Morning! The sun is out! And the snow is melting! Now if only we can get those temps outta the 40s….
I’ve been wanting to post my Dad’s pancake recipe since I first started happyaspie but I haven’t had the hankering for them until today! Oh, and the title? My little brother (who ain’t so little any more) was crazy for pancakes when he was younger – really more of a maple syrup thing than a pancake thing, I think. He would come down the stairs, sucking on his finger, his beloved blanket in hand, and asked for “pampakes”. The name just kind of stuck! I won’t sicken you by always writing our family’s name for this breakfast but know that I’m thinking it =)
My dad’s pancakes are a thing of beauty. They’re nothing like the stick-in-your-gut, buttermilk bad boys that you can get at a diner. Not that there’s anything wrong with those – I just don’t like them! I like my breakfast to leave me feeling refreshed and energized, ready to take on the day; walking around with a food baby in my belly and heart burn for the rest of the morning is just a little less than appealing to say the least.
My dad’s pancakes are light and thin, which means you can eat a whole stack without keeling over at the end, and are incredibly adaptable to whatever strikes your fancy that morning. Today? I wanted orange. Orange juice, orange zest, orange scent. I was mighty thirsty from last night’s spinning class, I think! Presenting: Orange-Scented Pancakes!
Dad’s Pancakes
1 cup whole wheat flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon sugar (I used raw turbinado)
2 tablespoons ground flax seed
pinch salt
1 egg
1/2 tablespoon oil (I used grapeseed – safflower, canola, whatever will get the job done!)
1.5 cups milk (I used Lactaid)
Emily’s addition: zest of 1 small orange!
Preheat your pan on medium-high heat while you get the batter ready. Mix together your dry ingredients, add the wet (and the zest) and whisk really well. Feel free to add more milk if you want the batter to be thinner (although I doubt this will happen) – add less if you want thicker pancakes! Lower the flame to medium and pour the batter into hot pan to form pancakes. They will cook very quickly and get very dark – flip as soon as the edges have started to look more solid and bubbles are forming all around the perimeter.
Did you really think I would leave out the toppings? Have you seen my oatmeal? On top of my batch today: Apricot fruit spread (I like Polaner’s because there is no added sugar, just sweetened with fruit), 1 tablespoon TJ’s sunflower butter drizzled over top, sprinkle of unsweetened coconut flakes, and sprinkle of Whofie’s Save the Rainforest granola. (I’ll tell you a secret about this granola. I bought it because it had huge, chewy chunks throughout the mix….but then I ate out all the chunks and tossed out the boring, space-hogging Brazil nuts and now I just have dried cinnamony oat flakes…bummer.)
Dad’s pancakes are not too sweet (really not sweet at all, in fact) which means adding fruit and toppings really enhances the pancakes without leaving you feeling buzzed from all of the sugar. Verdict on the orange zest? PERFECTION. It smelled fantastic and tasted even better. You know those Frank’s Red Hot ads? “I put that s!#% on everything!”? That’s how I feel about zest. You can never go wrong with a little (lotta) zest.
These pancakes are fantastic with a mashed banana included in the mix or any other fruit you like. Adding cottage cheese and less milk makes for really creamy, cloud-like cakes that are to.die.for. Whatever you can dream up!
1/2 of a Navel on the side!
I cooked up the whole batch of batter even though I only ate 4 of the pancakes today. Pancakes freeze really well if you place pieces of wax paper in between. Just throw them in the toaster for a really fast and delicious weekday breakfast.
Enough sitting around! Time for outdoor adventures. Trying a new Mexican restaurant tonight….details to come.
happyaspie 