The Corvallis Carrot

APPLE CINNAMON PANCAKES

INGREDIENTS:

1 c of buttermilk

(if you don't have buttermilk, see below for substitution)

1 egg

1 apple (grated)

1/2 c grapeseed oil (or canola)

1 1/2 t molasses

1 t cinnamon

1/8 t nutmeg (freshly grated)

1 1/2 c AP flour

1 t baking soda

1 t baking powder

1 t salt

1 T sugar

(for syrup)

2 T honey

1 T water

1/8 t cinnamon

yield: 17 -20 pancakes

Pancakes are delicious for a snack or breakfast. I love maple syrup, but my husband's not a fan. For these pancakes I've added a cinnamon-spiced honey to top them, but they really don't need anything at all. The kids love to eat them like they're cookies.

If you don't have buttermilk, it's really easy to make as long as you have milk and a lemon (or white vinegar). I will sometimes make my own buttermilk if I don't have it, because the added acidity really makes the pancakes light at fluffy. For this batch I made my own buttermilk.

1 c milk (or 1/2 c cream + 1/2 c milk for thicker buttermilk)

1 T lemon juice

Very simple.

Homemade buttermilk is not as thick as store bought, so I normally do half cream and half milk.

Add the lemon juice to the milk and let it sit for 5-10 minutes. The mixture will look curdled.

After the 5-10 minutes has passed it will be ready. It will be chunky, don't worry.

Add all of your wets, including apples and spices, to a tall measuring cup. Mix with the hand blender. I like the hand blender for this step because it helps cut up the apple even more to evenly distribute it throughout the pancake.

I always have whole nutmeg at my house. Pre-ground nutmeg doesn't have the same flavor. To grate it I use my microplane zester.

After everything has been mixed. It will be frothy and will smell a little like egg nog.

Pour wets into the dries and mix using a fork. You can use a whisk if you want, cleaning a fork is just easier for me, that's why I use it for most mixing tasks.

When all the dries have been incorporated, you're ready to fry.

I don't even know if "fry" is the technical term that should be used because you don't need any butter or oil in the pan. There is enough fat in the batter to keep it from sticking.

I make my pancakes on medium heat. This lets the pancake fully cook.

ALWAYS wait for the bubbles in the batter before flipping. If you don't see bubbles it's not ready to flip.

You don't want to rush them because you'll end up with a burnt pancake that's raw in the center.

The pancakes will have a nice medium brown color to them. Keep in the pan for another couple of minutes to make sure the other side has time to cook.

As I mentioned before my husband isn't a maple syrup fan so another option is cinnamon honey, mixing 2 parts honey/1 part water will give you a nice "syrup" consistency. Something else that I love with these pancakes is warm apple butter. So yummy.

My favorite honey comes from Queen Bee Apiaries. I get it at the co-op, but if you know someone who has bees, get some fresh local honey from them. You can't beat fresh local honey.

Wait until the bottom of the pancake starts to brown and then remove from the pan. The pancake should be light and fluffy and fully cooked.

Enjoy! I certainly did!