Posts Tagged ‘pancake’
Whole grain oat nut pancakes
Monday, February 8th, 2010
There are a few things in life I hold sacred. This pancake recipe is one of them. During my graduate counseling practicum, completed at an inpatient hospital psychiatric unit, one of the long serving psychiatric nurses was retiring, and the behavioral medicine crew threw her a casual goodbye party held in the ubiquitous, stark white, staff/snack/coffee/break/lunch/locked off from all the patients – room.
Ironically, it was the retiring nurse who brought the food for everyone. Apparently, she had gained quite a reputation for a certain oaty, nutty, whole grain buttermilk pancake recipe, and it was tradition for her to tote in gigantic bowls of raw pancake batter and cook up some homey, bathed in sunlight, pancakes, right in the middle of that cramped, cold, and barren psych unit break room.
But I was suspicious. I can try to deny it, but in fact, I’m a bit of a pancake snob. Great pancakes need distinct flavors and texture, they must be moist – yet light, and most importantly (of course), they cannot remind me in any way of the texture or imagined taste of cardboard.
Boy, were my suspicions unfounded! These pancakes were amazing, incredible! I had to have the recipe. You can imagine my disappointment and frustration when, upon asking for said recipe, I was told, “Oh, it’s a whole grain pancake recipe off the internet – I don’t know which one.” No! I needed to be able to recreate it to perfection, and I am not one for ambiguity.
However, with a bit of poking around, I found a promising start. But there were some issues – the leavening proportions were all wrong (I want to taste pancake, not baking soda), I didn’t like the nut combination, there was an unduly amount of oil and sugar, and I preferred white whole wheat flour to standard whole wheat. But I persevered, because I knew getting this recipe right would be worth it. And it was. These pancakes have layered flavor from the whole wheat, oats and buttermilk, and a wonderfully satisfying nutty texture. Plus, they are full of dietary fiber and protein. I hope they become a household tradition for you and your family, as they are for mine, and that perhaps you will wake a few minutes early this Sunday and make something that will warm both the hearts and the bellies of those you love most, on Valentine’s Day.
Whole grain oat nut pancakes
3/4 cup rolled oats, ground (oat flour is not a good substitute – I’ve tried)
3/4 cup white whole wheat or standard whole wheat flour
1 1/2 teaspoon aluminum free baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
scant 1/2 teaspoon sea salt or kosher salt
2 Tablespoons natural cane sugar
3 Tablespoons finely chopped or ground pecans (1 oz.)
3 Tablespoons finely chopped or ground almonds (1 oz.)
1 1/2 cups buttermilk (plus or minus 1-2 tablesoons. depending on preferred thickness)
1 egg
3 Tablespoons vegetable oil
salted butter for cooking
Grind oats and nuts (or you may use pre-ground nuts) to a powdery consistency in a mini chopper, leaving a few small bits for texture. In a medium bowl, mix dry ingredients together. In a separate bowl, whisk egg until pale yellow, then add oil and whisk to combine. Add buttermilk to the egg and oil and blend. Pour wet ingredients into bowl with dry ingredients and mix until just combined. Allow batter to sit for 10-15 minutes to give the leavening time to react and thicken the batter. Preheat a large skillet or griddle over medium high heat, grease with salted butter, and turn heat down to medium. Ladle 1/4 – 1/3 cup batter onto pan for each pancake. Pancake batter should sizzle a bit when poured into the pan, but not smoke. Turn heat down to medium low and allow to cook until edges just start to dry and bubbles appear throughout the pancake, then flip and cook until set in the middle. If pancakes are over-browning, and not cooking through, turn the heat down on the pan and increase the cooking time. Cooking time on the second side will be less than on the first. Repeat with more butter and batches, until batter is finished. This makes about 9-10 four inch pancakes. Serve with maple syrup, butter, and fruit, if desired.
Variations: try it with a mashed banana, 3/4 teaspoon cinnamon, 1/4 cup brown sugar subbed for natural sugar, or unsalted butter rather than vegetable oil.
Tags: almond, Breakfast, Buttermilk, harvest, nut, oat, pancake, pecan, whole grain
Posted in Breakfast | 26 Comments »
