My New Favorite Pancake Recipe

Let me tell you about my new favorite pancake recipe.  They’re so flavorful and fluffy, plus there’s all kinds of good stuff in them – whole wheat flour, oats, flax seeds.  There’s no oil, white flour, or sugar.   Compared to plain white pancakes, these are faintly nutty, slightly sweet, slightly salty, and have just the right balance of well-rounded flavor.  Oh, and did I mention you just blend all of the ingredients up in the food processor?  So easy!  The oats get ground up enough that you don’t notice “oats” in your pancakes.  These really have a great fluffy yet hearty texture.  Did I mention these are super easy to make?  You just throw all of the ingredients in your food processor, and boom!  You have pancakes!

Another cool thing about these is that you can flavor them up with any different add-ins you want!  I can’t seem to get off of the blueberry pecan combination, because we’ve been having some deliciously sweet and plump blueberries lately, and Tim and I both love pecans in our pancakes.  I also think apple cinnamon would be delicious, and sometime I’ll try banana walnut.

The original recipe calls for buttermilk, but I’ve also tried vanilla Greek yogurt thinned out with a little water, and soured vanilla soymilk (1 Tablespoon of vinegar in a measuring cup, then pour milk up to 1 cup).  All of these variations were delicious! The reviews where I found the original recipe also said people used regular milk or soured milk with great success.

When I make these, I portion them out using my 1/4 cup measuring cup because it’s just easier that way.  My food processor doesn’t have a spout, but if you use your blender, you could pour them right out of there.  Also, the outsides seem to cook pretty quickly, so keep the burner kind of low so the insides get done.  I like to put my finished pancakes in a low oven to keep them warm while I finish cooking, and that also helps ensure the insides are cooked.  My final tip is that they seem kind of difficult to flip at first, because they seem like they are just going to fall apart.  But if you make sure they are ready to flip and then get your spatula all the way underneath, you’ll be good to go.  And if they turn out “rustic,” they’ll still taste great. 😉

Now, if you’ve read this far, I’ll let you in on my super secret pancake tip.  Do you ever feel like when you make blueberry pancakes the blueberries just burst all over the pan and then burn?  Well here’s my way around that.  I pour the pancakes, usually four, in the pan.  Then I sprinkle on the blueberries, and finally I take a spoon and drizzle a little more batter just right on top of the blueberries to cover them up.  This creates a little bit of protection for the blueberries so they stay nice and plump and juicy until you cut into them.  It also works for other fruits and even chocolate chips.  Give it a try!  You have to work fast though, so practice!

Oatmeal Pancakes

Adapted from Allrecipes

Makes 8-10 pancakes

Ingredients:

• 1 cup whole wheat flour
• 1 cup oats (I used old fashioned, but quick would work)
• 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 2 Tablespoons milled flax seed/flax seed meal
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 1/2 cup buttermilk
• 2 Tablespoons honey
• 2 tsp vanilla (or less if desired)
• 2 eggs
• optional add ins, such as fresh fruit, nuts, cinnamon, chocolate chips

Directions:

Heat a nonstick skillet or griddle over medium heat.  Spray with nonstick cooking spray (I used my Misto with olive oil).

Put the dry ingredients in the food processor and process until the oats are ground up.  Add the wet ingredients and mix just until blended.

Pour onto skillet or griddle using 1/4 cup measuring cup.  Add any fruit or additional goodies at this time.  Cook pancakes until browned on both sides.

Serve with the toppings of your choice.  I love maple syrup, blueberry syrup, and a few extra fresh blueberries!  Yum!

Enjoy!