Almond Blueberry Pancakes

This recipe is a revision of my Mom's recipe that she used to make us as kids. Mind you, as a kid they were made of white/wheat flour and cow milk. She also used to make them in large quantities to feed my large family and whoever else was hanging around at our house on a Saturday morning. I guess you could say that we were a family that loved a big hearty breakfast together over the weekend, and we all took part in the making of it. I was usually in charge of the pancakes and/or the scrambled eggs. I would stand there over the stove with 3 hot frying pans, making sure each one turned out just right. Which would seem to take hours (especially if you were making 30-40 pancakes). I usually would just make them plain, but then I started getting requests for chocolate chip pancakes, mickey-mouse head pancakes, blueberry pancakes, cinnamon pancakes... and the list goes on. So, to say the least it gave me some experience when I was trying to convert this famous recipe into a Gluten-Free nutritious one. I still love to have some variety of whatever fruit is in season, or make a lot of them if we are away with friends at a cottage. Pancakes for breakfast remind me of good times and slow, restful mornings, so enjoy!

Mix: 

1/2 cup organic buckwheat flour

1/2 cup of sweet sorghum flour

1/2 cup of organic brown rice flour

1/2 cup of ground almond (in the coffee grinder) or almond meal

1/2 cup of gluten-free oats

2 TB of baking powder

1 ts. of arrowroot powder (or gaur gum works too)

2 TB of sucanat, or raw sugar cane

1/2 ts. sea salt

1/8 cup of light oil (olive oil or walnut oil)

1 cup of almond milk

1 large cage-free, grass-fed chicken egg

I mix the batter thoroughly and make sure the batter consistency is thick to pour, and not too watery. If it is watery add a little more of one of the flours.... or if it is a bit thick, then add a bit more almond milk or lemon/orange juice for flavor as well. Let the batter sit a minute so that the baking powder starts to activate and it starts to have a few bubbles on top of the mix. 

I use a 1/4 cup measuring cup to measure and pour into my lightly oiled frying pan. I like to oil my pan with either a light baking olive oil or walnut oil is my favorite because it has such nice flavor. Make sure that you let the pan warm up a bit and then turn down the heat just a tad when you are ready to pour in the pancakes. Pour at the most 3 little pancakes in a pan, you want to make sure yo have enough room to flip those babies.

I sprinkle a handful frozen organic blueberries onto the pancakes when they are in the frying pan, about a min after you pour the batter in. Let the sides of the pancake and the bubble holes on top of the pancake tell you that it is probably ready for flipping. Take is slow and easy and try and flip the pancakes without blueberries flying all over. I found that sprinkling the blueberries on top after you pour the batter allows the blueberries to sink into the pancake and cooks the blueberries to release their juices and flavor better. 

If you desire you could sprinkle some cinnamon or nutmeg in this batter to add some spice, but it is good without as well. 

They are done once you can't see any more uncooked batter and the juices from the berries are starting to pour out. I top these babies with a little agave nectar instead of syrup, but I have also had just a touch of pure maple syrup on them as well. Which is heavenly!

I have varied the fruit, with cherries and chocolate chips, apples and cinnamon, and peaches... so really add a little of this and that when you want, but the base recipe of the pancakes themselves has always worked for me. This GF version is actually a 1/3 of the recipe of my Mom's. So you can triple this recipe and make enough for 30-40 people. But this recipe will make about 10-12 pancakes, so usually good for 3-4 people. Hm, now settle in on your weekend and enjoy a special gluten-free breakfast for me.