Fudgy Chocolate Buckwheat American Style Pancakes (Ve, V, GF, DF)

 

These pancakes are deliciously light, deeply dark and chocolatey and sin free! I like the bitter edge to the flavour of these pancakes so I can combine them with loads of fruit and yoghurt.  Serve with syrup if you want something sweeter.

Makes 10 pancakes

Dry

Heaped 1/2 cup GF Self Raising Flour

Flat 1/2 cup Buckwheat Flour

1 1/2 tbsp Cocoa powder

1/2 tsp Bicarb of Soda

Wet

300ml Soya milk (approx)

2tsp Apple Cider Vinegar

 

Heat a dry non-stick frying pan on a high heat til piping hot. Then reduce to medium high heat.

Combine wet ingredients in a jug and whisk with a fork and leave to sit until curdling, then stir further.  Combine the dry ingredients in a bowl.

Once the milk has thickened, add gradually to the dry ingredients and whisk.  The batter should pour without being runny because you don't want it to spread too far in the pan.  Depending on your flour you may need slightly more milk which you can just add without thickening.

Each pancake uses about 2/3 of a 1/4 cup of mixture, or you can go by eye.  Drop the batter into the center of the pan.  Leave for about 20-30secs, or until the top has bubbled and the sides have started to set, then flip.  The pancake will start to puff up, and at this point will only take 10 to 15 secs to cook through.  I watch for the sides setting.

Timing will change as you make more pancakes so reduce heat slightly as you continue.

Serve with yoghurt of your choosing and fruit.

Raspberry Pancakes with Raspberry Sauce (GF, DF, Ve option)

Pancakes are easy to make and I think are a better alternative to toast and jam, especially shop bought gluten free bread.  It feels more satisfying to have a cooked breakfast and you know exactly what you're eating too.  Eggs are a great source of B12 and some dairy free milks are fortified with vitamins.

You can also use flax seeds here to replace the egg and the mixture will work: 1tbsp flax seed to 2.5tbsp water. Mix and leave for 5 mins to thicken.

Make the batter the night before if you don't have a lot of time in the mornings.  Here I've added some soy natural yoghurt.

Health Benefits:

Pancakes: Fibre, vit. C, B12, B6, D

Toast and jam: Fibre, Iron, Vit C

Makes approx 8 pancakes

Pancakes

1cup (about 140g) GF plain flour

1 tsp baking powder

1 egg

up to 1 cup almond milk or any DF milk (240ml)

1/2 cup whole frozen raspberries (small handful)

Sauce

1 cup whole frozen raspberries (large handful)

1tsp maple syrup (optional)

1tsp water or apple juice

Blend the frozen raspberries into small chunks either all together and then separate 1/3 for the pancakes or in the separate quantities. Add the larger quantity to a small saucepan with the maple syrup and the water and put on a low heat to thicken into a sauce 'til you're ready.

Add the flour and the egg into a measuring jug with the baking powder and add the milk whilst beating the mixture.  You want enough milk to create a thick but pourable batter. Add the smaller quantity of raspberries and stir in.

Take a non-stick frying pan and put on a medium high heat 'til it's hot.

At this point you can use coconut oil or other oil to cook the pancakes but if you have a good pan, you shouldn't need to.  Pour the batter into the centre of the pan until it's about 10cm diameter (about 1/3-1/2 cup).  Cook 'til you see the sides of the pancake becoming solid (about 40secs).  The top will start to bubble and then with a spatula, flip the pancake, another 30secs on this side, the pancake will puff up a little bit and then it's done.  Repeat for all the batter.

The pan being hot is instrumental to cooking the pancakes quickly.  They will also take a bit longer if the batter is very cold.

Serve with the raspberry sauce, fruit, yoghurt and maple syrup or honey if you want something super sweet.  You can add chocolate chips to the batter for something more indulgent.