Gluten Free Pancakes For Pancake Day! | 3 Easy Recipes

Gluten Free Pancakes, Including Dairy-Free & Vegan Recipes

I love Pancake Day! I know it's real name is Shrove Tuesday but for me, it will always be Pancake Day! I just love pancakes. So, for Pancake Day, I thought I would share some of my tried and tested recipes for gluten free pancakes!

Pancakes Are A Quick And Easy Alternative To Many Wheat Products

When I found I was intolerant to wheat, I learned how to make a number of different types of gluten-free pancakes which I could have with meals instead of bread products. I know that many of our customers suffer with chronic pain and problems such as M.E. and I've heard that avoiding gluten can help with these issues. So, for Pancake Day, I thought I would share with you some of my tried and tested gluten-free pancake recipes! My wheat intolerance, along with other problems, was due to an imbalance of gut flora; good bacteria levels were low, yeast levels were out of control. I got this back in balance and my intolerances etc. were gone! I am now able to eat most things without consequence but I find myself leaning towards the gluten-free options because they are often healthier and they taste great!

Easier Than Pie

The following recipes are really quick and easy, especially once you get the knack. It's well worth a few trial and errors if your first batch doesn't go according to plan! Don't be put off, just experiment. There are no hard and fast rules to these recipes, you are free to deviate as much as you like! The secret of success of the pancake is not all in the consistency of the batter, though that does play its part. It also depends on variables such as the kind of pan you use, the hob you cook on, how much oil you use and how hot you get it. You'll find your own winning combination in no time. For the price of a bag of flour, you can't go wrong. Talking of flour, I use Doves Farm Organic Buckwheat Flour available in health food shops and many supermarkets. I use a variety of gram flours depending on what I find. Gram Flour is fine ground Chickpea Flour which is very popular in Eastern cooking, among other things, it is used to make bhajis. You will find Gram Flour in most Eastern food shops as well as in many supermarkets.

Gram Flour Pancakes

The first recipe I'm going to share is for Gram Flour Pancakes. To be honest it's more of a method than a recipe because it's up to you what quantity you make and it's basically about getting the consistency right. Makes 2 or 3 large pancakes.

Ingredients: 5 Tablespoons Gram Flour 150ml Water Pinch of salt 1 teaspoon of any spices you like, eg. tumeric, cumin, coriander, cayenne pepper, garam masala.

Method: Put the gram flour into a bowl or jug suitable for beating & whisking and break up any lumps with a fork. Stir in a pinch of salt and any spices you want to use. Add a very small amount of water (about a tablespoon) and mix vigorously into a thick paste using a fork, long prongs work best. Beat out all the little balls of flour by pressing them against the side of the jug/cup/bowl. You can add more water a tiny amount at a time until you reach a thick paste consistency. Now begin to add the rest of the water little by little, beating it in well each time. You are now aiming for the consistency of double cream.

If you use up all your water and your batter still feels way too thick, add more water but be very careful not to add too much. It can suddenly get too thin and it's much more difficult to add flour to the mix without getting lumps.

Buckwheat Pancakes, With Egg

Buckwheat is a brilliant flour for making gluten free pancakes, just ask a French chef, it's what they use to make the traditional Crepes of Normandy. Despite its name, Buckwheat is not a form of wheat. It is actually part of the rhubarb family and is gluten-free, not to be confused with Bulgar Wheat, which is wheat and isn't gluten-free! I have two methods of making Buckwheat pancakes, one with and one without egg, both are delicious. The one with egg one has slightly more integrity and a slightly richer flavour, the one without is also dairy free and therefore vegan. This is the one with egg. Makes 4 large Pancakes.

Ingredients: 1 cup Buckwheat Flour 500ml Milk 2 eggs pinch of salt

Break your eggs into a small bowl and beat them well. Add the milk and beat together until combined. Sift the Buckwheat flour into a mixing bowl and add a pinch of salt to taste. Add a small amount of the milk and egg mixture, beating it into the flour as you pour. Keep adding the liquid steadily, beating all the time to combine well with the flour. When you have added all the milk and egg, whisk freely to add air to the batter.

Dairy-Free, Vegan Buckwheat Pancakes

I have tried making these gluten free pancakes with various milk alternatives and unfortunately for those avoiding it, soya milk works best. Other kinds of milk such as oat and rice can be used but they make a thinner batter and, because of their sugar content, the milk cooks very fast and can caramelize before the pancake is cooked enough to eat. But if you are avoiding soya, do experiment! Like I said, there are no hard and fast rules to these recipes, you may discover your own winning combination that makes the perfect pancake!

