Golden Wheat Pancakes

For the past year our daughter's favorite meal has been pancakes. At first I was thrilled to find a meal she would devour. Then I realized there were very few nutrients in the basic pancakes I was making and it didn't sit well with me. I started getting creative and tweaking the recipe every week. First of all, I switched the all-purpose flour to whole wheat flour. I also switched to pure maple syrup instead of the corn syrup based ones I had been buying (without even realizing they didn't contain actual maple syrup).  Next I substituted unsweetened applesauce for the vegetable oil. I use a buttermilk recipe and have found I can substitute regular milk and Greek yogurt, when I have some on hand, for extra protein. I've successfully added pureed pumpkin and beets; flax seed, walnuts, pecans, apples with cinnamon, bananas and blueberries. Use the recipe below as a starting point and get creative. You will be surprised how healthy of a meal pancakes can be!

Golden Wheat Pancakes

(Double the recipe below and stock your freezer with leftover pancakes.)

1 egg, beaten
1 c buttermilk*
2 Tbls unsweetened applesauce
1 c whole wheat flour
1 Tbls sugar
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt

Whisk the wet ingredients in one bowl and the dry ingredients in another. Pour the dry ingredients into the wet and whisk until combined. (Batter may still be lumpy).

 - At this point you can add in any of the following ingredients:

• 1/2 c. pureed pumpkin + 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 c. pureed beets
• 1-2 Tbls of ground flax seed
• 1 mashed banana (omit the sugar if you add this)
• 1/2 apple, peeled and diced + 1 tsp cinnamon

Topped with frozen wild blueberries

Let batter sit 5-10 minutes before ladling onto a hot griddle.
(If you are adding chopped nuts or blueberries, I pour about 3/4 c. of batter onto my griddle and then sprinkle each pancake with nuts or blueberries.)
Wait for pancakes to form bubbles and then flip to cook the other side.



 *If you do not have buttermilk you can substitute 1 cup milk + dash of lemon juice. I have also substituted the buttermilk with a 1/2 cup plain Greek yogurt + 1/2 cup milk .



Tip: For pancakes with a beautiful golden color, use a nonstick griddle with NO butter or grease on it. The pancakes pictured below on the left are an example of NOT using butter while the pancakes on the right were cooked on a buttered surface.