Basic Gluten-Free Vegan Pancakes

(vegan, gluten-free)

I have incredibly fond memories of my father’s Saturday morning pancakes. He was a creature of habit with an engineer’s experimental mind, so once he tweaked the recipe and ritual to his liking, he rarely veered from its course. The whole process was a sacred ritual.

It began with him announcing to the household that he was making pancakes. Next he put on his favorite Jethro Tull album, “Songs from the Wood.” He then mixed together his time-tested recipe, complete with a blend of white and whole-wheat flour, egg whites whipped separately and folded back in, and real maple syrup on the table. His pancakes were hearty and delicious, much better than the white wispy pillows found at commercial establishments.

As a father, I have tried to take on the sacred pancake ritual with my own family. I tried selecting my own personal pancake music, but as my sons got older, they begged me to stop playing oldies before they had fully woken up. So, I turned my creativity toward experimentation. Sometimes the pancakes followed my father’s recipe to the letter, sometimes I replaced the eggs with banana and/or flaxseed, and sometimes I mixed in fruit, nuts, chocolate, carob, or spices. As my family’s dietary needs changed, the recipe changed as well. And then eggs got very expensive.

What I present to you now is a good old-fashioned hearty pancake recipe that is gluten-free and vegan. Feel free to add your own twist, be it chocolate chips, cinnamon and pecans, blueberries and strawberries, or cardamom and almonds. Or just make them plain and drown them in your favorite maple syrup. Jethro Tull is not required, but it is recommended.

INGREDIENTS

• 1 cup millet flour
• ½ cup sorghum flour
• ¼ cup tapioca starch
• ¼ cup potato starch
• ¼ cup soy milk powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 tablespoon double-acting baking powder
• ½ teaspoon xanthan gum
• 1 tablespoon ground flaxseed
• ¼ cup canola or other mild vegetable oil
• ¼ cup sugar
• 1 ½ cups plus 2 tablespoons water

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Whisk together millet flour, sorghum flour, starches, soy milk powder, salt, baking powder, and xanthan gum.
2. In a separate bowl, mix together flaxseed and 2 tablespoons water. Let sit for 5-10 minutes to hydrate and form a mucilaginous mixture.
3. Mix together flaxseed, oil, sugar, and water. Add liquid ingredients to dry ingredients, and stir just until no lumps remain. Let sit for 10 minutes to hydrate.
4. Heat a thin layer of oil on a griddle or frying pan over medium heat until the oil starts to shimmer. Pour a ¼ cup of batter onto the pan, and let it cook a couple minutes until bubbles start to form in the center. Flip pancake and cook the other side.
5. Remove pancakes and let drain on paper towels. Serve with favorite topping (maple syrup, sorghum syrup, honey, fruit sauce, barbecue sauce, etc.).

Makes 8 pancakes.