Soft oaty pancakes

There are heaps of oat pancake recipes out there, but it has taken me two years to finally try it out. The idea of dry oats interfering with the perfectly moist fluffiness of pancakes seemed treacherous to the very idea of pancakes. Especially uncooked oats. When I first started this blog, I’d make my own raw muesli and mix it with whatever I pleased, but I very soon tired of their texture and how they clawed their way down my throat each morning, even with plenty of milk. Since then oats have been consumed in the morning only as porridge or toasted muesli. Which is a damn shame, because since I discovered the awesomeness of soaking the oats overnight, I’ve been having raw bircher muesli and oaty pancakes multiple times a week.

The great thing about these pancakes it that the requisite soaking means that, since you make up the batter the night before, pancakes the next morning become a quick feat, not something you have to get up terribly early for. Though most pancake mixes don’t take that long to throw together anyway, there is something awesome about having everything ready to go in the morning. This recipe is super simple to put together the night before too.

I picked a recipe from Julie Le Clerc’s Made by hand, but instead of making it with the two types of gluten free flour I just substituted plain white flour. Still, these pancakes are quite a bit healthier than usual, with olive oil used instead of butter (you can’t taste it though), and lots of oats to boost the fibre content that will keep you full for longer. They also have a lovely nutty flavour from the oats, which makes it possible to substitute dairy free milk without making the pancakes too bland.

The best thing is that the oats give that nice almost-crunch without being dry themselves or making the pancakes dry. In short, these pancakes are oaty heaven.

Oat pancakes

serves 3-4

• 1 1/2c rolled oats (quick cook or old fashioned)
• 1/4c raw or brown sugar
• 1 1/4 c soy, rice, cow or almond milk, extra if needed
• 2 Tbs olive oil (not extra virgin) or cooking oil
• 1 egg
• 1/2 c plain white flour or 1/4 c rice flour + 1/4 c tapioca flour
• 1 tsp baking soda + 1 tsp cream of tartar OR 1 1/2 tsp baking powder + 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/4 tsp salt
• optional: 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• olive oil for frying

Cover rolled oats in sugar and milk, and let sit for ten minutes. Add oil and egg and stir to incorporate.

Sift in flour, baking soda, cream of tartar/baking powder, salt and cinnamon and stir until just incorporated. If you can, make these the night before and let batter rest overnight in the fridge.

Set oven on lowest temperature, and leave a plate in the oven to keep the pancakes hot (50-80C, or 120F). Lightly oil a frypan and heat on medium heat. A bead of water should crackle when flicked into the pan. Add some of the batter to the pan and cook until bubbles rise and pop on the surface, and the bottom is golden brown. Flip, and let cook until the underside is golden brown (this will take much less time than the first side!). Place cooked pancakes in the oven to keep them hot while you do the rest. The size you make them is up to you, but if feeding many, doing two to three small pancakes each batch makes them easier to divide for different flavours and makes them easier to flip.

Serve with your favourite pancake topping – if using the baking powder option, something acidic is good – I did that here with some orange slices, squeezing over some juice, and drizzling with honey.

Advertisement