Ingredients: 1 cup (14 tablespoons) Buckwheat Flour 500ml Soya Milk Pinch of salt

Method: Sift the Buckwheat flour into a bowl and add a pinch of salt according to your taste. Slowly add the soya milk, whisking all the time to combine with the flour. You want a thick, smooth batter about the consistency of double cream or slightly thicker. Once combined, whisk enthusiastically to get air into the batter.

Cooking Your Pancakes

I've written these instructions to be useful to anyone who has never made any kind of pancakes or hasn't had much success with them. There are also tips particular to these gluten-free recipes so have a read and accept my apologies to those of you who feel like I'm trying to teach my grandmother how to suck eggs!

Frying

When your batter is ready, heat your pan. Ideally, you would use a cast iron skillet, I have found them to make the best pancakes. When well kept, they're as good as non-stick for non-stick quality and their heavy base ensures even heat dispersal. Otherwise, use any large frying pan that your pancakes won't stick to, preferably with a heavy bottom, and turn the heat up high. When the pan is good and hot, add your oil. You only need a very thin coat of oil, I usually pour some into a small jug and use a pastry brush to paint on a layer of oil. Make sure you cover the whole pan. Let the oil heat up but don’t let it start smoking! Now you need to act quickly. If your panhandle gets hot, get your oven glove on now, before you pour the batter. Before ladling out each pancake, give your batter a quick stir. The thicker mix will have settled on the bottom of the bowl so recombine then scoop up a ladle full of the mixture. Pour the batter smoothly onto the centre of the pan and IMMEDIATELY lift and tilt the pan with the other hand to evenly distribute the pancake batter. When all the batter is in the pan, continue to tip the pan in all directions until the mix has reached right to the edges and filled in all the gaps. Put the pan back down on the heat.

Flipping

The trick now is to time it just right before attempting to flip your pancake. Too soon and you'll have a mushy, gluey blob of pancake batter in your pan, too late and you'll burn your pancake Cooking time varies from one pancake batter to another and depending on the weight and metal of your pan. Heavy based pans need the heat to remain quite high, though do turn it down if the oil starts smoking! Lighter weight pans need the heat turned down lower to prevent burning and sticking. Generally, the Buckwheat Pancakes cook quite quickly and need a close eye on them. Gram Flour Pancakes take longer than you think and you have to hold back on trying to turn them too soon as they will stick. While your pancake is cooking, don’t mess about with it! When you think it is done, you can tease the edges away from the pan to look underneath. When the pancake comes away easily from the pan, use a fish slice or angled spatula to slide underneath from the edge to the centre and pull it out again. Repeat two or three more times around the pan to lift the pancake away from the pan. You can now either toss the pancake (not so easy with cast iron!) or flip it quickly over with your spatula by sliding it right underneath, lifting the pancake and quickly flipping it back into the pan the other way up. It won't take as long to cook on the other side so be careful not to overdo it. Then once again flip or toss your pancake, check if it's done, flip back if need be, check again and flip, toss or tip your finished pancake onto a plate, ready to serve!

Next!

Get straight onto the next pancake. With nothing in the pan, the remaining oil will quickly start to smoke so quickly paint or spray on some more oil, get your glove on, stir the batter and ladle out the next pancake. Don't worry, the first pancake doesn't count (unless you got lucky and you made a perfect pancake first time!) Eat the scraps of your failures while you get on with the next one, which will be fine because the pan is ready now and you've had a practice. Keep them coming until you've used up all your batter and either serve as you go to the eagerly awaiting hoards or stack them up on a plate and keep warm til you're ready to eat. You could cover with foil (shiny side down) or a clean tea towel or keep them in a warm oven.

Toppings

I have used these pancakes in dozens of different ways. I make gram flour pancakes to go with curries instead of chapatis, buckwheat pancakes to use in place of tortilla wraps and buckwheat with egg pancakes for desserts. I recommend gram flour pancakes for savoury dishes and both types of buckwheat pancakes for sweet or savoury. Here are a few ideas for inspiration but just experiment with whatever you have in your cupboards and whatever suits your taste:

Gram Flour Pancakes with:

Garlic mushrooms and goats cheese Refried beans, salsa and grated cheese Tarka dahl and rice

Buckwheat Flour Pancakes with:

Poached Eggs and wilted spinach Camembert and cooked beetroot Cashew nut butter and steamed purple sprouting broccoli

Sweet:

Banana and cinnamon with grated dark chocolate Fresh berries and maple syrup Fresh lemon juice and brown sugar

Enjoy your pancakes! Thankyou for reading and Happy Pancake Day from all of us at Blue Badge Co!

www.bluebadgecompany.co.uk