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A Stack of Wheats

Flapjacks, Griddlecakes, Flannel Cakes, Pancakes, and Hot Cakes HERE AGAIN THE fire's the thing-hot enough but not too hot.

For the permanent barbecue setup, it is almost worth while to have a big easygoing soapstone, if you bake pancakes frequently for a crowd. It needs no greasing, distributes the heat evenly and is its own heat control as well. A metal flat plate also does a good job if its distance from the coals can be adjusted. And of course a frying pan or a griddle can be moved about at will, can even be held in one hand, in a pinch, over the exact spot where the fire is best for it.

Because of its weight and limited usefulness, few mobile camp kitchens boast so much as a griddle, and many of them do not even include a pancake turner. Therefore, flapping and stacking the wheats with only a Boy Scout knife and a frying pan, dealing out the stack and dealing with the fire at the same time, requires a little practice. But a sure way to get your buddy or the girl friend to admire you is to master the guide trick of flipping them into the air and catching them otherside-up. We've met quite a few men adepts at this old miner and cowboy stunt, but have never yet known a woodswoman who would even try it. And to make the biggest hit of all, it isn't so hard to drip some batter on a half baked cake and form her initials, or even her monogram, and then flop it over to color it lightly so her initials stand out like the embossing on a signet ring.

Probably you are familiar with the heat test for pancake baking, if you are a label reader as all catch-as-catch-can cooks ought to be, for it is printed on pancake-mix packages. But here it is, just in case you've thrown the box away:

Drop a few drops of water on the griddle or what-haveyou. If the water disappears in steam at once, the griddle is too hot. But if the drops break up into smaller drops that go dancing around before evaporating, your griddle is just right. To make sure about this, time your first cake. In exactly 2 minutes it should be nice and bubbly, and a pretty brown on one side-ready to turn.

Pancake-mixes are most practical for limited quarters or for short-time camping. But one runs out of them, or longs for a change from the various Aunt Jemima mixtures, good as these are. So the simple recipe for griddle cakes should be in every outdoor cook's head, and he should learn to ring the changes and embellishments on it as a primary requisite of his job.