“Rebecca and Greg grew up eating these simple whole wheat pancakes almost every weekend. They learned to appreciate the earthy flavor of whole wheat at an early age, and I felt comfortable knowing they were having a nutritious breakfast (we usually topped them with fresh fruit and nuts). If you don’t like the heaviness of 100% whole wheat, substitute white flour for half of it. Using this recipe as a base, you can be very creative. See our Variations for ideas that can also be used to dress up any pancake mix, if you don’t want to start from scratch.” ~ Bobbi
| Prep Time | |
| 10 minutes |
| Cook Time | Passive Time |
| 3 minutes, per batch | 10 minutes |
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Easy!
Inexpensive!
Serves:20pancakes
Serving Size:1 (3-inch) pancake
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These simple but healthful pancakes have been part of our breakfast repertoire for years.
Tools:measuring cups and spoons, medium and large bowls, large (10-inch) skillet (or griddle)
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- 2 cups whole wheat flour (pastry flour recommended)
- 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 2 large eggs
- 2 cups milk
- 1 tablespoon high heat cooking oil
- Combine dry ingredients in a large bowl and stir.
- Lightly beat eggs in a medium bowl. Stir in milk and oil.
- Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients and pour milk mixture into it. Stir gently with a whisk (or kitchen spoon) just until flour is incorporated. (Don’t worry about small lumps.)
- Let stand about 10 minutes to thicken. (This is a good time to clean up or cut fresh fruit!)
- Heat* a large skillet over medium heat. Once hot enough, spray lightly with oil, or add about 1/2 teaspoon of oil or butter.
- Optional step: Heat oil a few seconds, then carefully wipe off the excess oil with a paper towel, leaving a thin film. This will help the pancakes brown evenly, with no dark splotches. Omit this step if using butter.
- Return skillet to stovetop and turn heat to medium-low. Pour 1/4 cup batter per pancake into the skillet, to make three pancakes at a time.
- When a few bubbles begin to pop on the top and the underside is golden brown (about 1 to 2 minutes), turn over with a food turner. Cook another 30 to 60 seconds on the other side. (Adjust heat as needed.)
- Repeat until all pancakes are done, spraying skillet with oil and wiping us excess every two or three batches. Serve as they come out of the skillet, or keep warm* until ready to serve (they will dry out a little, so don’t overcook).
*Tip: Always heat the empty skillet first, then add fat so it doesn’t burn. To determine if the skillet is ready, sprinkle a drop of water onto the hot skillet. If it stays in a round shape and bounces, the pan is hot enough. If the drop of water explodes and splatters, remove skillet from heat and cool a few seconds.
*Technique: You can place cooked pancakes on a plate and simply cover the pancakes lightly with a piece of foil to keep warm, but they tend to become somewhat soggy. To prevent this, turn oven to low. If you have a cooling rack (used for cakes and cookies), set it on the oven rack and place the pancakes in one layer on top of it. If you don’t have a cooling rack, place the pancakes directly onto the oven racks, but make sure the pancakes don’t fall through. This keeps the pancakes from getting soggy on the bottom. To prevent drying out, turn the heat off once the oven is adequately warm, and serve pancakes as soon as possible.
SERVING SUGGESTION:
- Add a dollop of butter and some pure maple syrup on top of pancakes. You can also sprinkle some fresh fruit or chopped nuts over them.
VARIATIONS:
- Apple –Toss 1/2 cup peeled and finely chopped apple in 1 tablespoon flour and 1 tablespoon brown sugar, then fold into batter. Sprinkle brown sugar on top of cooked pancakes, instead of using syrup.
- Blueberry –Toss 1/2 cup blueberries (fresh or frozen) in 1 tablespoon flour, then fold into batter before cooking. Add grated zest of one lemon if desired.
- Buttermilk – Add 1 tablespoon lemon juice to milk and let stand until ready to mix into batter. Increase flour by 1 tablespoon.
- Chocolate Chip –Add 1/4 cup tiny chocolate chips.
- Gingerbread – Follow recipe, but add 1 tablespoon ground ginger, 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg, and 1/8 teaspoon ground cloves to dry ingredients.
- Maple Walnut –Stir 1/2 cup finely chopped walnuts into batter and top with extra walnuts and maple syrup.
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