Oatmeal Pancakes

I recently ordered Good to the Grain: Baking with Whole-Grain Flours by Kim Boyce and it has inspired me to experiment with different kinds of flours. With the help of my trusty L'Equip 760105 VitalMill Grain Mill, I have been discovering all kinds of new grains and flavors. One of my favorites is oat flour. Oat flour is ground groats--the same stuff oatmeal is made of but it is whole instead of steamed and rolled into "old-fashioned rolled oats". Or if you do not have a mill, you can also grind rolled oats using a food processor or spice grinder until it becomes flour. Oat flour is now a new favorite of mine because it has a delicious sweet milky taste. It is also gluten free, which means you must mix it with other flours to provide the necessary structure.

My first experiment with oat flour was used in this wonderful recipe for oatmeal pancakes. It was fantastic and it beat eating a bowl of oatmeal for breakfast!



Oatmeal Pancakes

Dry Mix:
3/4 cup oat flour
1 cup all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons natural cane sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
3/4 teaspoon kosher salt

Wet Mix:
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
1 1/4 cup whole milk
1 cup cooked oatmeal
1 tablespoon unsulphered molasses
2 eggs
1 tablespoon vanilla extract

1. Sift all the dry ingredients into a medium bowl. In a large bowl whisk together the wet ingredients.
2. Gently fold the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients until just combined. DO NOT OVERMIX.
3. Heat a 10-inch cast-iron pan or griddle. Rub the pan with butter. Using a 1/4 cup, pour batter onto the pan. Cook about 5 minutes or until golden brown on each side.
4. Serve hot with butter or topping of choice.

Source: Adapted from Good to the Grain: Baking with Whole-Grain Flours by Kim Boyce.