Pretzel Pancakes With Caramel Sauce

For the pancakes:
1/2 c. crushed pretzels, divided (1 heaping cup or 25 tiny twist pretzels)
3/4 c. flour
1 T. sugar
1 t. baking powder
1/2 t. kosher salt
1 egg, separated
3/4 c. milk
1/4 c. buttermilk
vegetable oil

For the caramel sauce:
1/2 c. packed brown sugar
2 T. water
1/2 c. heavy cream
1 T. butter

For the pancakes:
Whisk together 1/4 c. crushed pretzels, flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt in a bowl; set aside.
Using a hand mixer on med. speed, whip egg white in a bowl to soft peaks; set aside.
Whisk together egg yolk, milk, and buttermilk in a bowl until frothy. Stir into dry ingredients only until ingredients are moistened. (Small lumps are OK.) Let batter stand for 10 min. Fold in whipped egg white, stopping when thin, white streaks still remain in the batter.
Heat a griddle or nonstick skillet over med. heat. Brush griddle with a thin layer of oil.
For each pancake, pour a scant 1/3-1/2 c. batter onto the griddle; sprinkle each pancake with some of the remaining crushed pretzels.
Cook until bubbles form on surface of pancakes, about 2 minutes. Flip pancakes; cook until golden, about 2 minutes more.

For the caramel:
Boil brown sugar and water in a small saucepan 5 minutes, gently swirling occasionally to prevent scorching. Whisk in cream. (Mixture will bubble furiously and begin to harden into candy-like pieces; keep whisking and it will melt again.)
Boil mixture 2 minutes more, then whisk in butter until melted. Set caramel sauce aside; keep it warm.

Makes 4-6 pancakes. Total time 30 minutes.

Verdict:
Oh these were so yummy. I only made one batch and I should have made two. Our kids ate 2 or 3 pancakes each. They just kept eating. The caramel sauce was good and tastes great on ice cream (I tried it.) I will warn you that the batter is a strange consistency but they turn out good so don't fret. Make a double batch. Seriously.