PT Kitchen: Four-Grain Fitness Pancakes

Author

Jess Kehoe, DPT

My kids see the buttermilk container in the refrigerator and know that is the necessary ingredient for pancakes, so all last week they incessantly were asking for them on Saturday.  

Whether it's just a regular weekend morning or you're celebrating the holidays with only your quaran"team", sometimes it's nice to have a good pancake recipe.  I'm a huge fan of basic buttermilk pancakes, but when I think I need to sneak some more health into my morning meal this is my go-to.

​These cakes still turn out fluffy, the key to this being separating the and beating the egg whites.  This batter is a little thicker than the average pancake batter and the beaten egg whites injects a ton of air into the cakes. However, if this is too much, you can simply mix the whole egg in and they are still quite tasty.  

I'm also not terribly strict with the different kinds of flours.  You can use any combo, as long as the total amount is the same.  This weekend I used Kamut and Oat flours instead of rye and barley and I have flax in a huge Costco bag, and have substituted this for the wheat germ.  

I'm also reading "Cooked" by Michael Pollan and spending time with my daughter, aka "little mixer" in the kitchen, making something yummy seems like just the right kind of thing to be doing in late 2020.  

Enjoy!

Four-Grain Fitness Pancakes

1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup whole-wheat flour
1/2 cup rye flour
1/2 cup barley flour
1/4 cup cornmeal
1/4 cup toasted wheat germ
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
2 large eggs, separated
1 1/2 cups buttermilk
1/2 cup milk
1/4 cup canola oil
2 tbsp honey or maple syrup

In a large bowl, whisk together the buttermilk, milk, oil, honey and egg yolks.  Mix the dry ingredients into the buttermilk mixture until just combined.  Beat the egg whites until soft glossy peaks form, then fold these into the batter, try not to over mix.

Heat a griddle over medium heat, grease lightly.  Spoon batter on to the griddle.  Let them cook until bubbles appear on the surface and the edges look dry, about 2 minutes, flip and cook about 1 more minute.  Serve immediately with any pancake toppings you enjoy.