Well, that snowstorm threw everything out of whack. I’ve been away from the keys for more than a week and have had a chance to spend time with the wife and all the kiddos. We even had two bonus kids spend the weekend with us in the mountains! Anthony, Liam, glad you could make it. Katie, Stratton, always good to see you! There are so many directions I could go with this introduction, but for today, I will go with love your family, squeeze those kids, have an adventure, and if you are going to go skiing for the first time in over 25 years, Motrin..lots of Motrin. And Pancakes! (In another shameless plug for clicks, here is our favorite pancake recipe.) This is a recipe that we tweaked for the kids. Here is a link to the original recipe.
Note: We ALWAYS do a four-times batch and freeze the leftovers.
Apple Cinnamon Fluffy Pancakes
- ¾ cup milk
- 2 tablespoons white vinegar
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 2 tablespoons white sugar
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 egg
- 2 tablespoons butter, melted (we use salted sweet-cream butter)
- cooking spray (typically we substitute butter here)
- 1 can apple pie filling (use the whole can for a four-times batch)
- 2 tablespoons cinnamon (this is a guess for a four-times batch. I usually go with feel here.)
Gather all ingredients. Again, we do a four-times batch! Combine milk and vinegar in a medium bowl and set aside for 5 minutes to make sour milk. (If you increase this to 10 minutes, the pancakes are even more fluffy. I have no idea why. And sometimes I substitute Apple Cider Vinegar, but it doesn’t make much difference.) Combine flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon in a large mixing bowl. Whisk egg and butter into the soured milk. Pour the milk mixture into the flour mixture and whisk until the lumps are gone. Dice the apple pie filling and add it to the pancake batter. (I have used other pie fillings here; blueberry makes the pancakes runny and flat, peach works well, cherry is okay, but apple is the best.) Heat a large skillet over medium heat, and coat it with cooking spray. Pour 1/4 cupfuls of batter onto the skillet, and cook until bubbles form and the edges are dry, about 2 to 3 minutes. Flip with a spatula, and cook until browned on the other side. Repeat with the remaining batter. (We typically use a flat electric skillet, set the temperature to 300, and substitute the cooking spray for butter. Make six at a time and repeat until all the batter is gone. Sometimes, if the chunks of apple pie filling are too big, it is difficult to cook the batter all the way through. Larger chunks may require re-flipping the pancakes. If you let them sit too long to cook the batter all the way through, you may burn the pancake.)
As a reminder, Lunch Box Quotes are notes I include in the kids’ lunches every day. Number 1 gets a text, but 2-4 get handwritten napkins.
Visual credits to: Featured image and bonus quote – @CowboyGospeler Quotes: @realAtlasPress @DeepPsycho_HQ @readswithravi @HermannHessed
Quotes:
1. “Madness is rare in individuals – but in groups, parties, nations, and ages it is the rule.” – Friedrich Nietzsche
2. “Cowards die many times before their actual deaths.” – Julius Caesar
3. “Hesitation is fatal; once an action is begun, it must be followed through with the utmost exertion of the will.” – Napoleon
4. “The best people possess a feeling for beauty, the courage to take risks, the discipline to tell the truth, the capacity for sacrifice.” – Ernest Hemingway
Bonus Quote (You could take out desert here and replace it with many different things…war, mountains, storm, quickly come to mind.): “He came at length to realize that the desert was a teacher. He did not realize all that he had learned, but he was a different man.” – Zane Grey
Sources:
He came at length to realize that the desert was a teacher. He did not realize all that he had learned, but he was a different man.
⏤ Zane Grey pic.twitter.com/j45IXK40rC— Cowboy Gospeler (@CowboyGospeler) February 5, 2026
“Madness is rare in individuals – but in groups, parties, nations, and ages it is the rule.”
—Friedrich Nietzsche pic.twitter.com/vrEgaPHViS
— Atlas Press (@realAtlasPress) February 5, 2026
“Cowards die many times before their actual deaths.”
– Julius Caesar pic.twitter.com/xoKH13uRur
— Deep Psychology (@DeepPsycho_HQ) February 8, 2026
“Hesitation is fatal; once an action is begun, it must be followed through with the utmost exertion of the will.”
— Napoleon pic.twitter.com/aDOaqiNyKK
— Reads with Ravi (@readswithravi) February 5, 2026
“The best people possess a feeling for beauty, the courage to take risks, the discipline to tell the truth, the capacity for sacrifice.”
―Ernest Hemingway pic.twitter.com/kn99PQP6UN
— Hesse Philosophy (@HermannHessed) February 4, 2026