Best Ever Vegan Buckwheat Pancakes
Last night, my 4 year old nephew, H, had his first slumber party (away from his parents) – and we had the honor of hosting! We played in the garden and with our bearded dragon. We went creature hunting and found banana slugs and spiders and acorns…
…and stayed up WAY past my bedtime. In the morning, H reminded me of how difficult having a 4 year old is when he woke me up at 7. AM. On a Sunday.
Here’s the thing: my youngest kids are 11. It’s been quite a while since I’ve been woken up by a kid at 7 am on a weekend. For this, I am crazy thankful. Sleeping in is one of my favorite things to do.
But, come on, it’s not very often that I have to do it, and I was definitely motivated to make sure he was having the best slumber party ever. His face is just too cute.
Which means that, at 7:00 on a Sunday morning, I rolled up my sleeves and set out to make the BEST PANCAKES EVER. Because pancake breakfasts are the best way to end a cousin slumber party. As I finished up the pancakes, I gave H the task of waking up his cousins. He did so, loudly, happily announcing, “Hey guys! Uncle Sam made pancakes!” My very groggy kids came to the table, doing a great job of keeping up with H’s energetic chatter. My kiddos are really good big cousins…even when their adolescent bodies would prefer to grab a few more hours of sleep.
After H’s first bite of honey-covered pancake, his very earnest little 4 year old face beamed up to me as he said, quite seriously, “This is the best pancake ever.”
Which makes me totally cool with a 7:00am Sunday.
Vegan Buckwheat Pancakes
Healthy, whole grain vegan (WFPB) pancakes: voted "Best Pancake Ever" by my 4 year old nephew.
Ingredients
- 2 cup whole wheat flour
- 2 tbsp baking powder
- 2 tbsp ground flax seed
- 1 tbsp cinnamon † see brand recommendation below
- 2 cup almond milk *Or any plant based milk
- 1 cup water
- 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil *optional. If leaving out, may need to add more water to get the right consistency
- 2 tbsp erythritol *May sub sweetener of choice
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
Instructions
In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, ground flax seed, and cinnamon.
In a separate bowl, whisk together the almond milk, water, oil, erythritol and vanilla extract.
Pour the liquid mixture into the dry mixture and stir until combined (only a few lumps should remain)
Note: over mixing may result in chewy/tough pancakes.
Note2: If you prefer working with thinner batter, add up to 1/4 c additional water.*If you're adding mix-ins like cacao nibs, nuts, etc. gently fold them into your batter.
Allow batter to rest for 4-5 minutes. While your batter is resting, preheat a non-stick skillet or cast iron pan over medium heat. You'll know it's ready when you can sprinkle a couple of drops of water on it and they sizzle and bounce off.
Using a 1/4 c measuring cup, drop batter onto skillet. Cook for about 4-5 minutes, until bubbles form on the surface and the edges have started to brown (or look less shiny). Flip and cook for another 2-3 minutes.
When both sides are a golden brown and the cake feels springy when pressed lightly in the middle, remove from the griddle.
Serve warm with pure maple syrup, agave nectar, fresh fruit...or honey, if that's what your adorable nephew's little heart desires.
Recipe Notes
† Brand Recommendation: I use Penzey's Vietnamese Ground Cinnamon. Once you try it, no other cinnamon will taste as good.
