Almond Flour Pancakes That Will NOT Leave You Wishing for REAL Pancakes

If you've given up wheat flour for any reason, whether you have celiac disease, are just gluten-intolerant or -sensitive, or have adopted a Paleo or Primal diet, you know that horrible moment when you bite into a flour-free version of an old favorite and it is either a) gross or b) only okay.  Either way, all that tends to happen is that you now miss the original more than you did before you tried the substitute.  Well, I won't say this recipe is perfect, but my most-of-us-try-to-stick-to-a-Paleo-diet family really, really enjoys it, even the non-Paleo members.  If you're looking for a good pancake recipe, this one is worth a try.  Best of all, it is a simple recipe.  No weird substitutions, no hoops to jump through to get it to turn out.   It works pretty much like any other pancake recipe you've tried.  Honestly, you just get to have good pancakes that won't make your stomach hurt, your skin break out, or whatever nasty side effect you get from wheat.  Even better?  Almond flour and eggs turn this into a high protein meal...if you forego the sweetener, which we often do, you're really having good for you pancakes.  Who knew? 

Almond Flour Pancakes

(adapted from Elana’s Pantry)

 Ingredients:

Whole Batch

3 cups Honeyville blanched almond flour

½ cup water

8 eggs

½ cup ghee or coconut oil, melted**

2 tablespoons real maple syrup or agave nectar*(I often omit this)

2 tablespoons vanilla extract

1 teaspoon baking soda

Pinch of salt

Ghee or butter for frying

 

Half Batch

1 ½ cups Honeyville blanched almond flour

1/3 cup water

4 eggs

¹/₃ cup ghee or coconut oil, melted**

1 tablespoon real maple syrup or agave nectar*(I often omit this)

1 tablespoon vanilla extract

½ teaspoon baking soda

Pinch of salt

Ghee or butter for frying

Instructions:

1. With mixer or blender or whisk, combine ingredients until smooth and creamy.
2. Using ghee or butter, grease griddle.  (I use an electric griddle set to 350^oF.)   
3. When griddle is hot, pour pancake batter onto griddle.
4. Pancakes will bubble.  When the bubbles stay open, flip pancakes and cook other side.  Serve warm.

Hints and Tips:

The recipe as written makes a more liquid batter and, thus, a flatter pancake.  Sometimes I like to make a more cake-like pancake, especially when I’m adding blueberries to the batter.  Just play around with the liquid to get your desired consistency.

A half batch is ideal for my still-at-home family of four.  When I’m making them to be eaten at home, I omit the maple syrup because my family will pour syrup on top no matter what.  When I’m making them for quick weekday breakfast on the go, I include the syrup.  They reheat really well, so they’re the ideal commuter breakfast (not that anyone I know eats while they’re driving!)

**The original recipe called for heavy cream, which I never have on hand.  I played around with liquid to fat ratios to get the desired texture.  When you use butter instead of ghee or coconut oil, you might run into a problem with your batter being too watery.  If that happens, just decrease your water or increase your almond flour until you get the consistency you like.

NOTE:  Elana’s Pantry recommends Honeyville Blanched Almond Flour for all of her almond flour recipes.  I haven’t tried a different almond flour with this recipe, so I don’t know how that might work.  If you try a different brand, let me know.

 

 

Making Food Prep Easier

One of the things I did in anticipation of our long vacation was to prepare as much food ahead of time as possible. You've already heard me rave about Andrea's amazing Buttermilk Pancakes and I wasn't joking when I said they became an instant favorite in my house. Since I knew we'd want them when we were camping, I prepared the mix (in two different batch sizes for when Superman would be with us and when he wouldn't) ahead of time. Then I simply put masking tape on the jars listing the necessary ingredients to complete that batch and, viola!, "instant" pancake mix.
P.S. As for the buttermilk the recipe calls for, I didn't want to give up space in my tiny refrigerator to buttermilk. Instead, I used buttermilk powder in the dry ingredients and then added the required water when it was time for the wet. We tasted no difference. Just be sure to sift the dry before you pack it up, as the buttermilk powder will clump.

Making Breakfast...

One of the side-effects of me joining the gym with Superman and working out with him at dark o'clock is that I am making breakfast for everyone before Superman leaves for work. This is a huge departure for this family. While Buttercup isn't sure she likes waking up for breakfast, Valiant is an early bird like his father and he's loving it. Charming is willing to make the sacrifice as he's discovered the realities of fending for yourself.

Yesterday, I made pancakes from scratch. Now, you have to understand something. Six years ago, when a friend of mine mentioned that she had nothing in her refrigerator so she pulled out the flour and made pancakes, I had her rolling on the flour when I inquired how one could make pancakes without pancake mix. Sadly, I was completely serious and that, my bloggy friends, was the beginning of my journey. I had to learn how to cook, if for no other reason than to spare my children the embarrassment of making such a faux pas. I've come a long way since then, but every time I think of pancakes, I am reminded of how little I knew.

So, in case one of you out there doesn't know, this is how I make pancakes these days (although I'm dying to try a new recipe for buttermilk pancakes I saw on Hatch...I have no loyalty to my recipes!).

Erin's Pancakes
adapted from a recipe Karen gave me
Makes 6 - 8 pancakes
(When Charming is home, I triple this recipe. When it is just the two little ones and me, I leave it alone.)

Ingredients:
1 egg
1 cup of all-purpose flour
1 cup milk (for thicker batter, use less milk)
1 T. sugar
2 T. vegetable oil
1 T. vanilla
1 T. cooking oil
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp salt

Directions:
Combine all. Cook on heated, lightly greased griddle. (I heat my electric griddle to 350.) Serve warm.

I use a squirt bottle to pour out my dough...it is easy to regulate the flow of the batter and it keeps in the refrigerator overnight. Any extra pancakes I have left over, I put on wax paper on a cookie sheet, then I freeze them, then I put them in a plastic bag and store them in the freezer. The kids can pull them out and microwave them for a quick breakfast.