Dripping with maple syrup and steaming with bacon, a good stack of pancakes might be extraordinarily unhealthy, but they are also extraordinarily delicious. With this pancake recipe, you'll be coming back for more!

Whether shared with your kids, your partner, your best friend, or your parents, a gorgeous stack of pancakes is one of the most heartwarming and happiness-making meals in the history of food.

Soft, bouncy, sweet, savory, and coated in a fantastic selection of toppings, this is a North American staple that'll keep your mornings fun and full of flavor.

Complete with some fresh fruit and delicious, sweet or salty toppings, pancakes never disappoint. Luckily for everyone involved, they are also astoundingly easy to throw together, needing little more than a mixing bowl and a frying pan. Yet, there are a few pieces of equipment that certainly make the process easier.

This is the equipment you'll need when making pancakes:

• A wide non-stick frying pan
• A large metal or ceramic mixing bowl
• A smaller mixing bowl
• Whisk
• Measuring equipment
• Ladle
• Spatula

It's very important to use a non-stick pan when making pancakes, as you need to keep a medium temperature to avoid burning – and you don't want them to stick.

Most people have made pancakes at some point in their life, but if you haven't tried them with buttermilk then you have been seriously missing out. Only requiring a few simple ingredients, pancakes are all about the fluffy consistency in their center and the way that they absorb the syrup – this is where the buttermilk comes in!

Here are the ingredients you need to make buttermilk pancakes:

• Flour, 2 cups
• Sugar, 4 tablespoons
• Baking powder, 1 tbsp
• Two eggs
• Buttermilk, 2 cups
• Pinch of salt
• Butter (as needed)

It's now time to get into the process of actually making the pancakes. Cooking pancakes is not particularly difficult, but it is all about first getting the batter right and then controlling the heat in the pan. It can be very easy to end up with slightly burnt pancakes when what you really want is a selection that are golden brown with little bits of caramelized goodness here and there.

Here's how to make buttermilk pancakes

Step 1: Start by combining the soft ingredients in the large mixing bowl, whisking together the salt, baking powder, sugar, and flour.

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Step 2: In a separate bowl, combine the eggs and buttermilk, whisking thoroughly until perfectly combined. If you want to add a flavoring like chocolate or vanilla, add it at this stage.

Step 3: Mix the wet mixture into the dry mixture, whisking briskly to get rid of all the clumps that may form in the batter so that you don't get any lumps of flour in your pancakes.

Step 4: Once whisked together and smooth, cover the mixture in cling film and put the bowl into the fridge. Allow it to sit overnight, or at least two hours.

Step 5: Heat up a non-stick pan on the stove, on medium heat, waiting until you can see little wisps of heat haze off the surface.

Step 6: Add about a tablespoon of butter and spread it out over the bottom of the pan using the spatula.

Step 7: Once the butter has melted, take your ladle and scoop the pancake batter into the pan, taking care not to make a mess.

Step 8: Having poured it into the pan, shape the pancake as you like either by twisting and tilting the pan or by using the back of the ladle.

Step 9: Allow the pancake to cook. Once the wet side facing up has formed some bubbles, carefully flip the pancake over to the other side and cook it through.

Step 10: Once both sides are a beautiful golden color, the pancake is ready to be eaten. You can usually make two in a pan at the same time, depending on the size of the pancakes or the pan.

Be patient when making pancakes, and make sure to keep your oven on a low temperature to keep them warm as you make more.

Let's be honest... while pancakes taste great, you're really only ever going to eat them if you have plenty of delicious toppings to put on top. This is where pancakes really get a chance to shine, and their versatility comes into plain view. Pancakes can be a savory meal, a sweet meal, or even both – you just need to pair them with the right things.

Here's what you should have with your pancakes:

• Berries and honey
• Lemon and sugar
• Bacon and maple syrup
• Maple syrup and ice cream
• Sugar, cinnamon, and butter
• Fresh fruit
• Jam
• Scrambled eggs and breakfast sausages
• Fried chicken
• Avocado and poached eggs
• Hash browns

Ideally, you would serve your pancakes with something sweet and something salty – that's why we'd recommend bacon and maple syrup, as it's truly a combination you can't beat!

Pancakes are served in various forms all across the world, from Africa to France, Europe, Japan, India, and modern-day North America. The US version of pancakes are the simplest out there, resembling flat cakes that can be paired with typically sweet toppings.

Possibly the best alternative form of pancake is, of course, various Indian pancakes. From the gorgeous uttapam to dosas and appam, few things are as versatile and packed full of flavor as Indian variations on pancakes. It's not a surprise, either, as Indian cuisine is one of the most flavorful in the world.

Ultimately, though, the earliest known reference to pancakes was in Ancient Greece, where they made "tagenias" in the 5th century BC.

Mentioned by ancient poets Cratinus and Magnes, they were typically made with flour, olive oil, honey, and curdled milk. As a result, they are shockingly close to what you expect from a modern pancake.

Pancakes are one of the most beloved foods in the world, and a great weekend breakfast treat to share with the whole family. Do you know what the best bit is, though? They are outrageously easy to make!