The Queen was known for her amazing hosting abilities. She really made sure her guests always felt welcome and honored when they were invited over for any occasion.
And it turns out, she always kept her word to her guests too. Seeing as she sent President Eisenhower a recipe she had apparently promised him during his visit…
Queen Elizabeth reigned for over 70 years, and of course, during that time, she must have collected a plethora of interesting stories and experiences to share. After she passed away, people from all over the world began rifling through archives to bring up anecdotes about the beloved monarch to share.
One such incident involves U.S. President Dwight D. Eisenhower paying Queen Elizabeth a visit back in 1960. After his visit, it turns out the Queen wrote him a letter that included a recipe. The letter has been available in the National Archives for a while, but of course, at the Queen’s death has gained more attention than ever before.
According to the letter, it seems that Queen Elizabeth served the President and his wife Mamie some pancakes during their visit to the Queen at her Balmoral estate.
The pancakes which are referred to as “drop scones” in the recipe must have been a hit since the recipe was asked for by the President. The Queen mentions in her letter that she had promised to send him a recipe and it had slipped her mind to do so till now.
She wrote in the letter, “Dear Mr. President. Seeing a picture of you in today’s newspaper, standing in front of a barbecue grilling quail, reminded me that I had never sent you the recipe of the drop scones which I promised you at Balmoral. I hope you will find them successful.”
Along with her famous recipe, she also included some helpful tips she thought the President might need. “Though the quantities are for 16 people, when there are fewer, I generally put in less flour and milk but use the other ingredients as stated,” she said.
She also adds a warning, saying, “the mixture needs a great deal of beating while making and shouldn’t stand about too long before cooking.”
While ‘drop scones’ are thicker than pancakes, they are similar in taste and hence make a delicious breakfast nonetheless.
You can have them with any toppings you prefer that you might have with pancakes such as syrup, jam, butter, or fresh fruit.
The ingredients the Queen mentioned were, 4 teacups flour, 4 tablespoons caster sugar (or granulated sugar), 2 teacups milk, 2 whole eggs, 2 teaspoons bicarbonate soda (or baking soda), 3 teaspoons cream of tartar and 2 tablespoons melted butter.
“Beat eggs, sugar, and about half the milk together, add flour, and mix well together, adding remainder of milk as required, also bicarbonate and cream of tartar, fold in the melted butter,” she ended her recipe.
While teacup is not an exact measurement, the Queen likely means approximately 3/4 cup per teacup that she mentions in the recipe.
But the ‘drop scones’ or pancakes as Americans might call them surely do sound delicious. And if they were good enough for a President to request the recipe of, then they are surely going to be a hit in your family too.
Are you going to try the recipe for the Queen’s pancakes? Let us know in the comments what you think of it!
Share this delicious recipe with your friends and family so they can try it too!
