a simple {real food} recipe :: soaked oat pancakes {dairy and egg free options, nut and gluten free}

I really cannot tell you how many different pancake recipes I have tried 🙂  I like to do pancakes every other week or so – but not just any pancake – something that is going to be filling, nutritious, and not send my families’ blood sugar through the roof!  One of my favorite recipes is this one by Real Food Freaks – we make these coconut flour pancakes once a month, and freeze the rest for putting in the toaster on a busy morning, or used as a “sandwich” bread. Coconut flour is extremely nourishing and very filling. We love it!

One week I was really running low on coconut flour, however, and really didn’t have much else to make pancakes with. I figured since the only other thing I had for the rest of the week was a bag of oats, I might as well just soak them, and make a big batch of oatmeal to hold us over until I was able to shop. Then my brain started turning – why not grind the oats up into oat flour and soak that instead of just the oats, and make pancakes out of it!

We all pretty much fell in love with this recipe and I usually make enough of it to freeze as well 🙂

(To read about why soaking grains like oats makes them more digestible and nutritious – read this! It really only takes a few seconds to set it up the day before!)

Here’s what you’ll need:

3 cups ground/blended oats (or oat flour)

6 TB homemade whey or plain whole milk yogurt (if dairy free use coconut milk yogurt or real lemon juice!)

¼ cup flax meal

½ tsp baking soda

½ tsp sea salt

¼ cup pure maple syrup (local if possible!)

¼ cup coconut oil (or butter)

1 tsp vanilla extract

2 pastured eggs (if egg free 2 flax eggs or egg replacer works!)

1. The night before you want to make the pancakes put the oat flour and whey (or yogurt) in a medium bowl. Fill with filtered water to cover, and let it sit in the warmest spot of your kitchen overnight up to 24 hours.
2. The next day, add the rest of the ingredients to the bowl and blend with a hand mixer until well combined.
3. Add tablespoons of water or whole milk to thin out the batter to your liking, or leave it as thick as you wish.
4. Cook on a hot griddle in coconut oil or butter, flipping when the batter starts bubbling – just like regular pancakes!

Kitchen Tips:

1. You don’t *have* to soak the oats if you are not “there” yet – I would rather you make this up with oat flour and no soaking versus grabbing the Bisquick instead! You will just need to add water or milk to make the batter the consistency you wish 🙂 The soaking only takes minutes to set up before you go to bed the night before though!
2. We usually top these pancakes with coconut butter, real butter, or peanut or sunbutters! I occasionally put the maple syrup on the girls’ pancakes – they really don’t miss it!
3. Since these pancakes are mostly grain, I do usually serve just one pancake for my girls with a side of an egg and a glass of fresh milk for protein and fats. The coconut flour pancakes from Real Food Freaks are like a whole breakfast in one so I only serve those with coconut butter and a glass of fresh milk – proteins, fats, and fiber! They are amazing! And if you happen to be eliminating grains like oats – it’s the perfect substitute! I have done that recipe with egg replacer as well if you are egg free and it works great 🙂
4. In the winter our kitchen is quite cool so I put the light on in my oven and set the oats in there to soak.
5. I have found Amazon.com to be the cheapest source for getting my grains/flours so far. It comes in bulk and is remarkably cheaper than the our local grocer and health food store – I’m all about supporting local business, but I have to do some give and take for our affordability.

YOUR TURN!

Do you have pancake morning in your house?! Let me know how you like the pancakes if you try them!

I will have a couple great recipe posts for you next week after the holiday! Everyone have a beautiful end to your summer!

This post was shared at Real Food Freaks Freaky Friday!