One of the reasons I hardly ever bake is that I’m not good at following step-by-step directions with precise measurements. Instead, I prefer to wing it or rush it. I made that mistake this morning with the first batch of pancake batter. Lesson learned: don’t combine all the ingredients willy nilly; it’s not a salad!

My next rookie move was to cook the pancakes too quickly. Once I finally slowed down and let them sit much longer in the pan, they had that pretty golden color. (The first few were 50 shades of ivory.)

Adapted from a blueberry pancake recipe first attempted here. (And minus the blueberries, unfortunately.)

Mix in a medium bowl:

• 2 cups, plus 2 tablespoons flour
• 1/4 cup brown sugar (note: recipe simply calls for sugar, but I didn’t have any)
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt

Separately, mix together; then gradually incorporate into the dry mixture above and whisk until the lumps are gone:

• 2 cups almond milk
• 2 eggs

Cooking in 1/4 cup spoonfuls over medium heat seemed to be slow, but less accident-prone. Makes about 8 pancakes in a smallish frying pan.