In my house (er… small apartment), weekends often mean leisurely breakfasts: a time to linger at the table over good conversation, a cozy brew and a very non-weekday meal. These slow mornings are a great prelude for relaxing neighbourhood strolls, catching up with friends, and adventurous nature hikes alike.
Much like every other “recipe” I share here, you need not worry about being overly precise. Try to follow the method closely the first time you attempt it, but don’t forget to trust your intuition along the way, too! The inspiration for the pancakes described below came from this recipe from Ricardo.
tools you’ll need
-
- 1 medium and 1 large mixing bowl — for combining & whisking ingredients
- 1 fork — for quick mixing
- 1 measuring cup — for measuring dry and wet ingredients
- some regular or measuring spoons — for portioning out ingredients
- 1 whisk or electric mixer — for thorough whisking
- 1 ladle — for transfering batter from bowl to pan
- a non-stick frying pan — for cooking your pancakes
- 1 spatula — for flipping and transporting pancakes
ingredients (in order of use)
- 1 C. unbleached or wholemeal wheat flour
- 1 C. buckwheat flour
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1 to 2 tsp total cinnamon, nutmeg, cardamom or other warming spices
- ½ tsp salt
- 2 large eggs
- ¼ C. white granulated sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla extract or vanilla sugar
- 1¾ C. dairy or plant-based milk*
- butter or canola oil, for greasing the pan
*I use both dairy and non-dairy milks, but tend to mostly go for the minimally-processed plant-based varieties these days. If going the dairy route, I choose organic and whole milk.
let’s make fluffy buckwheat pancakes
1. In the medium bowl, combine the 1 CUP of wheat flour, 1 CUP of buckwheat flour, 2 teaspoons of baking powder, 1 to 2 teaspoons of your chosen powdered spices, and half teaspoon of salt. Mix well with your fork and set aside.
2. In the large bowl, whisk the two eggs, quarter cup of sugar and teaspoon of vanilla until the mixture is pale yellow. This should take around 5 minutes with an electric mixer, and perhaps a bit longer if whisking by hand.
3. Whisking slowly or on low speed, add about half of the milk, then the dry ingredients, then the other half of the milk. Keep mixing until the batter looks smooth and uniform, then leave it to rest for 10 minutes at room temperature.
4. Bring your pan to a medium heat, add a tiny bit of butter or oil to make its surface slick, and pour in your first ladleful of batter (roughly ⅓ of a cup’s worth). Let cook until bubbles form at the top and the edges no longer look raw, about a minute or two, before flipping to cook for a further minute or so. Repeat until all pancakes are cooked, adjusting the heat of your pan and the quantity of each ladlefuls to your liking.
final notes
You can serve these as you make them, or keep them warm on a plate placed on the middle rack of an oven set at 110°C / 90°C fan / 225°F / Gas Mark ¼. They pair quite well with seasonal fruit, local-to-you butter, and generous pours of quality maple syrup (ideally from Quebec, if you can find it — does my Québécois-ness make me biased? maybe). Lastly, you could probably swap out the wheat flour for spelt or another gluten-rich flour and/or exchange the buckwheat flour for oat or another gluten-free flour for equally tasty results.
