Ingredients for Making Pancakes
All you need to make pancakes is flour, baking powder, sugar, salt, oil, milk, and an egg. The only equipment necessary is a single bowl, a whisk, and a griddle or skillet. Anything else is optional. One of the things I love about this recipe is how very versatile it is. You can use a mix of all-purpose and whole-wheat flour. (For the pictures featured here, I used half whole-wheat flour and half all-purpose.) You can also use all whole wheat flour, but the pancakes may be a little dense. I often make multi-grain pancakes out of these, making sure that the total amount of flours added is 1 cup. I sometimes substitute in a little barley flour or millet flour. To easily make the pancakes 100% gluten-free, make them out of all millet flour. Millet flour is slightly nutty, like cornmeal, and a tiny bit sweet. Millet flour pancakes will be a little delicate to flip, but will otherwise cook normally. I sometimes double the sugar or add brown sugar instead, and add in vanilla or almond extract. Sometimes I add cinnamon or other baking spices. If you really like butter in your pancakes, you can use melted butter in place of vegetable oil, but I prefer the neutral flavor of oil in these.Tips for Making Pancakes
When you make pancake batter, use a whisk, and mix the batter until just combined. Do not overmix. A few small lumps in the batter are okay.Pancakes for Dinner
These easy pancakes are perfect for a quick dinner. Why? They're cheap to make. They require no advance planning. You probably already have all the ingredients for them in the house. And you go from hungry to dinner in 15 minutes. Late in my pregnancy with Amelia, we ate pancakes for dinner once a week because they involved minimal cooking. It's seriously satisfying. Just pull a package of bacon or sausage out of your freezer to cook alongside them (or scramble some eggs if you're into that kind of thing). In place of a vegetable, I usually saute some chopped apples on the stove with a little brown sugar and cinnamon to round out the meal. If I don't have meat or eggs as a side, I toss on some nuts for protein. Honestly, your pancakes will be done before the rest of your food is.What to Serve on Pancakes (other than syrup)
Part of why I love pancakes is that they're so versatile. You can dress them up a number of ways other than just using syrup.- Add extra sugar, brown sugar, vanilla extract, almond extract, or cinnamon to your batter.
- After scooping the batter onto the griddle, place blueberries or M&Ms on the wet batter. Flip and cook as usual.
- Top cooked pancakes with cinnamon sugar.
- Top them with whipped cream or fresh fruit or nuts.
- Top them while warm with chocolate chips.
- Top them with crumbled bacon or serve with sausage. (I like eating bites of sausage with bites of pancake, personally.)
📖 Recipe
Easy Pancakes
This quick and easy recipe for pancakes involves minimal cooking. Just mix together 7 ingredients and cook. You'll be eating in 15 minutes!
Servings: 8 pancakes
Ingredients
- 1 cup all-purpose flour, whole-wheat flour, or a mix (120 grams)
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon table salt
- 1 egg
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil (28 grams)
- ¾ cup milk (180 grams)
- add-ons (such as blueberries or M&Ms) (optional)
- syrup (to serve)
Instructions
- In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. Add egg, vegetable oil, and milk. Use a whisk to mix until just combined. Do not overmix; it's okay to have lumps.
- Set batter aside for 5 minutes while you heat an electric griddle (affiliate link) to 375F (or medium-high heat on the stove).
- If your griddle is non-stick, you don't have to oil it. Otherwise, wipe it with a thin layer of vegetable oil or butter, or spray with cooking spray.
- Scoop about ¼ cup per pancake onto the griddle. (If using add-ons like blueberries or M&Ms, add them to the surface of the pancake now.) Cook for 2 minutes, until bubbles pop through the surface of the pancake and the sides begin to look dry.
- Flip pancakes, then cook for another minute. Remove from the griddle, and serve.
Notes
Make pancakes multigrain by substituting in other flours for portions of the all-purpose flour. Sometimes I substitute in a little barley or millet flour. Buckwheat flour and cocoa powder can be added for no more than ¼ of the flour, but pancakes will be susceptible to scorching.
Make them 100% gluten-free by substituting millet flour for the all-purpose flour. Pancakes will be a little delicate to flip, but will otherwise cook normally.
Tips:
Use a whisk, and mix the batter until just combined. Do not overmix.
Let the batter rest 5 minutes while your pan or griddle heats. This is important as it helps the batter thicken.
Do not stir the batter before scooping it onto the hot griddle, or you will lose some of the bubbles and fluffiness.
I recommend using an electric griddle (affiliate link). You can cook an entire batch of pancakes at once, and it provides uniform heat. If it's non-stick, there's no need to grease it.
If you only want to eat half a batch of pancakes, wrap the remaining pancakes in a couple of layers of plastic wrap and stick them in a freezer bag. You can also refrigerate cooked pancakes and gently reheat them within the next few days. Or, cook half of the batter and refrigerate your leftover batter for a day or two. Do not stir the refrigerated batter before you scoop it onto the hot griddle.
Adapted from the Betty Crocker Cookbook
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