon sugar, 1 teaspoon baking powder, 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon baking soda. Then quickly stir in the wet ingredients: 1 cup milk (more if it's buttermilk or if the batter's too thick), 1 egg and 1 to 4 tablespoons melted butter.

The secret of pancakes is "don't stir too much." The batter gives off carbon dioxide, which makes pancakes light and airy. But if you overwork the batter, the CO2 dissipates, and your pancakes become hockey pucks. Pancake batter has to be thick enough to cook through and thick enough to hold the CO2 bubbles. Using a deep, narrow bowl provides optimum conditions for holding bubbles. For maximum bubble power he says, rest the batter 20 to 30 minutes before cooking.

One last thing: Resist the urge to prepare pancakes for a group. Pancakes have to be eaten right off the griddle.

container of Saco cultured buttermilk blend. (It's usually found in the baking isle by powdered milks. This way, I'm not throwing away have the carton of buttermilk.) It's a powder, one container is equivalent to 3.75 quarts liquid buttermilk. All you do is add water to it. Directions are on the container for conversion for buttermilk or sour milk. This must be refreigerated after opening for maximum shelf life. This is also great for any recipe(s) requiring buttermilk or sour milk.