When I hear people talk about making pancakes at home and then ask them what their favorite recipe to use is, I often hear about a store bought pancake mix. 

A store bought mix?!

I’m not here to try and make you feel like a terrible cook, parent, friend, host, etc. if you use a store bought pancake mix. What I am here to do is show you how EASY it is to make your own homemade, healthy pancakes with simple ingredients and simple steps.

If you’ve read my posts before, you know I like to demonstrate the ingredients found in certain processed foods compared to the simple ingredients used here. Take your basic, well known, pancake mix you can purchase at the store: 

---

Ingredients in Baking and Pancake Mix: 

 Enriched Flour Bleached (Wheat Flour, Niacin, Iron, Thiamin Mononitrate, Riboflavin, Folic Acid), Corn Starch, Dextrose, Partially Hydrogenated Soybean And/or Cottonseed Oil, Leavening (Baking Soda, Sodium Aluminum Phosphate, Monocalcium Phosphate), Canola Oil, Salt, Sugar, DATEM, Distilled Monoglycerides.

---

Did you know that white, all-purpose flour is required by law to re-include (or be enriched with) niacin, iron, thiamin mononitrate, riboflavin, and folic acid? This is because these are some of the nutrients that are lost during the process of removing the bran and the germ from the wheat kernel. These two portions of the wheat kernel contain antioxidants, some protein, B-vitamins, fiber, minerals, and healthy fats. The endosperm, which is left behind, contains the starchy carbohydrates, some protein, and some vitamins and minerals. As you can tell, many of the nutrients have been left behind. 

Ever wonder why whole wheat flours are more expensive than all-purpose flours if they require processing and an addition of nutrients? 

Yeah, me too. I don’t know the answer. If anyone does know the answer, please, do share!

Oh boy. I could go on forever about the flours right here. But I’ll save some of that for a post to come about carbohydrates. Yes, I said it. I’ll say it again…carbohydrates! Our society has made it as if the word carbohydrates were a swear word. Keep coming back to the blog to learn why you SHOULD make sure you include carbohydrates into your diet and not be fearful of them!

Sorry. I got off on a little tangent. Back to the pancake mix…

This baking and pancake mix also includes partially hydrogenated soybean and/or cottonseed oil. “Partially hydrogenated” is code word for trans fats. DATEM and Distilled Monoglycerides are emulsifiers which are most often found in processed foods.  

Thankfully, the ingredients found in Wholesome’s pancake recipe are easy to find in your pantry, do not contain trans fats, do not require emulsifiers (with the exception of your own muscle power), and do not require vitamins and minerals to be restored in result of processing. These pancakes are just good ol’ fashioned pancakes…wait…I take that back. Since they don’t contain cow’s milk, eggs, or butter, they therefore cannot be “good ol’ fashioned”. How about…

Easy Weekend Morning Pancakes

Serves: 2-3

ingredients

1 cup unsweetened almond milk (or other non-dairy milk)

1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar

1 tablespoon ground flaxseed

3 tablespoons water

1 1/4 – 1 1/2 cups whole wheat pastry flour

1 teaspoon granulated sugar

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon olive or canola oil

directions

To start, heat your pan to medium-high heat. (We use a griddle and heat to 350 degrees.)

In a liquid measuring cup, add the almond milk and apple cider vinegar. Give it one little stir. Set aside. (This creates a “buttermilk”.)

In separate little dish, add the ground flaxseed and water. Let it sit for 5-minutes. (This creates a “flax egg”.)

In a medium bowl, add 1 1/4 cup flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Mix together. If the the batter is very runny, consider adding another 1/4 cup of flour.

In a separate bowl, add the “buttermilk” and oil together. After the 5 minutes are up for the “flax egg”, add the flax and water mixture to the “buttermilk” and oil.

Next, add the liquid measurements to the dry measurements. Mix until just combined–it is important to ensure you do not overmix. A few lumps are just fine.

<Fold in blueberries here if you want blueberry pancakes!>

To cook the pancakes, depending on your pan of choice, you may need to add a small amount of oil to prevent sticking. Add approximately 1/4 cup of batter for each pancake. Cook for about 2 minutes on each side, or until golden brown. Repeat until the batter is gone. Top with your favorite toppings and enjoy!

Tip: We preheat our oven to 170 degrees to keep the completed pancakes warm while the rest cook.