I have some people in my life who are staunchly traditional in their view of food, and find the idea of Whole Food Plant Based food challenging. For them, I try and make dishes that still follow my guiding principles of being plant based and low in refined ingredients, and which also appeal to them as foods they recognise as enjoyable. These pancakes are one of those dishes.
Traditionally pancakes/pikelets would be made with cow milk and eggs. And in my house growing up, they would also have been made with refined white flour.
So for this recipe, I have taken a cue from many different cuisines around the world, and used buckwheat flour as the base. It has a texture that lends itself well to pancakes, and has a neutral, but nutty kind of flavour. Buckwheat is gluten free, so the pancakes never get rubbery, and are light and fluffy.
The recipe uses a standard batter mix, with the cow milk being replaced by plant based milk, and the egg being replaced by a mashed banana. Not a fan of banana? Fear not, you can't taste it in the final product. The banana is simply acting as a binder and moisture element.
The pancakes don't have any sugar in them, so lend themselves well to both sweet and savoury uses. You could serve them with Mixed Berry Jam for a sweet meal, or as a side to a bowl of warm Tomato Soup or Roast Pumpkin Soup.
If you have leftover pancakes, these can be stored in the fridge for a few days. To freshen them up, try toasting them in the toaster.
Add the buckwheat flour and baking powder to a mixing bowl.
Mash the banana thoroughly using a fork. It is important that it is mashed thoroughly, so that the banana blends completely into the batter.
Add the banana and milk to the mixing bowl. Mix gently until all ingredients are well combined. The batter will be quite runny. Set the bowl to one side for approximately 5-10 minutes, until the batter thickens.
Meanwhile, place your largest non-stick frying pan onto an element at medium heat. Once warm, wipe it with the oiled paper towel. This is optional: I find that it makes the surface extra non-stick.
Spoon one or two spoonsful of batter into the pan. This is your trial run to check consistency of batter and heat of pan. Once bubbles burst and stay open, you should be ready to flip the pancake. Use a spatula to check the underside, and when you think it is ready, flip it to the other side and cook until the edges of the pancake show no raw batter. Remove the pancake and once cool enough to touch, rip it in half. If it is cooked through, then the batter is the correct consistency. If not, then add some extra milk to make the batter (and resulting pancakes) thinner.
Once you are happy with the batter and pan temperature, start making the pancakes in batches or three to four, depending on the size of your pan, until all the batter is used. Wipe the pan with the oiled paper towel between batches. Once cooked, eat straight away, or place the pancakes onto a wire rack to help prevent them from sweating. Makes 10-20 pancakes/pikelets, depending on size.
Optional: If you want to make blueberry pancakes, add blueberries (fresh or frozen) just after you spoon the batter into the pan.
Ingredients
Directions
Add the buckwheat flour and baking powder to a mixing bowl.
Mash the banana thoroughly using a fork. It is important that it is mashed thoroughly, so that the banana blends completely into the batter.
Add the banana and milk to the mixing bowl. Mix gently until all ingredients are well combined. The batter will be quite runny. Set the bowl to one side for approximately 5-10 minutes, until the batter thickens.
Meanwhile, place your largest non-stick frying pan onto an element at medium heat. Once warm, wipe it with the oiled paper towel. This is optional: I find that it makes the surface extra non-stick.
Spoon one or two spoonsful of batter into the pan. This is your trial run to check consistency of batter and heat of pan. Once bubbles burst and stay open, you should be ready to flip the pancake. Use a spatula to check the underside, and when you think it is ready, flip it to the other side and cook until the edges of the pancake show no raw batter. Remove the pancake and once cool enough to touch, rip it in half. If it is cooked through, then the batter is the correct consistency. If not, then add some extra milk to make the batter (and resulting pancakes) thinner.
Once you are happy with the batter and pan temperature, start making the pancakes in batches or three to four, depending on the size of your pan, until all the batter is used. Wipe the pan with the oiled paper towel between batches. Once cooked, eat straight away, or place the pancakes onto a wire rack to help prevent them from sweating. Makes 10-20 pancakes/pikelets, depending on size.
Optional: If you want to make blueberry pancakes, add blueberries (fresh or frozen) just after you spoon the batter into the pan.
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